'It's my solo exhibition and these are all invited artists," Angkrit Ajchariyasophon quipped, pointing to the white panel boards from which 20 paintings hang -- each of them authored by a different artist but none by Angkrit himself.
For the duration of a month, the artist and gallerist of Artist + Run on Narathiwas Road is taking over Speedy Grandma, even replacing the original sign in front of the Charoen Krung art space with his own yellow neon "Angkrit Gallery Bangkok".
The exhibition is a waggish and touching walk through Angkrit's journey as a curator from Chiang Rai to Bangkok, his past and upcoming collaborations with several Thai artists.
When Unchalee Anantawat, the co-founder of Speedy Grandma, approached him last year with the idea of a solo show, she had something different in mind.
"Unchalee wanted to showcase my paintings. But instead, I came up with these wooden boards," he said, knocking on the panels he created to form a gallery within a gallery.
Visitors enter the exhibition through a narrow corridor between the high boards and the concrete walls, to finally find themselves inside a small-sized replica of Artist + Run.
If you happen to run into Angkrit during your visit, you're in luck. For the curator has countless stories to tell about each of the artists he's ever worked with since opening his first gallery -- Angkrit Gallery in Chiang Rai -- in 2009.
"I'm comfortable with being both an artist and a curator. I don't think you have to be one or the other," he said. "My whole life, I have been doing several things at once -- cooking and painting, so this doesn't feel out of the ordinary."
In Chiang Rai, Angkrit hosted his close friend Uten Mahamid, a writer and artist, in his home for nearly 10 years. Desperate to show Uten's work to the public -- and despite the latter's initial reluctance -- he turned the second floor of Jae Saharos restaurant, which he managed at the time, into an art space.
Today, a black and white painting by Uten can be found at Angkrit Gallery Bangkok, alongside works by Thaiwijit Puengkasemsomboon, Somyot Hananuntasuk, Tawan Wattuya or Paphonsak La-Or.
A corner of the exhibition also showcases works by young artists working on Narathiwas 22, where Angkrit's current gallery, as well as other art spaces Cartel and VER, are located.
The large panels, which prevent any peeking through the windows to catch a glimpse of the art, create a sense of surprise and intimacy fitting the exhibition's theme.
"I'm an open person. But in my relationships with others, be they personal or professional, I'm decidedly private," he siad.
"Angkrit Gallery Bangkok" runs to March 3 at Speedy Grandma, Charoen Krung Road.
