Jakkapan Mantapan
Visual Art · Curating & Cultural Production
Phayao · December 2024
Jakkapan Mantapan, also known as JKPan, is a painter from Phayao. He works with figurative painting and co-founded the Kwanner artist collective and Kwanner Art Space.
Instagram ↗Photographs and story, step by step
After photographing Pawin at Artcade Phayao, I visited Jakkapan, also known as JKPAN, at Pye Space, an old wooden house where he both lives and works. I was immediately taken by the building’s minimalist charm. Jakkapan changed into the kimono he usually wears while painting, and several of his works hung on the walls around us.
His paintings draw on surrealism and on his own experience of making art in a provincial environment, addressing social challenges including the limited acceptance of LGBTQ+ people in the community. In 2024, Jakkapan began focusing more on realistic painting, using photographs as references.
He also co-founded the young artist group Kwanner and established Kwanner Art Space, projects intended to strengthen Phayao’s local art scene and encourage wider engagement with art.