Love art? Here’s a handy guide to the MOCA Bangkok

The Museum of Contemporary Art in Bangkok, which celebrated its 10th anniversary this year, was born from the personal collection of Boonchai Bencharongkul, the founder of Thai telecoms giant DTAC. Today the museum is run by his son Kanachai, but the presence of the elder Bencharongkul — who remains a guiding force — is palpable throughout the imposing building. 

Better known as MOCA Bangkok, the sheer granite façade houses over 1,000 works of art by Thai and international artists. The dramatic lightwell at the center of the building and the jasmine-petal cutout windows bathe the minimalist white interior with natural light. The interiors are the work of PIA, one of Thailand’s leading design firms.

The Italian artist who defined Thai art 

MOCA’s collection is first and foremost Bencharongkul’s tribute to Silpa Bhirasri, easily the most influential figure in 20th-century Thai art. His statue stands at the center of the lobby. (Visitors with a sharp eye will also spot a second figure of Bhirasri at work behind a window above the lobby area.) 

Bhirasri, born Corrado Feroci in Florence, is considered the father of modern Thai art. The Italian founded Silpakorn University to promote the study of fine arts and to produce artists who created works that were an integral part of khwambenthai or Thainess, the essence of Thai national identity. The Italian artist was himself naturalized as a Thai citizen in 1943. 

The collections

Though recent acquisitions include some edgier, more socially-minded pieces like the videos of Kawita Vatanjyankur, in which the artist uses her own body as a digger or a toilet brush to reflect on the human condition, the collection was originally designed to be an introduction to official art from the Silpakorn school of thought, its students and the national artists who enshrine that distinctly Thai identity. 

Buddhist religion is intertwined with that identity, and that fact is reflected not just in traditional but also contemporary art. On the second floor, artists like Chalermchai Kosipipat — who was named a National Artist of Thailand in 2011 and whose works revolve around Buddhist beliefs and themes — figure prominently. Kosipipat is perhaps best known for his on-going project Wat Rong Khun, or the White Temple, a hugely popular attraction in the northern city of Chiang Rai. 

The room reserved for the monumental tryptic “Heaven, Earth and Hell” by Sompop Buddharat, Panya Vijitthanasarn and Prateep Kochabua represents another interpretation of those beliefs. Visitors pass through a Space Mountain-esque entrance with swirling galaxies overhead, a physical reminder of humanity’s small place in the cosmos.

National Artists and Disciples of Silpa Bhirasri

Some of the most prized jewels of the MOCA collection are perhaps the works displayed on the ground floor. These include prints by Chalood Nimsamer, sculpture by Paitun Muangsomboon, and pieces by Khien Yimsiri, whose work is reminiscent of Henry Moore with whom he studied. The art pieces have pride of place in the galleries located next to the museum’s lush outdoor amphitheatre. 

The works of another acclaimed national artist, the architect Thawan Duchanee, occupy much of the fourth floor. Visitors may be familiar with his Black House, also located in Chiang Rai, a collection of 40 structures that contain bleak depictions of eternal damnation, inspired by the Thai tradition of hell gardens that remind the faithful of each punishment, sometimes in graphic detail, that is meted out for different sins. 

Though MOCA calls itself a contemporary art museum, that’s something of a misnomer. On the top floor, the Richard Green galleries showcase academic paintings anchored in the romantic codes and conventions of the 19th century. The whiff of Victorian respectability makes these rooms among the most popular with selfie snappers. The museum also displays an impressive collection of traditional masks, shadow puppets, marionettes and accessories, not just from Thailand but from around Asia. And yes, visitors can pose as if they were wearing a mask, too. Many were used in performances that recount the Ramayana and Mahabharata epics. 

One more design detail that visitors will appreciate: the exquisitely whimsical wooden benches by master carpenter Saiyart Semangern from which to better enjoy the art are strategically positioned throughout the museum. 

MOCA Bangkok is open from 10am-6pm Tuesday to Sunday. Entrance fee is THB 250; for students and seniors over 60 years of age, it’s THB 100. Accessible by car, bus or the newly opened Bang Khen SRT Red Line station that originates at Bang Sue Grand Station.