(b. 1987, Thailand) is an internationally acclaimed artist whose practice is centred around resistance against authoritative control — at the level of the body, the collective, and society. Pertinent in a world rife with censorship, Hengsapkul’s works often address the polarities between control and dissent, anchored by both collective and personal histories. His practice involves extensive research to contextualise current political conditions with historical precedents, while at the same time speculating on optimistic futures. Sourcing from official archives, informal discourse, and popular media, Hengsapkul elaborates on themes of nationalism, democracy, and military control in Thailand as well as other influential regional powers. Hengsapkul’s works are a reckoning. Born in Korat, the Isan region of Northeastern Thailand, Hengsapkul witnessed his home become the stage for the Second Indochina War and the aggressive establishment of numerous American military bases during the peak of the Cold War. The influence of war on local communities and its political legacies hence underscore Hengsapkul’s practice which seeks to resurface unkempt histories that the political and cultural hegemony would rather forget. Connecting personal history to geopolitical crises, such as the coup d’état in 2014, Hengsapkul interrogates the power and aggression that persist from the Cold War era. Embodying these intimate stories, Hengsapkul expands outward to collective memories embedded in a region under the auspices of an imperial system, all the while navigating a landscape carved out by colonial intervention. Hengsapkul was trained in photography at Pohchang Academy of Fine Arts (Thailand) and began his professional practice working in photography and film. He first came to the attention of the art world with his photographs of young people — often his friends — whose documentary-style exposure raised issues of vulnerability, confrontation and the power of the individual. His material repertoire has also since expanded from film, watercolour and paint to the bold mark-making tools of global protest culture encompassing smoke bombs, fireworks, and gunpowder. Using a range of media, the core of his practice advocates freedom, resistance, and compassion. Familiar with environments that censor expression, his works explore ways in which art can respond to power, to liberate the restrained and unleash repression with humour and wit. Hengsapkul has exhibited extensively both locally and globally, with solo showcases at the Hub Of Photography, Bangkok, Thailand, 2025; MAIIAM Contemporary Art Museum, Chiang Mai, Thailand, 2023; MAIELIE, Khon Kaen, Thailand, 2022, to name a few. Additionally, Hengsapkul has shown in numerous group exhibitions such as the National Art Gallery, Bangkok, Thailand, 2024; ASEAN Culture House, Busan, South Korea, 2022; M+ Museum, Hong Kong in collaboration with MMCA Gwacheon, Gwacheon, South Korea (online), 2021; Bangkok Art Biennale, Bangkok, Thailand, 2020; 9 th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art at QAGOMA, Brisbane/Meanjin, Australia, 2018 amongst others. He has also been collected by institutions such as MAIIAM Contemporary Art Museum, Chiang Mai, Thailand and the Nguyen Art Foundation, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Hengsapkul presently lives and works in Bangkok, Thailand.
