A pragmatic and no-nonsense approach informs the work of this architectural photographer who has shot for some of Thailand’s best and brightest architectural studios
Ketsiree Wongwan does not mince her words. She explains herself in as matter of fact as she can, with a refreshing candor. This straight-to-the-point ethos is also evident in her architectural photography, in which views and angles seem to mimic the unfussy orthogonal views you find in sober architectural drawings or in 3D modelling software: front, back, top, and the occasional two-point perspective. And therein lies the appeal of Wongwan’s photographic work: one is able to enjoy the architecture in as direct and simple a manner as possible. Her photographs portray a project’s sense of scale and proportion, its genius loci, and its architectural story through decisive angles. We find out how a failing grade in architecture school led Wongwan to reinforce the gut feeling she had to follow through with her interest in photography.
Can you briefly recount how you started as an architectural photographer? Did you have a background in architecture before you chose this career path?
It all goes back to when I was an architecture student and I was taking a class called ‘Photography and Design’. Our professor invited a senior alumnus, who was working as a photographer, as a guest speaker. Listening to him talk, I realized that I could balance something I love, photography, with the field I was currently studying about.
It was only when I got an F for the ‘Design’ component when I knew that becoming an architect did not have to be my only career choice. Failing gave me more free time during senior year to do photography. I then applied for an internship at art4d, a Bangkok-based architectural and design magazine. I’m currently still working for them as a photographer.
What attracts you to architecture as a photographer?
This story is from the Special Issue 1 2018 edition of BluPrint.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the Special Issue 1 2018 edition of BluPrint.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Windows Over Windows
It’s what you do when you’re a green-loving architect like Formzero’s Cherng Yih Lee, and your client isn’t interested in the forest outside
The Office Of New Life Stories
D-Associates Architect’s office building in Jakarta is just how principals Gregorius Yolodi and Maria Rosantina want it— green, creative, and nurturing—just as they want their team to be
Stark Beauty
When you’ve got great bones designed by Park + Associates, the structure should be the architecture
Sunday's Best
Willis Kusuma’s multi-functional Mister Sunday elevates the Jakarta café scene with the timelessness and formal honesty of concrete
Brut Force
Raw concrete is experiencing a renaissance, but how compatible is it with tropical weather? Jakarta-based architect and frequent concrete user Willis Kusuma responds
Workaholics Finish First
Bangkok’s Architectural Studio of Work-Aholic (ASWA) takes their first stab at WAF and counts on the power of spatial storytelling to take home the prize
People Obssessed With Design
Park + Associates: Crafting architecture with good bones and spaces that resonate with individuals
Firm Follows Feeling
Bangkok-based landscape architecture firm P Landscape emphasizes the human experience and feeling through contemporary integration of art, culture, and ecology
Tried and Tested
WAF and INSIDE multi-awardee Hypothesis’ researchintensive approach produces complete design solutions that are anything but formulaic
Crew's Control
Young Thai studio Creative Crews finds a worldwide audience for three very different projects: a rural homestay, a classroom for the blind, and their own office, all indicative of the practice’s adaptive design solutions
