The BACC – Bangkok’s Ache and Cold Cure

Today I was half-ill.

It was one of those ‘not quite ill enough to stay in bed, but not quite well enough to feel normal’ days. Yesterday was a full-blown head exploding, nose running a marathon, muscles on fire day, but thankfully after a copious amounts of paracetamol, herbal tea and a rather miraculous dose of headache and flu curing soundwaves, I was back to about 70% of my usual bouncy self today.

The problem with being half-well though, is that you’re perky enough to want to do lots of things, but not perky enough to actually do them. So after a spot of meditation to quieten my racing mind (and the workers fixing the door downstairs), I went to the one place of sanctuary in this noise-infested city I can always rely on in such times of “oh what to do!” crisis: the BACC. Bangkok’s unfailingly inspiring and education Art and Cultural Centre.

Visitors at the BACC

Whether it’s a new exhibition, a peruse of one of the many artsy pop-up shops and crafty stalls, or a documentary or film festival, this place never ceases to offer a good hour or three in which to lose oneself and one’s troubles. In the eight months I’ve been in Bangkok I’ve seen exhibitions exploring the conflict in Thailand’s Deep South, the Thai people’s beloved late King Rama 9, and the importance of land and water conservation.

Hand-drawn ink dot art

Recently, they held a Thai Short Film Festival and screened a huge number of international and Thai short documentaries and films. The subjects ranged from a revisit to the site in Phuket where a young girl lost her family in the 2005 tsunami; to a creepy tale of love and death in a Catholic nunnery hidden in the Thai forest; to a heart warming and humorous story of an unwanted jacuzzi. 

An amazing 3D fantasy world, dragon included!

On the fourth floor is the cosy home of SEA Junction, a group that hosts English discussions, documentaries, art workshops and even musical performances around South East Asian themes. I’ve never left one of these free events without feeling more informed, inspired and challenged. They cover an array of topics from Rohingya refugees to the art of batik.

Down in the basement you’ll find the Art Library – a small collection of guides on drawing, painting, sewing, knitting, paper crafting etc. as well as art magazines and books in Thai, the content of which I am therefore clueless about. It is usually full of students and older people reading or on the computers. There’s a brightly coloured kids’ corner too.

Today’s BACC discovery was an exhibition of amazing ink drawings for a competition by a pen manufacturer. The results were some incredibly detailed and imaginative pieces. I don’t know if there was a particular competition theme but a lot of the entries seemed to revolve around death… or maybe Thai artists are just particularly morbid creatures. Anyway, you can see a selection of my faves here; just a handful of the hundreds on display!

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The BACC is free to enter and get lost in, with the occasional fee for a special exhibition or event. Well worth a visit, especially on those half-ill or “I want to do something but I don’t know what” days. I guarantee you’ll be glad you went (and no, I’m not being commissioned to write this)!