Isan's Soul Shines Bright at ISANCF 2025

• Exploring the culinary journey at the Larb-Koi Universe exhibition//Photo by Veena Thoopkrajae
• Manus Chantaharn Khon Kaen’s dedicatedBoon Pha Wet illustrator.//Photo by Warunee Maneekum
• Young performance showcase talent at Sawathi Community.//Photo by Warunee Maneekum
• Tontan Innovation Studio’s Daruma-inspired creation embodies resilience.//Photo by Warunee Maneekum
• Local craftsmanship infused with spiritual faith, a highlight of the festival. //Photo by Warunee Maneekum
• 7_2:Nakorn Tanglak, creator of faith-inspired products displayed at Muniverse.//Photo by Veena Thoopkrajae
• Artworks by local creators on display at the Pullman Khon Kaen Raja Orchid Hotel.//Photo by Warunee Maneekum
• Hands-on experience at the Larb Sieb workshop.//Photo by Warunee Maneekum
• //Photo by Warunee Maneekum
• Isan's homegrown designers shine at the festival's opening fashion show.//Photo by Warunee Maneekum
• A traditional welcome dance at the Colombo Creative Area.//Photo by Warunee Maneekum
• 13:Isan's homegrown designers shine at the festival's opening fashion show.//Photo by Warunee Maneekum

The enticing aroma of grilled larb fills the air, mingling with the energetic beats of new-generation Molam music on stage. In a contemporary art space, crowds gather around an open-air creative market.

Young designers showcase products that blend the region’s rich traditions with modern creativity; some even offer hands-on workshop experiences. At another venue, elders perform a welcoming dance, their movements framed by contemporary artworks.

This isn't just a festival—it’s the vibrant pulse of modern Isan in full, creative swing.

Welcome to Isan Creative Festival 2025 (ISANCF2025)—the most exuberant celebration of creativity in Thailand’s northeast. Now in its fifth year, the festival returns with the bold theme “ISAN SOUL PROUD”, turning Khon Kaen province into a vibrant stage for more than 200 events that blend tradition with creativity and innovation.

Contemporary Isan music energises the stage at TDCD Khon Kaen.//Photo by Warunee Maneekum

From 28 June to 6 July, 2025, four main venues across Khon Kaen—Thailand Creative and Design Centre Khon Kaen (TCDC Khon Kaen), Colombo Creative Community, Pullman Khon Kaen Raja Orchid Hotel, and the Sawathi Community, the latest venue to be added—will buzzing with showcases, academic talks, concerts, craft markets, business platforms, and collaborative art installations.

The celebration spills into other parts of Isan as well, making it a region-wide movement.

But ISANCF2025, a brainchild of the Creative Economy Agency (CEA), in cooperation with the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), Khon Kaen University, and private sector partners like AIS and Microsoft, is more than entertainment.

It's a call to action. The festival invites locals and fans of Isan alike to co-create a better future for the region by investing in its cultural assets—its food, stories, skills, and soul.

It's about leveraging Isan's inherent strengths and combining them with design, innovation, creativity, and new trends to unlock new economic possibilities.

“Our sense of community is our DNA—we are like family. It is a bond that we could ‘sell’ consisting of our love, care and cooperation, which I believe are the strengths of Isan people. Resilience is another outstanding quality, and when we are together, the cooperation can bring fruitful results,” said designer Kanjana “Chompoo” Shnatepaporn, a native of Udon Thani who now lives in Khon Kaen.

Kanjana exemplifies the Isan natives who return home to foster new opportunities and create businesses.

At ISANCCF 2025, visitors will witness the best of Isan creativity, driven by a belief in the region’s capacity to flourish without residents needing to migrate to the capital.

“If we are good enough, they’d come to us,” noted Kanjana, whose fashion designs were showcased at the event’s opening at TCDC Khon Kaen alongside those of other selected Isan homegrown designers.

This year, the event brings together creators, entrepreneurs, students, and visionaries from all 20 provinces of Isan, turning Khon Kaen into a launchpad for the Creative City vision.

It’s about seeing value in the local, inspiring investment in overlooked spaces, and encouraging return migration that fuels regional growth.

Whether it’s through food, film, music, crafts, design, business innovation, or community projects, ISANCF2025 is a festival that lets Isan shine on its own terms.

TDCD Khon Kaen’s Isan Showcase exhibition shines the spotlight on 30 creators from Isan who share the creation of works based on various aspects of the distinguished culture they grew up with.

Food culture, one of strongest identities of Isan-ness makes its presence in several ways.

Visitors will enjoy sampling the “Choco Laab” chocolate bar – a blend of larb-flavored chocolate – at the exhibition where famous Isan chefs and food producers work to glorify local tastes.

At a related workshop, the "Larb-koi Universe" offers an in-depth exploration of Isan's staple and its global culinary journey.

This experience is enhanced by a Larb-sieb (larb on a barbecue stick) workshop, led by a Bangkok restaurant celebrated for its creative Isan cuisine.

Elsewhere within the TDDC Khon Kaen festival ground, the D-Kak market showcases the best of Isan products.

Here, a homemade ice-cream parlor invites visitors to taste unique new flavors such as Santol spicy salad (krathon song khrueng), Pineapple with chili and salt (Sapparot Prik Klua), and Pandan-flavored Wolffia (Khaiphum Baitoey)

Beyond the kitchen, Isan's cultural DNA, particularly its deep-rooted faith and belief systems, also generates significant economic value.

The “Multiverse” exhibition showcases a wide array of artworks inspired by these spiritual traditions. This connects to the rapidly growing mutelu market, worth an estimated 28 billion to 40 billion baht annually, driven by people interested in amulets, talismans, and supernatural practices.

The Nakorn Tanglak x Phasaat Kaew wallet perfectly exemplifies this fusion of faith and creativity.

Creators combine a traditional handcrafted wallet with sacred yantra embroidery, blessed by Phra Ajarn Suriyan Khosapanyo from Wat Pa Wang Nam Yen temple in Maha Sarakham province.

This unique product seamlessly blends traditional Northeastern Thai handicrafts with Buddhist spiritual practices, serving as both a functional item and a spiritual tool that integrates local faith with daily life.

Economically, it provides significant employment for artisans. "We have 200 weavers and 150 in our embroidery team. In the future, we also plan to diversify into other products such as scarves," said Nakhon, the product's creator.

Roaming the first floor of the “Multiverse” exhibition, visitors will encounter creations inspired by Naga, Ganesha, and other Hindu deities.

Ganesha and Vessavana (Thao Wes Suwan), for instance, are reimagined with contemporary looks and shapes. Inspired by Japanese Daruma dolls, Tontan Innovation Studio highlights the concept of resilience: these dolls never fall, always springing back to an upright position.

Spiritual inspiration and other forms of creativity flourish across all venues. At the Colombo Creative Area and the new Sawathi Home Proud venue, the festival demonstrates how local beliefs and ways of life transform into innovative products.

For example, during our visit, young molam singer Chenpakorn Colombo and his group performed “Sa-wen-Jai,” an album of contemporary Isan music, at the Colombo Creative Area.

Morlam "Sa-wen-Jai," a contemporary Isan music, released at ISANCF 2025.//Photo by Veena Thoopkrajae

Meanwhile, traditional illustrations for "Boon Pha Wet," the Northeast's largest merit-making tradition, were also highlighted.

With a background in art, Manus Chantaharn took up Boon Pha Wet illustration over a decade ago.

He noticed few artists focused on it despite the strong demand from temples celebrating this merit-making tradition. After years of researching the story of Phra Wet (Phra Westsandorn), he made it his career.

"I believe I’m the only one in Khon Kaen who draws the Pha Wet for merit-making, but orders also come from other parts. I draw at least 12 orders, with sizes varying from 39 to 50 x 0.90 meters long," said Manus.

With its rich culture and history, Isan offers numerous opportunities for homegrown creators.

At the Sawathi Home Proud area, home to the century-old Wat Chai Sri, young students performed a puppet dance, narrating the tale of Sin and Chai (pronounced Sin, Sai in Isan).

Nearby, workshops and character designs based on the story of these two brothers engaged visitors.

Whether it’s through food, film, music, crafts, design, business innovation, or community projects—ISANCF2025 is a festival that lets Isan shine on its own terms. It's where Isan proudly reclaims its narrative, showcasing its rich legacy and forging a creative path forward.