Silpa Bhirasri Museum

The Fine Arts Department, Na Phra Lan Rd.
pier: Chang Pier
02/223-6162

HOURS: Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

COST: Free

The Florentine founder of the Thai modern art movement, Silpa Bhirasri (formerly known as Corrado Feroci), founded what would later become Silpakorn University, the country’s premier fine-arts school, and taught many of the country’s leading modern artists.

His office and studio space on the campus in Bangkok [1]’s historic center have been transformed into a museum, displaying not only his work space, photos, and other memorabilia, but also paintings, sketches, and sculpture by Bhirasri and some of his notable students.

This bright, airy museum is stuffed with pieces from the beginning of the Thai modern art movement, including modern Buddhist sculptures executed in a cubist style and secular work reminiscent of artists such as Rodin and Gaugin.

Bhirasri’s larger public works of art, such as the city’s Democracy Monument, Victory Monument, and the statue of Rama IV at Lumphini Park, can also be seen (in replica) at the museum.