Central Embassy, celebrates its 10th anniversary with ‘BANGKOK 3024’ a world-class immersive presentation by New York-based artist and global icon Daniel Arsham. In continually staging such collaborations with internationally renowned artists as well as local talents, to constantly elevate Thailand’s retail scene while supporting the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s own endeavours to promote Thailand as a world-class event, retail, and cultural destination.
Barom Bhicharnchitr, Managing Director of Central Embassy, elaborates: "Central Embassy is a leading art, fashion, and lifestyle destination. As avid supporters and facilitators of the art world, we have hosted several world-class artists and exhibitions here in Bangkok, making them accessible to our customers and the public with the hopes of sparking new experiences, inspirations, and pure joy."
He continues: ‘Some of our highlights include “1600 Pandas+ World Tour in Thailand”, That same year, American artist KAWS erected an 8-meter-high rendition of his iconic figurine, “KAWS: BFF” with All Rights Reserved. In 2017, Snarkitecture transformed our ground floor into a fantastical “BEACH” scene, complete with a swimmable sea made up of a million translucent plastic balls, while Japanese artist MADSAKI unveiled never-before-seen evolutions of his signature spray-paint aesthetics at “MADSAKI: Combination Platter”. Fast forward to 2020: Japanese artists Hajime Sorayama and Azuma Makoto of AMKK staged “SORAYAMA Space Park”, the centerpiece being a 12-foot-tall aluminum T-Rex—the former’s largest creation yet—towering over a moon surface landscape envisioned by the latter.’
This year, Central Embassy and Central The1 Credit Card are both celebrating a decade in existence with ‘Central Embassy’s 10th Anniversary Celebration Party with Daniel Arsham BANGKOK 3024’. This world-class immersive presentation transports audiences into a fictitious future that simultaneously forces us to reflect upon our very real present era, culture, and civilization as a whole. For the first time ever, such masterworks as the artist’s Excavation Walls, Zen Garden, five signature eroded sculptures, and the Passage—a site-specific piece created just for Central Embassy—will be available to experience all in one place.
Daniel Arsham’s ‘BANGKOK 3024’ is an immersive presentation, the first of its kind in Thailand, featuring a full-scale takeover by the New York-based artist known for his works of fictional archaeology. Through his signature time- and mind-bending manipulations of architecture, sculpture, and spatial design, Arsham transports audiences out of the moment and into the future, where a fictitious archaeological dig site awaits.
The excavation site appears as a surreal Zen Garden, complete with raked sand paintings and dramatic all-blue walkways intersected by what seems to be concrete walls. Exploded holes in said walls allow spectators to walk through them, encountering five of Arsham’s signature eroded artifacts. Depicting instantly recognizable icons— Stormtrooper: Amethyst Crystallized Figure (2023); Bronze Eroded Dog with Hat (2021); Bronze Eroded Delorean 1:3 (2021); Amalgamized Venus Italica (2022); Blue Calcite Crystallized Jumping Pikachu (2021)—the sculptures are decaying crystal-studded cavities within and raising tensions between the deterioration and regeneration process. These future relics invite us to question what we might be leaving behind for our descendants to find and, just as importantly, what they signify about us.
Arsham’s aesthetic takeover extends beyond the ‘Excavation’ site to include a pop-up ‘Artifacts’ area stocked with numbered editions of the artist’s highly sought-after sculptures as well as future collectibles created exclusively for ‘BANGKOK 3024’. On the floor above, Arsham takes over our BTS Linkage, transforming it into a ‘Passage’. Treated floor-to-ceiling in the artist’s signature eroded and crystallized techniques, this site-specific piece created especially for Central Embassy prepares passersby with an immersive taste of what’s to come.
This presentation is Arsham’s first showing in Thailand, simultaneously sealing Central Embassy’s status as a major stage for globally renowned artists while supporting the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s efforts in boosting Thailand as a world-class event hub. Furthermore, the presentation reiterates our ethos of bringing art seamlessly into the retail space and experience, ultimately offering our visitors yet another pathway through which they can discover and deepen their own aspirations and preferred means of self-expression.
‘We’re proud that global icon like Daniel Arsham is exhibiting his works here in Thailand and affirming our country as a culturally significant destination in both the traditional and contemporary sense,” Barom concludes. “As its chosen exhibition space and playground, Central Embassy gets to be the bridge between the artist and art enthusiasts, both local and international, as well as tourists from all around the world. Given that it’s our 10-year anniversary this year, we’ll be putting on some truly spectacular art and cultural events that are bound to impress.’
‘BANGKOK 3024’ is just the start of a year of festivities in celebration of our 10th anniversary. In addition to more art exhibitions headlined by well-known names, our Promotion of The Decade program is our way of gifting customers with benefits and rewards on 1 May – 30 June 2024. Meanwhile, we have launched ‘CENFINITY’, an ultra-exclusive program furnishing our most cherished clients with access to premier experiences and events. Last but not least, Central Embassy continues to stand behind and support homegrown talent just as passionately as we do international ones. As such, we have partnered with famed Thai actor Win Metawin, who will be featured in our 10-year anniversary campaign all year long. This, along with many more delightful surprises, awaits visitors in celebration of our 10th anniversary."
Experience ‘BANGKOK 3024’ starting May 8, 2024 to July 14, 2024, Level G and Level 1 at Central Embassy.
