CAPA, Student News

Students Develop Art Commission for U.S. Consulate in Thailand

September 15, 2020

The Center for Advancement of Public Action (CAPA) at Bennington College has received its second commission from the U.S. State Department's Office of Art in Embassies for the art collection at the new U.S. Consulate in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

In the spring of 2020, following on the great success of the three-part artwork developed for the new U.S. Embassy in Oslo, Norway, and led by faculty Jon Isherwood and Susan Sgorbati, the Center for the Advancement of Public Action (CAPA) at Bennington College received its second commission from the U.S. State Department's Office of Art in Embassies for the art collection at the new U.S. Consulate in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Students in the spring term course, In the Public Realm: Chiang Mai Project (Thailand), examined the definition, history, challenges, and production of public art. The work of the term concluded with presentations by 17 students to State Department personnel on a range of research topics including Art, Architecture and Practices, History, Geography, Politics, U.S.-Thai relations, Landscape and Environment, Literacy Arts, and Cultural and Religious Customs.

Over the course of the fall term, students participating in parts two and three of In the Public Realm: Chiang Mai, Thailand Art in U.S. Embassy Project will develop further various dimensions of their research to design and implement a site-specific project within a diplomatic context. Dialogues with students at the University of Chiang Mai are planned. Additionally, students will research Thai artists, as well as community and cultural organizations to complement their work.

The term’s research will culminate in a design presentation to the State Department in Washington, D.C. Opportunities are in development for Bennington students to have direct Field Work Term experiences in Thailand and collaborate on the fabrication development of the proposed artwork.

In the Public Realm: Chiang Mai Project

Spring 2020 students—including Duncan Allen '21, Elizabeth Armstrong '22, Luis Belloso Figueroa '22, Sagarika Bhati '23, Megan Banda '23, Celia Burch-Berner '23, Tanner Criswell '22, Grace Crouthamel '23, Ashley Edwin '22, Ryan Emerson '22, Ben Guccione '23, Nora Hany '23, Alausi Martinez '23, Reshavan Naicker '22, Larkin Rhinehardt '23, Jessica Smith '23, and Gregory Wahome '23—collaborated on this Powerpoint presentation of their research.