Art exhibitions this May

File this under art that gently scrambles your certainty. Regular Art, a solo outing by Bangkok-based painter Suchaya Thongrom, takes conspiracy culture and gives it a surprisingly soft landing. Familiar internet myths reappear as tender, offbeat scenes, equal parts sly joke and quiet reflection. Each canvas toys with belief – why we cling to strange explanations, how fiction often says more than fact. You catch yourself smiling, then second-guessing. Proof matters less here; imagination does the heavy lifting, and it’s far more entertaining.

Until June 7. Free. KYLA Gallery and Wine Bar. 3pm-midnight

Grain, shadow and a knack for framing take centre stage in this quietly striking show by Polish cinematographer Lubniewski. Shot on 35mm, the images carry the language of cinema without ever becoming stills; each frame suggests a story mid-scene, caught somewhere between passing glance and private memory. Years spent in Thailand shape the work, with street corners, soft light and everyday encounters rendered with a watchful eye. Nothing looks overworked. Film grain lingers, colours shift unpredictably, and small imperfections hold their ground.

May 7-16. Free. RCB Artery, River City Bangkok. 10am-8pm

Cats, and then more cats. Millions of CATS and ONE CAT by Niam Mawornkanong starts playfully enough, before turning quietly unsettling. Rows of near-identical felines gather across the canvas, repeated, rearranged, slightly off. What reads as cute at first glance soon sharpens, becoming a study of sameness, systems and the strange comfort of blending in. Set against a backdrop of algorithm-led imagery and machine-made aesthetics, the work questions how identity holds up when everything starts to look alike. Each figure acts less as a portrait and more as a unit, part of a wider pattern where individuality slips and repetition takes over.

Until May 22. Free. Art Jewel Gallery, Siam Paragon. 10am-8pm

Cosmic scale meets quiet introspection in COSMOLOGY, the first Thailand solo by Shizuoka-born artist Yuko Takagi. The title hints at galaxies and star charts, yet the focus shifts closer to home, tracing links between the vast unknown above and the equally unfathomable terrain of the mind. Memory, belief and emotion stretch outward here, forming constellations of their own. Takagi works with traditional Japanese techniques, layering gold and silver leaf with mineral pigments to build luminous, textured surfaces. These materials carry centuries of spiritual weight, often tied to sacred imagery, yet appear here in a more fluid, contemporary register. Beeswax and mixed media add depth, catching light in ways that shift as you move.

Until May 24. Free. Galerie Monument. 10am-6pm

Small moments stack up in Some, the debut solo by Sayaporn Apornthip. Detailed paintings gather people, animals, objects and passing scenes, each one caught mid-thought or mid-action. The title does the heavy lifting: ‘some’ as fragments, ‘sum’ as what happens when they collect. A glance, a pause, a half-forgotten afternoon – all filed together as memory. Sayaporn treats everyday life with care, giving equal weight to the ordinary and the quietly significant. Nothing shouts for attention, yet everything holds it. It’s a gentle reminder that meaning isn’t fixed. At times life adds up neatly, at others it drifts. Either way, these small records stay, offering a moment to slow down and take stock.

Until May 28. Free. 6060 Arts Space (white building). midday- 8pm

High above the city, Mahanakhon SkyVerse trades skyline views for something more theatrical. The latest exhibition turns its attention to Thailand itself, gathering familiar sights and cultural touchpoints, then reshaping them through light, sound and scale. Nine rooms carry you across shifting scenes: waterfalls crash, coastlines shimmer, neon-lit streets glow after dark. Landmarks appear, then dissolve, while regional crafts and traditions surface in unexpected ways. Projection mapping and laser work do the heavy lifting, building environments that change with every step. It makes a strong case for looking again at what’s already in front of you, just framed with a little more spectacle.
Everyday. B350 at the door. King Power Mahanakhon. 10am-9pm

A white room, stripped back to essentials, sets the tone at Bangkok Kunsthalle. Description Without Place brings the work of Absalon to Asia for the first time, gathering all six of his Cells in one space. These compact, geometric structures read less like architecture and more like propositions: how little do you need to live, and what does that say about who you are? Absalon treats ‘home’ as a condition rather than an address. Each unit offers a tightly controlled environment, designed for solitude, discipline and clarity. No excess, no distraction, just the bare framework of daily existence. Comfort slips, routine sharpens, and the question lingers long after you leave: what actually makes a place yours?

Until May 31. Free. Bangkok Kunsthalle. 2pm-8pm

Distance does the talking in this quietly considered show by Apichaya Wannakit, curated by Stefano Rabolli Pansera. Developed in part during a residency at Palazzo Monti, the paintings read as self-portraits with a twist. Not likeness, not direct observation, but what lingers after – fragments of memory, softened impressions, traces that refuse to settle. A series of paravents anchors the presentation. These folding screens act as both barrier and stage, concealing as much as they reveal. You catch glimpses, then lose them again. Image slips between surface and structure, never fully fixed.

Until May 31. Free. Bangkok Kunsthalle. 2pm-8pm

Colour takes charge in this punchy crossover show by Hugo Brun, where contemporary art meets furniture with a confident shrug. Chairs, tables and sculptural pieces arrive in vivid contrasts, each one pushing against expectation without losing its sense of play. Brun draws from both city life and the natural world, pairing organic forms with sharper, urban lines. Materials shift from smooth to textured, polished to raw, often within the same piece. The result sits somewhere between functional object and statement artwork, refusing to settle neatly in either camp. It’s bold without shouting, inventive without trying too hard, and just the right amount of unexpected.

Until June 29. Free. G/F, Siam Discovery. 10am-8pm

First staged in Cheongju Craft Biennale, this group exhibition arrives in Bangkok following a debut as the Invited Country Pavilion in Cheongju, South Korea. The project grows from an ongoing exchange between Thailand and the Republic of Korea, setting craft alongside contemporary art across Southeast and East Asia. At its core sits ‘Elastic Time’, a curatorial thread that questions how time behaves across the region. Forget neat timelines. Here, past, present and future overlap, repeat and quietly reshape one another. The Cheongju edition sets the tone as a cross-cultural conversation, where material, process and memory carry equal weight. Artists approach craft not as something fixed, but as a way to consider what unfolds now, and what might come next.

Until August 16. Free. Jim Thompson Art Center. 10am-6pm

Colour takes the lead in CHROMATIC: A Journey Through Neighborhood Color, a photography exhibition tracing people, culture and daily life across three central Bangkok districts: Song Wat, Pak Khlong Talat and Phahurat. Here, colour works as more than surface detail, linking identity, memory and place across each frame. The images capture movement across streets shaped by trade, vendors and long-standing routines, where community life unfolds in steady rhythm. Expect scenes that shift between quiet observation and busier moments, each grounded in everyday experience. The exhibition forms part of WALKK: Bangkok Re-Birth, a wider programme inviting visitors to trace stories shaped by time, changing ways of life and the city’s historic quarters.

Until May 31. Free. TAY Songwat. 9.30am-5.30pm

A contemporary exhibition and workshop programme takes on questions of security and precarity within today’s art landscape, focusing on those often left at the edges. The project centres Thai artists aged 40-plus who continue working without institutional backing, whether overlooked by selection systems or quietly stepping away from formal circuits out of necessity. The programme creates space for these voices without dressing them up, pairing exhibitions with workshops that favour exchange over instruction. 

Until May 31. Free. Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, 10am-8pm

Picture a Bangkok street where artists work in front of you, jazz drifts through the air and conversation comes easily between stalls. That’s the mood as the fourth Bangkok Art Walk returns to Chakraphong Road and Lan Luang Road, bringing art, collectibles, home decor, music and playful activities together across six weekends. It starts on April 25-26 and May 2-3 with art, books, vinyl and cassette shops, ideal for a slow browse and a few well-chosen finds. On May 16-17 and May 23-24, street art takes focus alongside fashion stalls and wellness activities such as city running and cycling. The final weekends, June 13-14 and June 20-21, close with an art market, plus plant shops and pet goods for a softer finish.

Until June 21. Free. L’On Bangkok, Chakkaphatdi Phong Road and Lan Luang Road. 4pm-10pm

Paint starts flying as Art Battle lands in Bangkok, turning the room into a fast-paced studio. Artists race the clock across three rounds, each given 20 minutes to create their strongest work while the crowd circles the easels, watching every decision unfold. The format keeps things simple. At the end of each round, the audience votes to decide who moves forward, shaping the outcome in real time. Every piece then goes up for silent auction, so you can leave with a favourite if bidding goes your way. Now staged in more than 50 cities worldwide, Art Battle brings together competition, community and a front-row view of creativity under pressure.

May 23. B99-450 via here. The Fig Lobby Bangkok. 7pm

‘Preserve, Maintain, and Extend’ sounds almost instructional, yet the White Elephant Art Competition treats it as an open question. Artists answer in their own language, moving freely across form and surface. Among the works that linger, Branches of the Era by Theerapol Seesang carries a steady gravity, while Doi Ang Khang by Boonmee Saengkham leans closer to memory and place. Recognition matters, but it never overwhelms the wider conversation. Each year, this show marks a subtle shift, where technique evolves and ideas stretch, leaving visitors with something to sit with long after.

Until May 17. Free. Bangkok Art & Culture Centre, 10am-8pm

Kan Limsathaporn takes River Flows in You by Yiruma as a starting point, letting its familiar melody settle across a series of landscapes shaped by water. Rivers and streams stretch across the canvases, never fixed, always shifting, as if the scene refuses to stay the same for long. Each painting holds a small pause, though nothing truly stops. Colour drifts, edges soften, and time slips past almost unnoticed. 

Until April 16. Free. M Floor, Maison Hotel Bangkok, 10am-8pm

Marc Butler’s latest solo show, disappear here stepping through a cracked mirror. He builds a world shaped by human appetite, where spectacle teeters on the edge of collapse, never quite settling. Sculptures appear raw, almost unsettled, filled with distorted figures, hybrid symbols and fragments that feel oddly familiar. His material language stays direct, refusing polish, which gives each piece a kind of restless energy. Installations spread outward, forming spaces that feel immersive yet slightly uneasy, as if everything exists on repeat. References to consumerism, power and stylised violence slip through without announcement. Moments of dark humour sit beside something more pointed, asking quiet questions about participation. 

April 21-May 23. Fakafei Gallery, 10.30am-6.30am

Craft here reads like a way of staying present. The exhibition looks at time across Thailand and Southeast Asia as something layered and cyclical, shaped by ritual, labour and shared experience rather than strict progression. Makers move between past and present with a quiet ease, holding inherited knowledge while adjusting to what now demands. Objects carry that negotiation, each one marked by repetition. Slowness becomes intentional, offering an alternative to constant speed and easy consumption. Nothing feels rushed, yet nothing stands still either. 

April 30-16 August. Free. Jim Thompson Art Center, 10am-6pm

Bangkok does not always demand skyscraper gazing. Sometimes it hands you a pocket-sized booklet and suggests a long walk. The BAC Passport returns with its Winter Edition 2026, turning the city into a living sketchbook where each stamp is an achievement. You pick up the passport, roam between art spaces, collect marks and trade them for souvenirs created by actual artists. It plays out like a cultural scavenger hunt, only with better stories to tell afterwards. This season gathers 27 destinations and splits them across four routes, from Old Town corners to riverbank hideouts. Pick up your passport at one of seven locations, including Ratchadamnoen Contemporary Art Center, Bangkok City Library, Chula Museum, River City Bangkok, Princess Galyani Vadhana Institute of Music, Asvin or Numthong Art Space. You have until May 31 to complete the journey.

Until May 31. Free. Art spaces across Bangkok.