When it comes to the visual arts in Thailand, it seems that the subject matter is not particularly varied. Much of the art produced hews to religious depictions, much like the performing arts traditions such as the Khon and Nang Yaai. However I suppose that can be attributed to the theory that generally arts don’t develop in a society that spends much of its time focusing on survival. That’s not to say there is no visual art in Thailand. In fact, there is at least one place in every village that likely showcases some very essential Thai art.
Paintings at Wats
The vast majority of traditional Thai painted art appears on the walls of wats, or temples. Murals on the walls depict the story of the Buddha’s life or illustrate the Hindu-influenced myths.
Studying these stories, or even just having a basic familiarity with some of them, will help to make more sense of the images you’ll see on the walls of nearly every temple you may visit in Thailand.
There aren’t many, if any, pieces of traditional Thai art that can be hung in a museum gallery, the temples themselves become the galleries for these works.
Sculptures at Wats
But paintings are not the only kind of Thai visual art that you can encounter on your trip to a wat. There’s also the sculptures. Inevitably, there will be a sculpture of the Buddha somewhere, and there have been several distinct style periods for Buddha images in Thailand.
Fun fact, anthropomorphic images of the Buddha did not exist until around the Fourth Century, after the Gandhara region had interaction with Greek culture in the form of Alexander the Great’s conquests.
There will also be sculptures of the naga, who protect the Buddha, at the entrance of the wat. Additionally, there may be images of some Hindu deities around the temple grounds, or a large dharma wheel.
Just because it’s not in a museum, or hung on a wall for display, doesn’t mean these works aren’t art.
Modern Thai Art Museums
As living standards have increased in Thailand over the past couple centuries, there has been more art made and the topic has expanded from strictly religious artworks into more varied and secular inspirations and topics.
There has even been issuance and recognition of National Artists of Thailand for the past couple decades. For a nice exploration of contemporary Thai arts, I would highly recommend stopping by the free Bangkok Arts and Cultural Centre.