Kuy is an ethnic group in north-eastern Thailand who have been living closely with elephants for centuries. The house for the Kuy and the house for elephants are modest, but are embedded with consideration for one another. In Venice, the two houses are reconstructed in a way that stresses the relationship between the two. The smaller helps the larger to stand, and the larger shades and protects the smaller. Amid conflicts and crises, our territory and another’s may overlap more in the future. Perhaps this community is a microcosm of how to live together – even for different scales and species – and will remind us that our future buildings will also strive to embrace those different to us.
Commissioners: Office of Contemporary Art and Culture, Ministry of Culture and the Association of Siamese Architects under Royal Patronage
Curator: Apiradee Kasemsook
Exhibitor: Boonserm Premthada