Our picks for the best things to do in Bangkok this weekend

Jesper Haynes presents a photography exhibition that looks back at downtown New York in the ‘80s and ‘90s with clear eyes and no soft focus. Faces feel close, streets feel tight and the city shows itself without asking for permission. Featuring figures like Andy Warhol and Naomi Campbell, the work traces Haynes’ long fascination with street life, sparked when Warhol invites him to New York as a teenager and quietly changes his direction. Haynes earns a reputation for photographing the edges of urban life with honesty that never feels staged. His black-and-white images read like pages torn from a private notebook, raw but deliberate. Often described as a rebel diarist, he documents nights, friendships and passing moments that refuse nostalgia. What stays with you is the intimacy, as if the city leans over to tell you a secret and trusts you not to interrupt.   January 24-February 14. Free. Chaloem La Art House, midday-6pm

A pork shop in a Narathiwat market becomes an unlikely stage for Thijme Maassen’s first solo exhibition, and that feels entirely the point. The Dutch sculptor, who moves between Thailand and the Netherlands, borrows the rhythms of butchery – slicing, grinding, hanging – and folds them back into his own methods. Pork appears not as metaphor but as matter, loaded with labour, habit and familiarity. Maassen also toys with the cartoon pigs found on shop logos, all smiles and cuteness, spoons raised. Reused here, those friendly faces start asking awkward questions about appetite and denial. Two drinks created with Duemdum Space,  Reset Sip, Eating Pork? arrives as lemon tea in a water bucket, while Plum-Boiled Pork Cola leans sweet and strange. Both are for staying put and talking longer.   January 31-February 3. Free. Duemdum Space, midday-9pm

FUSE makes his Thailand debut with IGNITE, a solo exhibition that sits between cultures without trying to smooth the edges. Born in 1985 and now based in Tokyo, he works through oil paint, folding Japanese and American pop references into images that feel familiar yet slightly unsettled. At the centre is LOOKA, a recurring figure shaped by cloud-like lines that never quite settle. The form shifts from canvas to canvas, hovering between character and idea. Guided by the notion of seeing with the mind’s eye, LOOKA looks back at a world crowded with information, searching for something steadier underneath. Clouds stand for freedom, though they also blur vision, turning clarity into mist. That tension runs quietly through the work. Nothing here offers easy answers, only a reminder that truth often hides behind soft edges and patient looking.   Until February 8. Free. KYLA Gallery and Wine Bar, 3pm-midnight

FUSE makes his Thailand debut with IGNITE, a solo exhibition that sits between cultures without trying to smooth the edges. Born in 1985 and now based in Tokyo, he works through oil paint, folding Japanese and American pop references into images that are familiar yet slightly unsettled. At the centre is LOOKA, a recurring figure shaped by cloud-like lines that never quite settle. The form shifts from canvas to canvas, hovering between character and idea. Guided by the notion of seeing with the mind’s eye, LOOKA looks back at a world crowded with information, searching for something steadier underneath. Clouds stand for freedom, though they also blur vision, turning clarity into mist. That tension runs quietly through the work. Nothing here offers easy answers, only a reminder that truth often hides behind soft edges and patient looking.   Until February 8. Free. KYLA Gallery and Wine Bar, 3pm-midnight

Bangkok welcomes 2026 with a knowing wink as Muse Anime Festival sets up at JAM SPACE, a familiar meeting point for pop culture devotees. This is less trade fair, more shared obsession. Fourteen anime titles spread across 17 photo zones turn fandom into a walk-through experience, complete with oversized sets and scenes designed for lingering rather than rushing. Expect towering inflatables of Momo and Okarun from DAN DA DAN plus Rimuru, the eternally cheerful slime, looming large for cameras. Beyond the visuals, shelves fill with officially licensed pieces and harder-to-find imports, tempting even the disciplined collector. Food gets its own moment too, thanks to a themed cafe riffing on SPY x FAMILY and That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime.    January 10-March 29. Free. 4/F, MBK Centre, 11am-9pm

Jesper Haynes presents a photography exhibition that looks back at downtown New York in the ‘80s and ‘90s with clear eyes and no soft focus. Faces feel close, streets feel tight and the city shows itself without asking for permission. Featuring figures like Andy Warhol and Naomi Campbell, the work traces Haynes’ long fascination with street life, sparked when Warhol invites him to New York as a teenager and quietly changes his direction. Haynes earns a reputation for photographing the edges of urban life with honesty that never feels staged. His black-and-white images read like pages torn from a private notebook, raw but deliberate. Often described as a rebel diarist, he documents nights, friendships and passing moments that refuse nostalgia. What stays with you is the intimacy, as if the city leans over to tell you a secret and trusts you not to interrupt.   January 24-February 14. Free. Chaloem La Art House, midday-6pm

The next most important thing after love Maho Takahashi’s solo exhibition speaks softly, trusting that memory does the heavy lifting. Her works return to a gentler world, one that feels familiar even if it cannot be placed exactly. Childhood appears not as nostalgia but as texture: fleeting moods, half-remembered comforts and the quiet confusion of growing older without noticing it happen. Rather than spelling anything out, Takahashi leaves space. Images hover, emotions shift slightly and meaning waits for the viewer to bring their own history to the surface. It feels personal without becoming precious, reflective without leaning sentimental. This is an exhibition that understands growing up as an ongoing process rather than a finished state. Children moving towards adulthood sit alongside adults still figuring things out, often using the same tools. What lingers most is a sense of permission to feel gently, to remember unevenly and to accept that some memories work better when left a little unresolved.   Until March 8. Free. CURU Gallery, midday-5pm

Charoenkrung knows how to make old things feel alive. The market returns after last year’s warm reception, settling back into the neighbourhood with a confident, well-worn ease. The edit leans thoughtful rather than excessive: clothes with a past, jewellery that carries a little attitude, handmade bags, small artworks, home pieces, secondhand books, vintage tableware and vinyl that deserves another listen. Each item arrives with its own backstory, quietly competing for attention. This is less about bargain-hunting and more about connection. Makers chat with collectors, browsers linger longer than planned and Thai-designed craft sits comfortably beside international finds. Framed by the wider design festival, the market feels like a shared living room for the creatively curious, where taste is personal and discovery happens at an unhurried pace. Come for one object, leave with a handful of stories and a reason to return.   January 29-31 and February 1,6 and 8. Free. Charoen43 Art and Eatery, 11am-6pm 

Song Wat turns playful without losing its sense of history. For Bangkok Design Week, the district becomes a walkable board game, stretching across streets that once carried trade, gossip and daily deals. Building on the earlier manhole cover project, this new chapter invites visitors to play merchant, navigating landmarks and stories that shaped the neighbourhood’s working life. Set along Song Wat Road at Tuk Khaek, Merchants of Song Wat reimagines the area as a network of warehouses and shops. Players move as caravans, trading goods, striking bargains with local businesses and slowly building their own corner of commerce. The rules stay friendly, the visuals clear, drawing from familiar colours and signs around the area.    January 29-February. Free. Song Wat, 2pm-8pm on weekdays and 1pm-7pm on weekends.

Paint dries quickly here. Art Battle Bangkok turns making art into a public sport, with artists racing the clock and the audience watching every decision unfold. Each round allows just 20 minutes, enough time for instincts to take over and nerves to show. Viewers wander between easels, close enough to see mistakes corrected and ideas shift in real time, then vote to decide who moves forward. Three rounds keep the pace sharp and the mood competitive without losing its warmth. Every finished work heads straight to auction, blurring the line between spectacle and support for the artists involved. You can turn up simply to watch or apply to paint yourself, joining a community that values risk over polish. Open to all ages, the event connects Bangkok to a global series staged across more than 50 cities worldwide. February 1. B99-350 via here and B450 at the door. The Fig Lobby Bangkok, 7pm