BANGKOK

With its boho bars, blossoming crop of art and design festivals, and a burgeoning Creative District, the Thai capital is becoming a Southeast Asian hotspot for lovers of art.

- Lee Cobaj

The crowd jump to their feet as local star Chulachak ‘Hugo’ Chakrabongse takes to the stage with a tip of his straw hat. “He was signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation record label and wrote Beyoncé’s song Disappear, which appeared on her I Am... Sasha Fierce album,” explains my friend, foreign correspondent and long-time Bangkok resident Philip Sherwell, as the Thai actor/model/musician works the crowd with his easy bluegrass beats. “Hugo’s also related to the royal family,” adds Philip.

Unlikely as it seems from this popstar performance, Hugo comes from the royal line of King Rama V, one of the most forward-thinking monarchs in Thailand’s history. It’s an attitude that’s worked its way down the generations, as Hugo’s mother, Narisa Chakrabongse, doesn’t just undertake royal duties, but is also an author, environmentalist, owner of publishing house River Books and organiser of the Bangkok Edge Festival, where I now sit happily tapping my toes. This ‘festival of ideas’ pops up every other February in the grounds of royal enclave Chakrabongse Villas (which is also a boutique hotel) and in the opulent Museum Siam, close to the Chao Phraya River.

It’s just one of dozens of festivals and creative events that populate Bangkok’s increasingly packed cultural calendar. There’s also Galleries’ Night, when venerable museums and galleries across the city throw open their doors after hours; Bangkok Art Biennale, which takes over the city for four months every other year and forged ahead in 2020 despite Covid-19.