Photo by Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Courtesy of the SCAI THE BATHHOUSE
Apichatpong sets his films in Thailand.
And many feature ordinary people rather than professional actors. Utilizing simple plots originating in notes about everyday emotions or events, or based on the advice of fortune-tellers, the films are put together in an improvised manner from inspirations and reactions found in the dialog and the lives of the subjects. Rather than being produced on just a specific topic, Apichatpong‘s videos are created through the organic reverberation between fiction and documentary. As a result, they develop through the interaction of many different things, capturing the immediacy of the real world and the freshness of unrefined rhythms and tones.
|Selected Exhibitions |
1988 "World Artists for Tibet Exhibition", Project 304, Bangkok
2000 "Euro-Visions", Silpakorn University, Bangkok
2001 "7th International Istanbul Biennial", Turkey
"EGO FUGAL from 7th international Istanbul Biennal", Tokyo Opera City Art
Gallery, Japan
"Tirana Biennale 1", Albania,
"Traversees’, Musee d’art moderne de la Ville de Paris
2002 "Alien {gener} ation", The Art Center, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok,
"Under Construction: New Dimensions of Asian Art", Japan Foundation Forum
and Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery, Japan
2003 "Under Construction: New Dimensions of Asian Art", Tokyo Opera City Art
Gallery, Japan
2004 "SENI Singapore 2004: Art and the Contemporary", Singapore Art Museum
"Slow Rushes", CAC Contemporary Art Centre, Vilinus, Lithuania
"Slow Rushes for Auckland", Artspace, Auckland, New Zealand,
Busan Biennale, Korea
"Videotraffic", ArtSonje, Seoul, Korea
2005 "Do You Believe in Reality?", Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei Biennial
Wonderbox, 11e Biennale de l'image en Mouvement, Geneva, Switzerland
The Pantagruel Syndrome, T1-Turin Triennial, Italy
KunstenFESTIVALdesArts, Brussels, Belgium
"Politics of Fun", Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin
"The IX Baltic Triennial of International Art", Contemporary Art Centre
Vilnius, Lithuania, BMW
"Anna Sanders Films"Kunstverein Munchen, Munich
"Anna Sanders Films" KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin
"Bangkok-Bangkok" Institut de cultura de Barcelona, La Capella, Barcelona
2006 solo show, Solar galeria de arte cinematica, Vila do Conde, Portugal,
Waterfall
"FAITH", FACT gallery, Liverpool Biennale, Liverpool, UK
WATERFALL, Cinematic Art Gallery, Vila do Conde, Portugal
"The 5th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art", Queensland Art
Gallery, Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane, Australia
"Grey Flags", Sculpture Center, New York, USA and CAPC Musee
d’artcontemporain, Bordeaux
"Cinema(s)" Magasin, Centre national d’art contemporain, Grenoble, France
2007 solo show, Commemoration, Beursschouwburg, Brussels,
"Space for your future", Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Japan
"Discovering the Other", The National Palace Museum, Taipei, Taiwan
"Unknown Forces", REDCAT (Roy and Edna Disney/ CalArts Theater), Los
Angeles, USA KunstFilmBiennale 2007, Cologne and Bonn, Germany
2008 solo show "Replicas", SCAI THE BATHHOUSE, Tokyo, Japan
ArtUnlimited, Art 39 Basel, Switzerland
55th Carnegie International, USA
Singapore Biennale 2008
retrospective in British Film Institute (BFI)
retrospective in Anthology Film Center, NY
"The 4th International Video Art Biennial in Israel", Tel Aviv
"International Triennale of Contemporary Art", Prague
"The Third Guangzhou Triennial", China
2009 solo show, PRIMITIVE, Haus der Kunst, Minich
solo show, PRIMITIVE, Musee d'Art moderne de la Ville de Paris
solo show, PRIMITIVE, FACT, Liverpool
solo show, Tropical Mysteries, Luminous People, Die Filme Von Apichatpong
Weerasethakul, Arsenal, Institut fur Film und Videokunst, Berlin
solo show, Phantoms of Nabua. The Box, Wexner Center for the
Arts,Columbus, Ohio retrospective in Filmmuseum, MunchnerStadtmuseum,
Munich
"UN AUTRECINEMA: Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster /Apichatpong Weerasethakul",
Le Spot, Le Havre, France
"The view from elsewhere", Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation (SCAF),
Sydney
"The view from elsewhere", Queensland Art Gallery, Gallery of Modern
Art,Brisbane, Australia
2010 solo show, NATIVE LAND, SCAI THE BATHHOUSE, Tokyo
Adelaide Festival of Art 2010, Adelaide, Australia
Media City Seoul, South Korea
MEDIATIONS Biennale, Polland
retrospective in 51st Thessaloniki Film Festival, Greece
"Transformation’, Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Japan
2011 solo show, PRIMITIVE, New Museum, New York
solo show, PRIMITIVE, Overgaden Institute for Contemporary Art,
Copenhagen,with a retrospective at CPH:PIX Copenhagen Film Festival
solo show, PRIMITIVE, University Museum of Contemporary Art (MUAC),
MexicoCity with a retrospective at FICUNAM Festival Internaticional de Cine
solo show, For Tomorrow For Tonight, Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin
solo show, For Tomorrow For Tonight, UCCA, Beijing
"Our Magic Hour’, Yokohama Triennale 2011, Japan
2012 "Boy: A Contemporary Portrait", Leo Xu Projects, Shanghai, Documenta 13,
Kassel
"To Bring the World into the World", InterAccess Electronic Media Arts
Centre, Toronto
"Lille3000: Fantastic 2012", Lille
"Thai Transience", The Singapore Art Museum (SAM), Singapore
2013 solo show "Photophobia", The Stenersen Museum, Oslo
"Re:emerge, Towards a New Cultural Cartography", The 11th Sharjah Biennial
11, Sharjah, UAE
2014 solo show "Photophobia", Kyoto City University of Arts Art Gallery, Kyoto
solo show "Fireworks (Archives)", SCAI the Bathhouse, Tokyo
"FAITH AND FAIRY TALES: New Media Art for Thailand", DM Gallery, School of
Art,Design and Media at NTU Singapore
"A Journal of the Plague Year", Arko Art Center, Traveling exhibition from
Para-site HK
2015 solo show "Fever Room", Asian Arts Theatre, Gwangju, Korea, a performance
by Apichatpong Weerasethakul
"Retrospective: Apichatpong Weerasethakul", The 53rd Gijón International
Film Festival, Spain
"Mobile M+: Moving Images", Midtown POP, Hong Kong
"A Journal of the Plague Year", Kadist Art Foundation, Traveling exhibition
from Para-site HK, San Francisco
"TODAY IS THE DAY - 70th Years Memorial of Atomic Bombs in Hiroshima’,
Watari-Um Museum, Tokyo, Japan
2016 "Tate Film Pioneers: Apichatpong Weerasethakul: Mirages", Tate Modern,
London (Retrospective of Films and Videos)
solo show "Memorandum: Apichatpong’s Retrospective of Films and
Installations"Cinema Galeries, Brussels, Belgium
solo show ‘The Serenity of Madness: Apichatpong’s Retrospective", MAIIAM
Contemporary Art Museum, Chiang Mai, Thailand
"The Future is Already Here - It’s Just Not Evenly Distributed", 20th
Biennale of Sydney, Sydney, Australia Saitama Triennale 2016, Saitama
"Aomori EARTH 2016: Roots and Routes", Aomori Museum of Art, Aomori
"BODY / PLAY / POLITICS", Yokohama Museum of Art, Yokohama
"Apichatpong Weerasethakul: Ghosts in the Darkness", Tokyo Photographic
Museum,Tokyo
2017 "Ryuichi Sakamoto | Async' (participated as a collaborator), Watarium
Museum,Tokyo
"Sunshower: Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia 1980s to Now", Mori Art
Museum,Tokyo
"Locus', EYE Film Museum, Amsterdam The 14th Lyon Biennale, Lyon
solo show 'Memoria', SCAI THE BATHHOUSE, Tokyo
"Building Romance",Toyota Municipal Museum of Art, Aichi
2018 "Luminous Shadows", CAC, Lithuania
solo show ‘Apichatpong Weerasethakul: The Serenity of Madness", Núcleo de
Arte da Oliva S. João da Madeira, Portugal / Oklahoma City Museum of
Art, Oklahoma City/Sullivan Galleries, School of the Art Institute of
Chicago, Chicago/ Museum of
Contemporary Art and Design (MCAD) Manila, Philippines/Para Site, Hong
Kong/MAIIAM Contemporary Art Museum, Chiang Mai, Thailand
"People Walking the Future", Museum of Contemporary Art Busan, Busan
"MAM Project 025:Apichatpong Weerasethakul + Tsuyoshi Hisakado", Mori Art
Museum, Tokyo
"Arte Mundi’ 2018, National Museum Cardiff, UK
2019 Biennale Arte 2019, Venice, Italy
2020 solo show "Apichatpong Weerasethakul: The Serenity of Madness", Taipei
Fine Art Museum
2020 Daisuke Miyatsu: 25 years of video art - A point of transit signals from East and South East Asia, ALIEN Art Centre, Kaosiung, Taiwan
|Filmography / Features and Awards |
2000 MYSTERIOUS OBJECT AT NOON (Dogfar Nai Meu Marn) (documentary)
35mm, 83 minutes, Dolby SR, 1: 1,85, B&W
Runner Up Award, Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival, Japan,
2001
NETPAC Special Mention Prize, Yamagata International Documentary Film
Festival, 2001
Grand Prix - Woosuk Award, JeonJu International Film Festival, Korea, 2001
Special Citation, "Dragons & Tigers," Vancouver International Film
Festival, Canada, 2000
2002 BLISSFULLY YOURS (Sud Sanaeha)
35mm, 126 minutes, Dolby SRD, 1: 1,66, Color
Le Prix Un Certain Regard, Cannes Film Festival, France, 2002
Golden Alexander Award – Best Film, Thessaloniki Film Festival, Greece,
2002
Grand Prize, TOKYO FILMeX, Japan, 2002
The Circle of Dutch Film Critics (KNF) Award – Rotterdam International
Film Festival 2003
The International Critics Award (FIPRESCI Prize) – Buenos Aires Film
Festival 2003
Silver Screen Award: Young Cinema Award – Singapore International Film
Festival 2003
Best International Film Award – Images Festival, Canada 2004
2003 THE ADVENTURE OF IRON PUSSY (Huajai Toranong)
Digital Video, 90 minutes, Stereo, Color
(Co-directed with Michael Shaowanasai)
2004 TROPICAL MALADY (Sud Pralad)
35mm, 118 minutes, Dolby SRD, 1: 1,85, Color
Prix du Jury, Cannes Film Festival, France, 2004
Age d’or Prize, Cinédécouvertes, Belgium, 2004
Grand Prize, Tokyo Filmex, Japan, 2004
Critics Award, São Paulo International Film Festival, Brazil, 2004
Best Film, The xx International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival in Turin,
Italy, 2005
Special Jury Prize, The xx International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival in
Turin, Italy, 2005
Special Jury Prize, Singapore International Film Festival, Singapore, 2005
Special Jury Prize, Indianapolis International Film Festival, USA, 2005
2006 SYNDROMES AND A CENTURY (Sang Sattawat)
35mm, 103 minutes, Dolby SRD, 1: 1,85, Color
(In competition, Venice Film Festival, 2006)
Best Film Award, The 9th Deauville Asian Film Festival, France, 2007
Best Editor Award, Asian Film Award, Hong Kong, 2007
Special Mention: Fribourg International Film Festival, Switzerland, 2007
Honourable Mention: Adelaide Film Festival, Australia, 2007
2010 UNCLE BOONMEE WHO CAN RECALL HIS PAST LIVES
35mm, 118 minutes, Dolby SRD, Color
Palme d’Or, Cannes Film Festival, France, 2010
Best Film, Asian Film Award, Hong Kong, 2011
Best Cinematography - Muhr AsiaAfrica Award, Dubai International Film
Festival, 2010 (for Sayombhu Mukdeeprom and Yukontorn Mingmongkon)
Jury Prize, RiverRun International Film Festival, North Carolina, USA,
2011
National Film Association Award for Best Sound, Thailand, 2011, for
Richard Hocks, Chalermrat Kaweewattana, Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr
Best Foreign Language Film, Toronto Film Critics Association Awards, T
Toronto, 2011
2015 CEMETERY OF SPLENDOUR
122 minutes, DCP, Color
Asia Pacific Screen Award, Australia, 2016
Grand Prize, Bildrausch Film Festival, Basel, Switzerland, 2016
|Selected Public Collection |
Centre Pompidou, Paris
Tate Modern, London
Musee d'Art moderne de la Ville de Paris
Japan Foundation
Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo
Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Japan
Louis Vuitton
M+
Tokyo Photographic Art Museum
Mori Art Museum, Japan
Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive
DIB MUSEUM AND FOUNDATION, Bangkok
2020.05.22-2021.01.03