Connecting Multicultural Landscapes and Public Open Spaces: A Case Study of the Kudi Chin Community, Bangkok, Thailand

Abstract

Kudi Chin is a historic riverside community in Bangkok, Thailand, where Buddhist, Islamic, Christian, and Chinese cultural traditions coexist within a shared urban landscape. Its network of religious places, open spaces, circulation routes, and waterways reflects a long history of cultural coexistence. This study explores the spatial characteristics and degrees of publicness of cultural open spaces in Kudi Chin, their relationships with circulation routes and surrounding waterways, and their potential to contribute to a connected multicultural landscape while maintaining the distinctive identity of individual places. A qualitative case study approach was adopted, focusing on four cultural sites: Wat Kanlayanamit, Kudi Khaw Mosque, Santa Cruz Church, and Kian Un Keng Shrine. Site observations conducted in January 2026 examined three dimensions: spatial configuration, quality, and degree of publicness; connections, networks, circulation, and spatial relationships; and the temporal dimension of cultural use and activities. The findings show that the four cultural open spaces have distinct spatial configurations, degrees of openness and enclosure, and relationships with surrounding residential, community, and religious spaces. Streets, alleys, pedestrian routes, and public spaces connect these cultural places as part of a fine-grained spatial network, although pedestrian conditions and connections with the Chao Phraya River and Bangkok Yai Canal remain limited. High embankments and restricted access weaken visual and physical relationships between communities and waterways. Recurring cultural and religious activities further activate these spaces at different times of the year, may reinforcing their cultural significance. The study suggests that strengthening Kudi Chin as a multicultural landscape should build upon existing cultural places and spatial networks while improving pedestrian connections and relationships with waterways. This provides a landscape-architecture perspective on multicultural landscapes that emphasises the spatial relationships among culturally diverse places within a shared historic urban environment.