First published: March 2026
For over 20 years, Pichai Rattanapornchai has been drawing on the pavements of his home city trying to fulfil a very personal mission
Walking the streets of Bangkok, in the city’s swelter, it is best to stick to the shade – and to stay alert. Cockroaches scurry across cracked paving stones as motorbikes trespass in a city constantly delivering. This metropolis, perennially in transition, is never dull; there is always something to catch your eye.
Pichai Rattanapornchai in 2025. Image: Stephen Lorriman and Tim Williams
So it is when you first encounter the drawings of Pichai Rattanapornchai on the pavement. At first you may think that a government engineer has scribbled such diagrams; perhaps they are finally taking down the city’s infamous tangles of electrical wires. But look closer, see what you can make out. A kettle? A no-stopping sign? A building of a certain architectural style? The South Korean flag? The British Isles? And amidst the scrawled Thai fragments, the occasional English word or phrase, such as: “Map Collin World” . You’re caught in the intricacies and the ciphers in the work. A surreal riddle, and you find yourself wanting to know more.
a Khmer statue, product logos and diagrams drawn near a kerb. Image: Stephen Lorriman and Tim Williams
By STEPHEN LORRIMAN
This is an article extract; read the full article in Raw Vision 126.
