Pongsiri Hetrakul

Selecting exquisite works for this two-storey space, Surapon interperses prominent painters of Thai subjects, such as Surasit Saokhong, with one-offs such as the whimsical ceramicist Vipoo Srivilasa.

At this relatively recent temple, natio-nal artist Chakraphan Posyakrita, master painter and puppeteer, continues to paint one of the most ambitious murals of our times.

Art students flock to the wat's Ayutthaya-era bot (ask a monk to open it) to sketch the Rama III-era murals by Thai artist Thongyu (primarily jataka tales of the Buddha's life). Chinese artist Kong Pae used slim brushes and shadows to accentuate motion. Look out for apocalyptic images of Buddha subduing Mara, and some racy erotic poses.

Contemporary Thai art and Chinese antiques draw aesthetes to this vast atrium in the back of the Jewellery Trade Center. You can join exhibition openings at its half-dozen galleries. Thavibu (3rd floor, 0 2266 5454,www.thavibu.com, 10am-7pm Tue-Sat; noon-6pm Sun) promotes artists from the lands in its name (Thailand, VIetnam, Burma) - plus Laos. Tang (basement, 0 2630 1114 ext 0, www.tangcontemporary.com, 11am-7pm Mon-Sat) spotlights big-ticket Chinese and Thai names. Soulflower (basement, 0 2630 0032, www.gallerysoulflower.com, 11am-7pm Mon-Sat) curates Thai and Indian shows.    

Dedicated to Queen Sirikit, this major multi-floor space offers world-class exhibitions by leading and young-blood Thai artists. Selections by top-line alumni from owner Bangkok Bank's prestigious art prize are often on show. The café's gift shop has a rare stock of monographs and retrospective tomes, although catalogues soon sell out.    

Founded by art dealer Numthong Sae-tung, Numthong Tang champions artistic individuality at this gallery with a magnificent roster of works by modern masters like Natee Utarit, Niti Wuttuya, Chatchai Puipia, Kamin Lertchaiprasert and Montien Boonma.    

Photographer Manit Srivanichpoom and artist-filmmaker Ing K exhibit artful lenswork upstairs in this retro, mint-green shophouse facing the Hindu temple. They also stock South Asian crafts and books on photography and philosophy.

Authentic cultural experiences of one day or longer, with Thai experts offering a hands-on insight into arts like dance, lai Thai design, cooking and martial arts. The programmes are held in English at a teak compound, with branches in Chiang Mai and Japan.

Canny curatorship makes this converted modernist house a showcase for many leading local folk such as Thaiwijit, Chatchai Puipia and Sutee Kunavichayanont, expat Thais like Richard Tsao, and even Damien Hirst and Louise Bourgeois.

The revival and global fame of Thai silk owes much to Jim Thompson, a US architect who came in Thailand at the end of World War II with the OSS (now the CIA) and settled. Thompson spotted the marketing potential of the declining silk weaving industry, then still practised by the Muslims of Baan Khrua, and used it to create a lucrative company selling luxurious fabrics and home decor. In 1959, he adapted six reassembled teak houses into a modern living compound. Now a museum in lush grounds, it exhibits Thompson's Asian artefacts and looks much like it did when he disappeared in Malaysia's Cameron Highlands in 1967. Conspiracy theories surround his unexplained disappearance. After taking a short guided tour through Thompson’s former abode, relax in the canalside bar/restaurant Thompson, browse the onsite silk shop or view the Jim Thompson Center for the Arts, which holds world-class exhibitions on regional textiles and culture. Nearby, the William Warren Library, named after Jim's friend and biographer, also hosts talks.

Baan Chang Thai is dedicated to preserving and teaching traditional crafts. There are courses on an ancient southern form of muay thai, plus puppet making and painting. Limited English, but bargain prices.

Museums of modern Thai art are rare, but this private collection houses 120 major works, which are displayed on lawns, ledges, warehouse gantries and the fountain terrace of this airy, dramatic edifice.