A new public art installation celebrating the resilience, dignity, and indispensable contributions of migrant workers from Myanmar in Thailand is set to be unveiled on May 23.
Titled Together We Build / เคียงข้าง ร่วมสร้าง, the ambitious mural is the latest project by Chuu Wai, one of Myanmar’s most prominent contemporary women artists.
Teaming up once again with advocacy space SEA Junction, the new mural by Chuu Wai seeks to transform narratives of division into messages of interdependence, peace, and shared humanity.
The launch event will take place at Bangkok’s Thonglor House, where the mural will remain on public display for the next two years.
Giving visibility to the invisible
Thailand remains one of Southeast Asia’s largest destination countries for migrants. These individuals often leave their homelands in search of safety from conflict or better livelihoods, yet their stories are frequently sidelined.
Together We Build aims to change that by thrusting their narratives into a highly visible public space. The artwork underscores how migrants sustain local communities as well as regional and national economies, particularly within Thailand’s vital fisheries and seafood processing sectors.
By placing the shared experiences of local residents and migrant workers at the center of the piece, the mural serves as a poignant reminder that Thai and migrant populations do not exist in separate worlds.
Instead, they are neighbors bound by shared labor, culture, and daily life. The aesthetic backdrops of the ocean and the city anchor the visual language of the mural, conveying the broad and essential scope of migrant labor.
Rooted in real-life stories
The striking figures depicted in the mural are not merely symbolic; they represent real people. The artwork’s visual narrative was born from a recent visit to Samut Sakhon—a major hub for Thailand’s fishing industry—and a series of intimate conversations held at SEA Junction in early May.
Through this process, Chuu Wai and her collaborators translated the authentic voices, lived experiences, and personal messages of the migrant community directly onto the wall.
The project is backed by Ship to Shore Rights South East Asia and the International Labour Organization (ILO), with funding provided by the European Union, alongside other institutional and individual donors.
The informal launch event on May 23 will feature welcoming remarks by the organizers and project partners, as well as presentations by Chuu Wai and the other artists involved in bringing the vision to life. Refreshments will be provided by Thonglor House.
The organizers are warmly inviting the public to attend the launch and celebrate this hopeful work of solidarity and connection.
