Truth and its alternatives

The art scene gets a little “ridiculous” this weekend with an interesting show at the H Gallery, and also delves into the “Open Secrets” of Thai documentary movies.
Opening tonight at 6.30, the exhibition “State of the Ridiculous” at the H Gallery has Tuksina Pipitkul and Wantanee Siripattananuntakul exploring the playful and provocative side of popular culture.
Curator Brian Curtin has mounted a show about the silly, the laughable and the derisive approaches to social commentary, a fine and timehonoured way of demonstrating that what is supposed to have profound meaning is, in fact, often quite ridiculous.
Visitors find themselves running a gauntlet between the delightful and the ominous. The two women artists examine the fragility of social hierarchies, the flux of cultural symbols and the arbitrary attribution of value in personal and market exchange.
“The politics of play and playfulness has long informed the serious work of alternative and critical cultures, from art to activism,” the show’s prepublicity notes. “This exhibition explores the depoliticising sensibilities of local understandings of play and fun as a retreat into wilful ignorance and failure to face political realities. Oscillating between the carefree and the consequential, ‘State of the Ridiculous’ subversively demands that we look again at how we can imagine and relate to difficult circumstances in the contemporary world.”
Tomorrow at the Chulalongkorn Art Centre, lecturer Suebsang Sangwachirapiban will open the exhibition “Open Secrets” exhibition, a selection of 11 of Thailand’s “best” documentary films – by Jakrawal Nilthamrong, Kaweenipon Ketprasit, Kong Rithdee, Panu Aree, Pisut Srimhok and visual artists Santiphap Inkongngam and Sutthirat Supaparinya.
The filmmakers will discuss “Documentary Films: Mirrors of Society” at 5pm, ahead of the opening reception at 6.30.
The seven filmmakers have earned solid reputations at home and abroad. Their movies address obscure but critical social phenomena and changes in the country’s natural environment, belief systems, lifestyles and even localised history over the past decade.
The title “Open Secrets” anticipates the revelation of overlooked or ignored issues. “These are the truths that have been hidden from the eyes of society, especially in an urban setting, where focus is always placed on the self,” says a press release on the show.
Each documentary reflects its maker’s personal investigations and direct experience. “Each offers a door of exploration for the viewers to open and witness what they probably have yet to realise or think about.
“The visual experience created in this show also reflects the aesthetic development of Thai documentaries from 2003 to the present. These films have their own unique storytelling, employing narrative tools and techniques distinctive to each filmmaker, all promising stimulation to the Thai film industry and engaging dialogue with the audiences.”

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Plan your visits

The exhibition “State of the Ridiculous” continues through April 26 at the H Gallery. Find out more at www.HGalleryBkk.com.
“Open Secrets” continues through April 10 at the Chulalongkorn Art Centre. Get the details at www.CAR.chula.ac.th/art/en.