second installment on the platform art exhibit series. worthwhile to dropby, a nice change from pseudo art exhibits that litter bangkok.

look at it this way, it’s not at the met bar, so at the very least it’s going in the right direction. though i can’t promise that there won’t be pretentious fucktards pretending to know what’s going on.

it’s not so bad to be confused. i’ve got to give it to the organisers, they’ve transformed the space magnificently. and they have staff at the exhibit to help you understand the works on display.

and for the record: lod chong singapore is not from singapore. it’s only called that because the original stand used to be by singapore movie theatre. like yentafo wat khaek.

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Platform:New Media Lab, the second exhibition of the Platform project featuring interactive media art by Thai and Australian artists.

The exhibition will be on view at the the Art Center at Chulalongkorn University (Center of Academic Resources, Central Library, Level 7) from November 23 - December 16, 2006. The opening reception is this Thursday (November 23) at 6 - 8pm.

Platform: New Media Lab is curated by Manuporn Luengaram and David Teh and will feature artists Udom Taepanich, Porntaweesak Rimsakul, Koichi Shimizu, Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr, Kata_Duck Unit, Alex Davies (Aus) and Ryan Griffth (Aus).

Design is not just about style and inspiration. Throughout history, the design process has been conditioned by the social, political, economic, geographical, and religious contexts and factors.
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Bangkok’s known for it’s amazing variety of eating venues and Alex’s restaurant (Sukhumvit Soi 31) is a welcome addition to the crowd. Situated in this oh-so-hi-so area is a modern, minimalist style restaurant serving modern Australian cuisine.
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15 years as a cabin crew for a major airline , I have taken part in 100’s of tours around the world, and been to Bangkok so many times.

I recently went on this fantastic bicycle tour in and around Bangkok. The company Absolute Explorer takes you first to the amazing small streets of BKK around the local markets, then you embark on a local train for a short 1 hr ride to the countryside where you continue your bicycling tour. The reason this tour is so good is because of the human experience and the interaction with the Thai villager and kids. You will bicycle at a very easy relax pace amongst the rice fields you will stop for lunch (surprisingly good ) in the head of the village house (very rarely one is able to penetrate into a house and experience how people really leave.), you will eat coconut from the trees, see all kinds of plant life.

Next stop, I went to a local school. I had brought the kids some color pencils and other things to donate to the school. The kids love the interaction with the foreigner as they do not see them often. I felt I have done something useful and brighten my and their day. I spoke about my country in their classroom to improve their English.

Now this is only possible because of the Thai guide who speak perfect English and able to interact with the local people . I felt I was not just a tourist passing by, as the guide made us involve all the time being the link between us and the local. For example I stopped along the way and the Thai farmer asked me to plant the rice for them and with great humor asked me to come back for the harvest as well

Because the communication was constant I not only enjoyed the countryside and the cycling but got a real idea of Thai culture, I loved the interaction between me and the local . Too often us, tourist are used for our money and rushed there and there but with Absolute Explorer it was a rare time where I could get really close to the people and be appreciated as a person . This small village is not spoiled by tourism and that’s why this experience was so great .

Story Submitted by: Sebastien (dubaikite@hotmail.com)