Private viewing

It would be nice if all the world's art collectors shared Disaphol Chansiri's attitude. "Art," says the thirtysomething entrepreneur, "shouldn't be kept secret for your own personal appreciation. It should be shown to the public as much as possible."

And show it he is in the exhibition "Crazy? Passion?" at a private space next to his home at the City Lake Condominium on Sukhumvit Soi 16. Anyone can have a free look if they make an appointment first.

"My collection isn't huge - only about 600 pieces," says the diplomatic Disaphol, who has a PhD from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in the US.

Disaphol recently left his post as a senior trade officer at the Commerce Ministry to help his family business, exporting frozen seafood.

 "I believe art can educate people," he says, "and since I'm lucky enough to afford some, I think I should give the public a chance to see the different kinds."

Jim Thompson Art Centre director Gridthiya Gaweewong served as curator for Disaphol's 300-square-metre inaugural exhibition of avant-garde Thai and foreign pieces.

A Chatchai Puipia self-portrait from his series "The Heart is a Lonely Painter" shows him skinny and sprawled on the floor, a truly desperate figure. Navin Rawanchaikul's old-fashioned movie billboard and sculpture from his "Fly with Me to Another World" project illustrates National Artist Inson Wongsam's scooter odyssey to Europe.

The late Montien Boonma's installation "Nature's Breath: Arokhayasara" is a stack of steel boxes forming a stupa, in which cast-metal lungs are suspended. You can watch Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook reading poetry to shrouded corpses in her video "The Class", and tour Rirkrit Tiravanija's tent installation.

From overseas come Damien Hirst's plastic skull "Happy Head No 7", Christian Boltanski's electric lamp "Monument" and Christo and Jean Claude's plans for wrapping immense statues in Germany.

A Julien Schnabel print, "La Tangoz", is there, along with a Barnaby Furnas dazzling oil painting, "Rainbow Concert".

Among Thailand's big art buyers, only Disaphol and French expatriate Jean-Michel Beurdeley let visitors see their collections.

"Art isn't an investment for me, it's my personal enjoyment - I buy works I like," says Disaphol, who's been collecting for 10 years and also helped fund Gridthiya's non-profit art space Project 304.

"I've never thought of running a gallery, but I am willing to loan my collection to any museum or institute."

Disaphol had no art training but has loved art since childhood.

"My house was close to the Neilson Hays Library and I always went there to read books on art. I was really impressed by the masters, like Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo."

On a trip to Spain Disaphol bought his first piece, a drawing by Antonio Saura, whose paintings had caught his eye with their abstraction and clever use of colour. "I couldn't afford a painting, but I spent all my pocket money on one of small drawing."

Disaphol bought works by Khien Yimsiri and Angkarn Kanlayanabongse early on as well, and was particularly taken with neo-expressionists like Francesco Clemente and Jean-Michel Basquiat. He originally saw their work at Kyoko Chirathivat's Kyoko Gallery on Soi Tonson, now long gone.

While studying in the US, Disaphol often visited galleries and bid at auctions. He still has a Warhol silkscreen in his home, along with Nicholas Nixon's "Brown Sisters" photographs. These are side by side with sculptures by Khien, Chatchai and Araya.

"I was lucky that my interest in contemporary art blossomed when the market wasn't paying it too much attention," says Disaphol. "I could buy lots of interesting pieces at affordable prices.

"I'm brave enough now to collect more conceptual and avant-garde works, which are more relevant to my interest in contemporary artists."

Among these are Cindy Sherman, whose self-portrait hangs on one wall at his residence, and the abstract expressionist Philip Guston. Immediately opposite are young lions like Dana Schutz and Turner Prize winner Chris Ofili.

"One of the works I'm most proud of is Ajarn Khien's portrait sculpture of his wife, MR Naree. A lot of people would have loved to own this beautiful piece, but Naree agreed to give it to me. It's symbolic of the deep love between him and his wife, and it reminds me of the romantic work that Marc Chagall devoted to his wife."

Above Disaphol's bed are some of the drawings that his three favourite artists - Warhol, Clemente and Basquiat - did together at the urging of art dealer Bruno Bischofberger. Disaphol grabbed them at a London auction.

Visit the bathroom, and you find Chatchai already in there, a sculpted version of him staring at whomever occupies the toilet.

Disaphol says he's most interested now in conceptual video and installation and how artists interpret society.

"Araya's video about death or Chatchai's mournful paintings might be too scary for most people's homes, but the concepts are truly amazing and I can't ignore them. Nothing is 'right' or 'wrong' when you buy art, although what you like can change with your shifting concerns or your stage of life."

Is everything that Disaphol owns on public view? Not even close: Some of his collection is at his parents' residence, some at his US home and some in storage. He has a two-metre-tall sculpted dog by Yoshitomo Nara that's just dying to come out to play, and another massive piece, Chatchai's Pope sculpture, which weighs 400 kilograms. 

"These works require a really spacious area, but it's pointless to keep such interesting pieces in storage, so I'm building a home in Chiang Mai that's big enough to house them all."

Make an appointment to see Disaphol's collection at (087) 597 3340.