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Bangkok’s rapidly changing landscape is the subject of a stunning black and white photographic book and exhibition by veteran British photographer and writer Ben Davies called ‘Vanishing Bangkok: The Changing Face of the City.’
Shot over the past five years on a large format Linhof film camera, the photographs capture the city’s fragile beauty, its rich heritage and faded charm which may be about to disappear forever beneath a tidal wave of urban development. From exquisite images of the Old Customs House on the banks of the Chao Phraya River to the teeming alleyways of Chinatown, sleepy canals and dilapidated buildings shrouded in antiquity, they evoke the extraordinary history and diversity of this great city.
For Davies, who has lived and worked in Asia for 30 years, this project was a unique opportunity to document a side of the Thai capital that many people are unfamiliar with. “I wanted to open people’s eyes to an aspect of the city that perhaps they never knew,” Davies writes. “I wanted to capture the magic of this older Bangkok before it vanishes forever.”
The exhibition is supported by Abercrombie & Kent Southeast Asia, a leading luxury travel company. “Rewarding travel experiences are about showcasing each destination as a complete picture. It is important to highlight the old, traditional roots of the places we travel while also embracing the new and exciting,” says Thailand Country Manager Tim Cook. “Holding on to a sense of community and authenticity in the face of constant development can be a challenge. So we are pleased to be part of this project that showcases and treasures the importance of the past.”
Shot over the past five years on a large format Linhof film camera, the photographs capture the city’s fragile beauty, its rich heritage and faded charm which may be about to disappear forever beneath a tidal wave of urban development. From exquisite images of the Old Customs House on the banks of the Chao Phraya River to the teeming alleyways of Chinatown, sleepy canals and dilapidated buildings shrouded in antiquity, they evoke the extraordinary history and diversity of this great city.
For Davies, who has lived and worked in Asia for 30 years, this project was a unique opportunity to document a side of the Thai capital that many people are unfamiliar with. “I wanted to open people’s eyes to an aspect of the city that perhaps they never knew,” Davies writes. “I wanted to capture the magic of this older Bangkok before it vanishes forever.”
The exhibition is supported by Abercrombie & Kent Southeast Asia, a leading luxury travel company. “Rewarding travel experiences are about showcasing each destination as a complete picture. It is important to highlight the old, traditional roots of the places we travel while also embracing the new and exciting,” says Thailand Country Manager Tim Cook. “Holding on to a sense of community and authenticity in the face of constant development can be a challenge. So we are pleased to be part of this project that showcases and treasures the importance of the past.”
 | Davies’ evocative and nostalgic photographs reveal the old world splendour of parts of the Thai capital and its embrace of different cultures from around the world. An honours graduate of Edinburgh University, Davies has photographed and written a number of acclaimed books on vanishing cultures in Asia including ‘Laos: A Journey Beyond the Mekong’ and ‘Living with Spirits: A Journey into the Heart of Thailand’. He is author of ‘Black Market – Inside the Endangered Species Trade in Asia’, which documents the multi-billion-dollar global wildlife trade and was nominated as one of the most important books on the environment by CNN. Davies’ photographs have been exhibited in Bangkok, Vientiane and Luang Prabang. His work has appeared in a wide range of distinguished publications and media including National Geographic, the Daily Telegraph, the Irish Times, Vogue and Time Magazine. He is a contributing photographer for Getty Images. Part of the proceeds from the sale of the book and photographs will go to the Santisuk Foundation and the Foundation for Slum Child Care under the Patronage of Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana Krom Luang Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra. For details about the exhibition, contact Tarinee Paoriskutta via email tarinee@rivercity.co.th or (+66) 2 237 0077-8 ext. 622. Vanishing Bangkok: The Changing Face of the City is distributed by River Books and sold at major book stores. |
