Amata

Amata
A Solo Exhibition of Photography by
Kou Kimura
Curated by Akkara Naktamna
25 May – 13 July 2024

Places, no matter how big or small, temporary or permanent, always have an impact on the people who live there. They create memories that become part of the lives of those who have lived there. Ko Kimura, a Japanese photographer, lived in the industrial estate of Amata Nakorn for a while at the invitation of an acquaintance. But Kimura did more than just live there. He recorded his memories through a photography project called Amata.

The photographs show a wide view of the vast estate, from shopping malls to housing estates, and zoom into the bedrooms of people with different hopes and dreams for their lives in this temporary place with the interesting but contradictory name "Amata," which means "Eternity." However, it seems that eternity is not something that the workers who live there experience.

The Amata project is divided into parts that are both broad and deep, including landscapes of the estate, portraits of the diverse workers in their rooms, simple Thai-Thai decorations that are interestingly portrayed, and follow-ups with some people to see how they are doing after returning to their hometowns. Photographs of the surrounding area, their personal lives, and many other things are collected into a work that covers the lives of the workers who must work in the industrial estate. The photographs of the spaces in Amata Nakorn and the photographs of the hometowns reflect each other, overlapping with the lives of those who have moved to work in a foreign land. They are like a movie that is played over and over again, showing the workers of all times and ages.

Kou Kimura was born and raised in an industrial town in Japan, he began his career as a photographer at a major publishing company in Tokyo before moving to Bangkok, Thailand. Kimura is also a member of gallery176 in Osaka, Japan. This exhibition marks his first solo show in Thailand.