Wuttipong* lost his son to suicide last month. In order to come to terms with the grief, he visited the "Homecoming" at River City Bangkok and watched a documentary, called Mental-Verse, which interviewed five people experiencing mental health challenges.
"I had an opportunity to chat with a male visitor in his 60s. He told me that he was there to try to understand young people better. After having a long conversation, he cried and revealed his son had committed suicide last month. He confessed that he used to blame other people for his son's suicide," project director Nuntawat Jarusruangnil said of Wuttipong.
"However, after watching Mental-Verse, a story of a baby boomer couple, he admitted he was the cause of his son's suffering. Like the couple in the documentary, he constantly fought with his wife and thought it was a problem between just the two of them. He did not realise that their conflict affected his child."
"Homecoming" is a mental health exhibition created by Eyedropper Fill. Nuntawat and Wattanapume Laisuwanchai are the co-founders of Eyedropper Fill, a company which specialises in creating experiential designs through multi-disciplinary skills.
"Homecoming" was initially created last year to help people to reconnect with themselves, society and the universe after the Covid-19 pandemic.
"Our crew named the exhibition 'Homecoming' because it represents a reunion of mankind who became disconnected from themselves due to the pandemic. Some people lost their jobs or had to work jobs that they did not want out of necessity. Others disconnected from their loved ones due to social distancing," said Wattanapume.
Nuntawat and Wattanapume became interested in mental health due to their personal struggles during the pandemic. Despite facing financial difficulties and responsibility for their employees, they both dealt with different mental health issues. While Nuntawat suffered from anxiety, Wattanapume battled with insomnia and panic attacks. Although they were not diagnosed with clinical depression, they were diagnosed with situational depression, prompting a psychiatrist to suggest lifestyle changes for healthier habits. Seeking healing, they met with art therapists, among others, who inspired them to create mental health exhibitions.
"Homecoming" is divided into two major parts -- Aramarom (Home and Emotion) and Mental-Verse. Aramarom is an interactive exhibition which integrates art expression processes. Meanwhile, Mental-Verse is a documentary featuring five people from different generations who share their experiences with mental health issues.
As the creative director, Wattanapume explained that Aramarom features activities that interact with the five senses. The first room is designed to welcome visitors.
"The theme of 'Homecoming' is self-compassion because the world is cruel and people often find it hard to be kind to themselves. The first room presents the type of society that causes people to dislike themselves. It includes phrases that can cause frustration such as 'not good enough', 'too fat' and 'as a 30-year-old person, are you successful?', said Wattanapume.
"In the next room, visitors are provided with lockers where they can leave their belongings and shoes, allowing them to feel lighter during the exhibition. Then, visitors will explore their current emotions and fill out an emotion wheel. This activity helps them become aware of their emotions which can be a mix of positive and negative feelings in a single moment."
The four main rooms are Releasing, Embracing, Resting and Listening. The Releasing room aims to help release anger or pent-up energy.
"We consulted with a psychologist who suggested that physical movement can help release energy. In the Releasing room, when visitors look at the wall directly in front of them, they will see an image of flames which seems to be a reflection of them. Angry energy can be transformed into a beautiful visual representation. We created this space because people cannot release this kind of energy in their workplace," Wattanapume explained.
In the Embracing room, there are soft thick spongy poles that visitors can hug. When embracing a pole, it will emit soothing vibrations and healing sounds that calm visitors. Wattanapume explained that the Embracing room was created for people experiencing insecurity and anxiety. It provides visitors with something stable to support their feelings.
The Resting area is the most popular space where many visitors post photos on social media. Decorated with blue lights, it features a pool-like space filled with white and blue soft balls and pillows are provided for resting. People can lie down and relax there.
"The Resting area was designed for people who feel burnt out. The visual and audio elements in the room resemble the flowing of water and a bed since tired people often seek to cool down with water or relax in a bed. Because the Resting area is the most popular room, I believe a large number of people experience burnout," said Wattanapume.
The Listening room provides audio recordings of speakers who narrate their imperfections. In capitalism, people are blamed for their imperfections, so they have to purchase things to improve themselves. Wattanapume believes that people can relate to the stories they listen to, feel connected and less alone.
In each room, there is a psychological question written on a chalkboard. In the Releasing room, the question is "How does it help when you release your pent-up energy?". In the Listening room, the question is "Tell us about a situation in your life, when you discovered you were not perfect?". Visitors write down their answers on the boards and many spend their time reading the answers of others.
Reflecting is the final room where visitors reflect on themselves and write messages on a piece of paper to thank, apologise and forgive themselves.
"To thank, apologise and forgive oneself are three things that many people find difficult or may have never experienced before. Aramarom is a public space where people learn about the vulnerable characters of strangers. I hope that our society will engage in more conversations about emotion, allowing us to accept the vulnerable aspects of others and understand our own mental health conditions. In our society, when people reveal their vulnerabilities, they are often blamed for being weak and not good enough," said Wattanapume.
The documentary Mental-Verse showcases the experiences of five people through photo essays. A lack of understanding in society may push people who struggle with mental health issues to their limits. Therefore, the documentary presents how people with mental illness feel. This type of storytelling can help others develop empathy and understand the perspectives of people suffering from mental illness and what they have been through.
The "Homecoming" exhibition has been well received, resulting in long queues every day. Due to high demand, visitors are required to take numbers to enter the exhibition. Each visitor is allowed to spend 50 minutes in the exhibition.
Wattanapume expressed pride, happiness and sadness over the exhibition's positive reception, as it reflects a lack of allocated public space in Bangkok where people can learn about humanity and engage in activities. Wattanapume mentioned that even if visitors do not understand the concept of self-compassion, he is fine with it. He hopes that visitors can find a moment of rest at the exhibition.
In the future, Eyedropper Fill plans to create another mental health exhibition with workshops, but it will require an admission fee.
"Exhibitions in collaboration with the Thai Health Promotion Foundation will remain free of charge. However, for exhibitions with workshops, participants will have to pay 200 baht for a one-and-a-half-hour session which includes a workshop or healing section. Our exhibition aims to create additional space for people who want to spend time exploring themselves. It will be a space where people can cultivate self-compassion as well as kindness towards others. If people can be friends with themselves and others, they may not need to seek help from psychologists," said Nuntawat.
* Not his real name
"Homecoming" runs at River City Bangkok, Galleria 2-3, until Friday. Admission is free. For more information, visit facebook.com/RiverCityBangkok and facebook.com/eyedropperfill.
