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Cultura (im)materiale, by Jakkai Siributr, produced by MAD Murate Art District in collaboration with the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology of Florence, marks the acclaimed Thai artist’s first solo exhibition in Italy. The project represents the third year of collaboration between the two institutions.
Born in Bangkok in 1969, Jakkai Siributr works with textiles through the iconic use of embroidery, sewing, and quilting, and he is internationally recognized as one of the most significant figures in textile art, a medium traditionally associated with femininity. What distinguishes Jakkai’s practice is the balance between individual creation and relational engagement. Deeply interested in human connections and the exchange of personal and often traumatic stories, he frequently works collaboratively, engaging primarily with vulnerable and female-led communities through sewing sessions. A notable example of this approach is the ongoing installation There’s no Place (2019-present), composed of around one hundred embroidered fabric pieces created in collaboration with Shan children and youth displaced from Myanmar, and presented at MAD.
The curatorial project centers on Jakkai Siributr due to his meaningful and multifaceted connections with both institutions involved. On one hand, he was selected as a highly influential contemporary artist, whose works are held in major international collections and museums. On the other hand, Thailand holds a unique place within the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology, whose first room houses the collection of Galileo Chini; Siributr pays tribute to the Tuscan artist with a new, dedicated work.
The curatorial approach emphasizes a practice articulated along two complementary axes: a material dimension – primarily the creation of embroidered garments and tapestries in collaboration with various communities – and a symbolic or immaterial dimension, expressed through the making of objects that preserve and reactivate endangered textile traditions. These practices encourage cultural exchange, transmission, and reappropriation across generations and geographies. Furthermore, like many artists of his generation, Jakkai experienced a strong attraction to the West, having studied in the United States and in Tuscany, where he spent extended periods in the city of Siena.
For this double Florentine presentation, the project unfolds along three curatorial pathways. At the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology, Jakkai was invited to engage with the legacy of Galileo Chini (1873-1956), renowned painter, decorator, and ceramicist, who was fascinated by the East and spent significant time there, producing numerous public works, including the fresco in the Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall in Bangkok. Part of Chini’s Siamese collection, donated by the artist himself, is now on permanent display in the museum. In response, Jakkai presents a new site-specific garment inspired by Chini’s collection, along with a segment of his 2014 work Transient Shelter, which explores the relationships between life and death, materiality and spirituality, and the inversion of values. To complement the exhibition, the museum has partially reinstalled the room with newly displayed works from the Chini Collection.
At MAD, visitors will have the opportunity to see for the first time in Italy a selection of works, including tapestries, garments, and immersive installations, created between 2014 and the present. The exhibition also features a dual collaborative project that the artist was invited to undertake with women’s communities of migrant backgrounds from Nosotras and House of Women, alongside the active participation of a large female community from the Municipality of Barberino Tavarnelle. This latter group is engaged in preserving and passing on the ancient embroidery tradition of the “Punto Tavarnelle” through intergenerational knowledge transfer and high-level artisanal practices.
Jakkai Cultura (im)materiale
24.10.2025 | 18.01.2026
Antropology and Ethnology Museum
Tuesday to Sunday
From 9 am to 5 pm
Tuesday to Saturday
From 2.30 to 7.30 pm
Free entrance