Participants at the 2nd Academic Symposium on Arts and Crafts: SACIT Symposium 2026 in Bang Sai, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya.
Assumption University research reimagined a historic Bangkok site through adaptive reuse, cultural storytelling and community engagement.
Assumption University’s School of Architecture and Design brought new thinking to an old place when it participated in the 2nd Academic Symposium on Arts and Crafts: SACIT Symposium 2026, held August 6–7, 2026, at the Sustainable Arts and Crafts Institute of Thailand (Public Organization) in Bang Sai District, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province.
Held under the theme “From Earth to Eternity: Crafting Sustainability and Continuity in Ceramic Craft,” the international symposium brought together academics, researchers, artists, craftspeople, designers and creative practitioners from Thailand and abroad. Participants exchanged knowledge and perspectives on how arts and crafts could remain meaningful, sustainable and connected to contemporary life.
The program included academic and creative presentations, panel discussions, lectures, craft demonstrations and exhibitions. Topics ranged from material and resource innovation and traditional craftsmanship to contemporary design, cross-cultural exchange, knowledge transmission, the creative economy and sustainability.
Representing the School of Architecture and Design, Ajarn Orn-LaOr Homsettee, a lecturer in the Department of Interior Design, presented her research project, “Echo of Memory: Design Exhibition for the Revitalization and Further Development of the Cultural Landscape of House No. 5, Si Phraya Road.”
Her research examined how design exhibitions could help revitalize cultural heritage, using House No. 5 on Si Phraya Road as a case study. The project considered the historical, cultural and social significance of the Si Phraya neighborhood while exploring ways to conserve and adapt heritage spaces within Bangkok’s changing urban context.
The study brought together three central approaches: adaptive reuse, cultural storytelling and community engagement. Through spatial experiences, exhibitions and creative activities, the proposed design sought to make the site’s cultural identity more accessible and engaging for the public.
Rather than treating preservation as an effort to freeze a place in time, the project proposed bringing heritage back into everyday life. It showed how a historic space could support renewed social, cultural and economic activity while retaining the identity and values that made it worth preserving.
Ajarn Orn-LaOr’s presentation placed Assumption University within a wider international conversation about the future of craft, design and cultural continuity—and demonstrated how thoughtful design could give the past plenty of room to grow.
WRITER: MONTFORT DEL ROSARIO SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN
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