Geoffrey Bawa Trust and Royal Thai Embassy present Thai Architecture Program

Rachaporn Choochuey

The Geoffrey Bawa Trust, in collaboration with the Royal Thai Embassy in Colombo, has announced a new joint Thai Architecture Program. 

Between October 2025 and March 2026, the Program will bring renowned Thai architects to Colombo to share knowledge and exchange ideas on architectural practices in tropical climates. This initiative aims to strengthen cultural exchange between Sri Lanka and Thailand, celebrating the rich architectural and artistic heritage of both nations. 

The Program includes presentations, workshops, and community engagement events to explore how contemporary architecture can offer solutions for healthy and sustainable living in dense urban environments and with increasingly unpredictable climate conditions. 

The series opened yesterday at the Thai cultural centre, Siam Nivasa, at 6:30 p.m. with renowned Bangkok-based architect Rachaporn Choochuey. Choochuey’s presentation will explore how architecture can remain light, adaptable, and resilient in the face of heat, humidity, and rapid urban change. Bangkok-based architectural firm all(zone) Co-founder Choochuey will share a design practice rooted in the permissive conditions of her uniquely informal and improvisational city. 

“The Trust is thrilled to have this opportunity for collaboration between Thai and Sri Lankan architects, bringing some of the foremost contemporary architectural voices to our local audiences,” says Geoffrey Bawa Trust Chief Curator Shayari de Silva. “It is especially remarkable that the project is supported by the Royal Thai Embassy, and we deeply appreciate their recognition of the crucial importance of championing contemporary cultural practices and regional exchange.”  

Established in 1982 by the late architect, the Geoffrey Bawa Trust works to further the fields of architecture, the fine arts, and ecological and environmental studies in Sri Lanka. Geoffrey Bawa’s architectural work fused historical legacy with modernist principles and an acute awareness of the surrounding landscape. Since the architect’s passing in 2003, the Trust has sustained year-round public programs comprising lectures, tours, scholarships, residencies and exhibitions which engage broader discourse on the built environment and the arts in both Sri Lanka and overseas. 

Geoffrey Bawa’s architectural style and approach were driven by a sense of place. From his earliest commissions, the architect’s practice was shaped by sourcing domestically available materials, working with local artisans, and a familiarity with the site on which he was working. This approach is still highly relevant in contemporary architecture, as humans grapple with how to build liveable spaces that are adaptable and comfortable in changing climates. 

“The Royal Thai Embassy in Colombo supports the undertaking of this program to foster architectural knowledge exchange between Sri Lanka and Thailand,” says Ambassador of Thailand to Sri Lanka Paitoon Mahapannaporn. “The prominent Thai architects will be visiting Colombo through this Program, and we look forward to rich discussions on cultural heritage, contemporary architecture, and building for sustainability and a liveable future.”  

Following Rachaporn Choochuey’s presentation in October, the Thai Architecture Program will host Kulapat Yantrasast in November. Raised in Thailand, Yantrasast is now based in Los Angeles, where he co-founded WHY Architecture in 2003. The architect is internationally renowned for his work in museum and gallery design, with clients such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Grand Rapids Art Museum, the first museum in the United States to receive LEED Gold certification for sustainable design.