Everything from stalls in Ratchaburi’s central market to municipal manhole covers have been transformed for a very public art event that is likely to add colour and interest to practically every step that townspeople take over the five weeks.

And yes, ladies and gentlemen, what you can see prominently displayed on this page are two examples of this artistic endeavour for and by ordinary folk, many of whom have never been inside a regular art gallery in their lives.

At a busy shop in the traditional wet market, butchers carry out routine tasks like carving up joints of meat decked out in fancy aprons designed just for them. The coverall, which comes in fluorescent pink and white, bears a slogan derived from the Thai words for “pork” (moo) and “bear” (mee), combining the stock in trade of this store with the nickname of its gregarious owner. Mee, standing on the left of the main photo, is flashing that ear-to-ear smile in response to banter from staff about her new status as a media darling. As she interacts with her jovial colleagues, her hands remain in constant motion, busily cutting pork on a very special chopping block, a portion of the edge of which you can see in the smaller picture. Those characters carved into the surface of the thick wooden board spell out the Thai equivalents of sounds like “chop!”, “bam!” and “thud!”. The block was altered by a professional artist especially for use in Mee’s shop.

Why and how has this come to pass? This pork butchery is one of the 56 spots around town that are displaying works created for Art Normal, an event organised by Wasinburee Supanichvoraparch, member of the third generation of the family which founded Tao Hong Tai, Ratchaburi’s leading ceramics factory.

A graduate in ceramics from Germany, Wasinburee said the years he spent living as an apprentice in that country and the things he experienced during visits to a host of inspirational cities there awakened in him a previously undiscovered appreciation for art.

“As a teenager I didn’t feel anything at all for art. But I was fortunate to have had the chance to study in Germany and to have been inspired so much by its art-orientated cities,” said Wasinburee, now 40. This is the sixth art-related activity he has been involved in over the past 12 months.

“I think that Germans tend to design their [municipal] infrastructure to stimulate creativity and an appreciation for art. Town planning is well thought out and pieces of sculpture, like Henry Moore’s, have been used to fill otherwise empty spaces, large and small, in many cities. I found these to be nourishing for both mind and soul. Ratchaburi is my hometown so I wanted to contribute by doing something that I knew could make the lives of its people richer.”

A unique feature of art is that it can manifest its value regardless of setting and Art Normal is taking a novel approach in Ratchaburi’s history to public participation in the arts by bringing works of art to ordinary people in places where they conduct routine, everyday tasks. In addition to Mee’s butchery, the chosen venues include beauty salons, grocery stores, food stalls, tailor’s fitting rooms and coffee shops.

“A publicly funded art gallery would be wonderful,” Wasinburee said, “but how many years would it take for us to get one? So until such time as there are art spaces here and this issue makes it way onto the local authority’s agenda, we can use the infrastructures that already exist in our community to bring art to the people. I am thrilled that we have been made so welcome by places that we approached seeking permission to exhibit.”

And public cooperation went far beyond the mere offering of space to display photographs, paintings, drawings, prints, ceramic sculpture, installations, billboards and large-scale graffiti. Owners of several shophouses, as well as a bus driver and tuk tuk driver accepted the challenge of creating art to adorn their own buildings or vehicles. Apart from the efforts of these novices, Art Normal has also attracted enthusiastic support from local art students/apprentices plus some professional artists.

Judging from exchanges I witnessed during the early stages of this cross-town ”happening”, Wasinburee couldn’t have been more right about the warmth of the welcome Ratchaburi residents would give to Art Normal. Owners of various venues I visited seemed genuinely happy at the interest shown in the art on display and some got positivity effusive as they chit-chatted with callers about the artwork and their own personal lives. In fact, several shopkeepers appeared to prefer spending time with visitors who had come to look at the art rather than conduct business with regular customers of theirs!

”Yes!”, almost 20 waitresses in quaint blue-and-white uniforms answered loudly in unison when asked if they were enjoying the framed drawings of Ratchaburi landmarks that now decorate the walls of their workplace _ Ruenros restaurant, a long-running establishment in the old commercial quarter.

”This event has sparked a lot of discussion about art in our neighbourhood. We’ve all been talking to each other about what we think about the different works on display in this part of town,” said 17-year-old Wimonmat, daughter of Ruenros’ proprietor.

”We’ve gone into other shophouses in this area to see what art has been put up there and our neighbours have dropped into our place to do the same. It’s been a lot of fun, a great novelty. We’d never seen the inside of each other’s houses before nor had we talked to each other much, even though we’ve lived next door to one another for ages,” Wimonmat’s mother added.

The pleasure that townspeople are deriving from Art Normal is almost palpable; it felt to me as if the event had unleashed a great outpouring of communal affection and empathy. An elderly noodle-shop owner held my hand very gently as she recounted the history of her little establishment. A draper volunteered to drive me to another exhibition venue all the way across town. A grocer, flattered that I had come to view the art at her place, got all flustered in her efforts to be hospitable, offering me a soft drink from her fridge. And what made this adorable reception all the more astonishing was that none of these people knew I was on a journalistic mission. The emotions expressed were so sincere, so pure that I was assured of the power of art and the virtue of organising a fantastically inclusive event of this nature.

Art Normal wraps up on February 19; be sure to mark your calendars.

Fancy going but don’t speak Thai?

The folks in Ratchaburi have led their simple, quiet lives without any need to learn how to communicate in English. To really have fun and appreciate this event, aside from an eye for the art on display, you should to be able interact with the people. On March 18, there will be a free Art Normal bike tour for English-speaking visitors. Email and type ”Art Normal tour for English speakers” in the subject field.

Another place to keep you updated about the project is Art Normal’s Facebook page. It was set up as a Public Event page so the URL link was coded with a complicated serial number. The easiest way to find the page is to Google ”Art Normal Facebook”, or facebook.com/events/171805302899818/.

HOW TO GET THERE AND GET AROUND

Thanks to the event’s scale, plus Ratchaburi’s proximity to Bangkok, Art Normal will make your two-day weekend a quality time to spend with loved ones. Travelling to Ratchaburi is easy and only takes about two hours.

The starting point of your Art Normal weekend is the Tao Hong Tai d’Kunst art gallery, situated downtown by serene Ratchaprapha dam. Suggested mode of transport are the public vans that depart from the Victory Monument area. The fare ranges from 100 to 130 baht, depending on which crew you get a ride with.

The Aomsin crew’s first pick-up point is on Soi Rachavithi 13 and your stop is next door to the Government Savings Bank in downtown Ratchaburi, which is less than five minutes’ walk from the Tao Hong Tai d’Kunst art gallery. Call 084-414-6962 to book tickets.

The 2000 crew departs from Soi Rachavithi 12 and drops you off at its office on the city belt. From there, they offer a comfortable free ride in a pickup truck to passengers who want to get downtown. In case your chauffeur is unfamiliar with the art gallery, you can tell him to drop you off at the Ratchaburi National Museum, which is next door to our destination. Call 084-973-6136 to book tickets.

At the Tao Hong Tai d’Kunst art gallery, you may freshen up a bit as it also doubles as a cafe and, most importantly, get your copy of the art map, your best friend on this trip. The map is very easy to read but it is in Thai. Ask a Thai friend to join you on this trip if you don’t speak or read the language. Not only the map, you will probably have to ask directions from time to time and definitely want to talk to the locals who play curators at the shophouses or establishments they live in or work at.

If you can cycle and want to tour the city on a bike, the Tao Hong Tai d’Kunst art gallery has 30 bikes to lend to visitors. Also available at the art gallery are handbound programmes, which can be bought at 275 baht each. The Tao Hong Tai d’Kunst art gallery is open, Tuesday to Sunday, from 10am to 8pm.

While a bike offers a reasonable mode of transport, a two-day walking tour is also possible, thanks to, again, the town being relatively small, plus the venues being doors away from one another. Not to mention the very affordable, yummy food and refreshments that are conveniently available for your refuelling, including at several venues that are exhibiting art themselves.

Launched on December 17, the production aspect of Art Normal is still a work in progress because more artists have asked to participate. The art map is mostly reliable but a couple of location changes are likely.

Your trip starts at the Tao Hong Tai d’Kunst art gallery where you grab a copy of the art map and borrow a bike if you’re able to cycle. I only did the former and took off on foot equipped with a pair of heavy-duty trainers. I have proven that a walking tour is definitely possible. Ten out of 16 exhibition points in Zone A are in the same row of buildings as d’Kunst. In fact, the closest one is literally next door. Just two rooms from d’Kunst is where you are bound to discover how we art visitors are so affectionately anticipated by our hosts in Ratchaburi. ‘‘Do you come for the art? Please do come in, little girl.’’ Three vivacious elderly ladies waved me in the moment they spotted my not-so-little self carefully leaning my head in to size up their attitude. It was a beauty salon, after all, and in my experience beauty salons rank high for the level of their residents’ sassiness. But at Auntie Mawng’s salon, I’m in for incredible joyous hospitality. Auntie Mawng and her partner, Auntie Ta, are among the owners of traditional local businesses that got invited to be the first-time artists at Art Normal. Advised by the art teacher to create the kind of art that she could relate to, Auntie Mawng soaked hair rollers in pastel colours and printed stripes which had a distinctive pattern of the hairdressing tool inside them. Those sleek brown curls on top of the print are real hair from a customer’s haircut.

Som On-pan, a bus driver, demonstrates how he took the photo that is now affixed to the back of a seat. ‘‘I’m now 56 years old and I never would have thought that I would some day hold a digital camera and take photos at this age,’’ Som shared. ‘‘It was fun. I think I’ll keep taking pictures.’’ During the production period, four compact digital cameras were given to four first-time photographers for keeps. Wasinburee says Som and tuk tuk driver Daeng inspired him to feature photography in this event. The unique views expressed through the lens handled by the bus driver have translated into a backrest gallery that entertains passengers who ride to the famous Suan Phueng district. Both drivers also took photos in their everyday lives, rendering organic images like this one, where Som captured the moment his own shadow was cast on his mother’s name on the address sign that is hung outside their home.

Cool and pleasant in the evening, Ratchaprapha Dam is a favourite hang-out spot for townspeople of all ages. Outdoors, loved and large, the dam was chosen by the Art Normal organisers to facilitate what they call the ‘‘gimmicks’’ of the event. Beside the dam alone, you will find six edgy artworks contributed by famous professional artists, including an 80-metre-long painting of an eccentric composition by SEA Write winner Prapassorn Sewikul. The line ‘‘Well, I still don’t have a girlfriend’’, is particularly liked by teenagers so it has become a newfound funky background for their photographs. Another highlight close to the dam are two ferries with painted roofs based on original drawings by Thailand’s leading illustrators Taweesak ‘‘Lolay’’ Srithongdee and ML Jirathorn Jiraprawat. It takes making your way up to Thanarat Bridge nearby to get a view of the cute blackand- white images of a superman and a Ratchaburi elephant as interpreted by the two artists. The devotion of the 55-year-old ferry owner, Sombat Charoenpol, is an impressive story in and of itself. Both ferries are only this photogenic because Sombat decided to bring forward his expensive plan to renovate the properties by months in order to ‘‘give pretty accommodation to the artworks’’. And that is your first glimpse of the enthusiasm these folks have for this art movement.

The philosophy visitors will surely leave with from ‘‘Art Normal’’ is that it doesn’t take bending over backwards to appreciate art. In fact, all it takes is a shoulder stand! Okay, clearly that’s a joke even though these busybody ladies are illustrating my lines too well. The main point is that art can be so simple and there are a number of ways to appreciate it. I mean, even while you are turned upside down in a yoga pose, positioning your body against one of the most fearsome natural orders, like gravity, those photos hung on the wall can still be so lovely, in a different way from when you look at them in the tree pose (confusion alert: Google image of yoga tree post now). Not sure if the Chinese saying, ‘‘The real sword is the heart’’, quoted in Zhang Yimou’s 2002 film Hero, really exists—but it surely has substance. Along the same line, I hereby proudly coin a wise saying, ‘‘The real art is in the eye’’ to match the other illustration you are looking at. Can you figure out what type of art is in that frame on the wall of noodle parlour Taweepol? My personal reference of the work here is the “Time Frame”. Taweepol has opened for over 30 years and its interior has never been repainted, preserving the whimsical buff and brown waves of smoke traces that adorn its aged wall and double-ceiling.

It is absolutely refreshing to see the event’s objective being achieved right before my eyes. Songyos, 54, reads the art work description tag before going on to study the art work on one of Thanarat Bridge’s props. Songyos is passing his time with the art work he describes as ‘‘beautiful when understood’’ while waiting for his wife to return from shopping at the market. Haven’t you seen his bearing from somewhere before? His learning forward with hands behind his back and all that intense gazing? This is likely to make you recall images you’ve seen of visitors examining art works in a prestigious art gallery. Despite not having the luxury of free time like Songyos, Burmese migrant Gee, 38, finds momentary relaxation in catching glances of the greenery photos that gives life to the wall behind the ice grinder. ‘‘The images go well with our business, ice. They both are cooling!,’’ said Somtawin, the owner of Hia Hui’s ice dispensary.

These two lady siblings are a true-life masterpiece. Taew tailor’s is one of the 18 exhibition points in Zone B. On display are chic photos of modern-city elements like lamppost, electric wires and metal bridge. But I’d put my money on this: most visitors are tempted to find out more about the close-to-identical-looking two sibling tailors than the Art Normal works here. The biggest goal of my highlighting this photo is to answer your potential curiosity as to their likeness; so that the timid ladies wouldn’t be discouraged from cooperating with any projects of the like in the future. The ladies say that they are cooperative with the movement as far as sharing space on their walls goes and hopefully not more than that. Uan, 74, admits she has no idea how the organiser got her younger sister, Taew, 72, to agree to participate. Black hair cut to a simple bob is kept clear of the face with a hairclip. The eyeglasses. The darkcoloured, short-sleeved, knee-length pant dresses with legs so wide they form a single-piece effect. The flip flops. From top to toe, the two ladies share exactly the same style of grooming. This combination has been put together only by the virtue of its comfort with no intention to make themselves look alike. These virtual uniforms, however, have understandably prompted many curious beholders to question with naivety whether Uan and Taew are twins. ‘‘We wear different sizes, though. She’s taller than me,’’ Uan said, speaking of the signature pant dresses Taew designed for them. Taew tailor’s is possibly the exhibition point that closes earlier than any others. Living an hour-drive away, they open at 7am and close at 1pm. ‘‘They asked to have their stuff hung on the wall. I let them but I wouldn’t like being messed around with. We don’t socialise. We want to be left alone.’’ Taew never looks up from the pink cloth on her sewing machine as she answers as to how much she would mind or enjoy conversing with visitors. That’s some statement, y’all!

A fact recap: The head of Art Normal, Wasinburee, inherited the ownership of the family business, the Tao Hong Tai ceramic factory, and is a ceramist himself. At Art Normal, you are certain to be charmed by a very pleasant small world of ceramic sculptures created in contextual harmony with their surroundings. Wasinburee’s apprentices and professional ceramists have created works that fit themselves into different-sized spaces in traditional shops and modern establishments, offering harmonious touches to the decor in those places. Lurking in obscure corners of Chinese-style glass cabinets in traditional shophouses is the most common mode of ceramic display at Art Normal. Demonstrating the point to us here is the burping pig lady, who could use an antacid pill or two, sitting on the same shelf. Some sculptures are displayed in a more open setting like these wildlife ones on wall racks at animal food shop Lim Siu Lee. But no ceramic work is as lucky as this rainbow pot by big-name ceramist Suraporn ‘‘Jekky’’ Lertwongpaitoon. Standing short, fat and central inside the Ong Mungkorn coffee shop, its bright, fantastic six horizontal stripes make your eyes open faster than the caffeine.

Hopefully you haven’t found the wise-saying thing trite yet because I have one more to serenade you with. Alright, call me a dork but the following saying is so fitting it has to be used: ‘‘The best place to hide a leaf is in a forest’’. Higher on the exterior of this beauty clinic, billboard-size prints of a sensual woman are mounted next to an IT store’s advertisements. These works took me longer than any others to find because I got seriously blindsided by their ability to assimilate with their surroundings. The level they are mounted at alone already makes it an unfair game for my short stature. The spot in the other picture offered a more competitive match to the vertically-challenged me in this 3D photo-hunt game. These two glam-rock dresses by an amateur garment designer are displayed as if on sale beside the women’s clothes at this regular shophouse. This may be a bit irrelevant, but the top one on the far left is pretty funky. I nearly mistook it for one of the Art Normal works. I’ll get it for my mother when I hit the town again next month.

Geg-Nai, 71, says she fretted the idea of creating her own artwork at first. Though vibrant, beautiful and very energetic, the owner of Kao Moo Daeng Nai Kee —a pork and gravy rice shop—wasn’t confident in her abilities to create what she had always perceived to be ‘‘literary’’. Coming from a humble background with little formal education, the one thing she’s known well since the age of 14 was selling food for a living. Art, she admits, is nothing in her sphere of knowledge. However, she didn’t mind exploring it when invited. Aptly hung above the ingredients table, her painting is simple and was inspired from her everyday life: images of noodle bowls and condiments for the pork and gravy rice dishes. ‘‘I felt proud. I only finished Year 4 in primary school. I never dreamed that I would be capable of painting.’’ Gen-Nai’s eyes sparkled as she mused about her artistic achievement. I suggest you pay her a visit during lunchtime. Why? Because you’ve got to try her pork and gravy rice dish. It was delicious! The gravy was loaded with curry powder, making the dish very aromatic, as well as tasty.

The market street houses a few establishments that have become institutions in themselves over the decades and Art Normal makes its way into the city’s first shops of their kinds, such as the first bike shop, the first egg noodle parlour and so forth. Suwit Lao, 72, plays a keen curator of the Chulalongkorn Bridge photo print displayed at his home-cum-business premises, Kwong Hua Hotel. The hotel is one of the first lodgings in Ratchaburi that is still running and stays preserved in its original condition since its opening during World War II. Just doors away, I find my winner in the analogy category. A photo of embracing bride and groom is hung below a sign reading ‘‘Lottery winners claim prizes here’’. The image looks all dreamy and the concept is arguably universal. But it is the Thai phrase I believe the artist based his/her work on that cracks me up. The image plus its presentation immediately invokes in my head the Thai phrase choke dee muen tuke Huay, with the all too colloquial way of calling lottery, especially the unlawful one.

These are what I call the Art Normal ultimate bonuses. What I love so much about this event is that it offers us an opportunity to appreciate art in two dimensions: the exhibits and the hosts. It gives me a legitimate excuse to go inside the people’s homes and see how they live. On a few occasions I stumble over gold nuggets, which I never bargained for, like a 50-year-old Ovaltine cut-out or a grandfather typewriter. My favourite is the newly magnified image of an originally postcard-size photo taken from the bygone nationalist era, found hung on the wall at chicken rice parlour Rungtawee. Our country under the leadership of Maj Gen Plaek Pibulsongkram is still remembered for a few dramatic movements such as changing the name of the country from Siam to Thailand; the elimination of honorific terms; the birth of pad thai noodles; and the promotion of hat wearing. The image at Rungtawee shows over a hundred men and women, clad in what seems to be their Sunday best, sitting and standing in orderly rows in front of the city’s pier; above them was a sign reading, ‘‘Thais who wear hats are loyal countrymen’’. So, of course, each and every one of them wears their best hats. The original image belonged to Rungtawee senior owner Aree’s mother, who was also in the picture. Having discovered this old photo a bit over 10 years after her mother’s passing, Aree was touched by its quirky, retro feel. She decided to have it magnified and framed as is. Aree says the municipality has borrowed this framed image to exhibit at its events a few times. There are also treasures that you can actually touch and hold in your hands, which makes touring Art Normal top visiting a folk museum for me. I present to you three-generation-old charcoal irons at animal food shop Lim Siu Lee. Acknowledging me as an art visitor, the owner’s sister-in-law doesn’t skip a beat to ask if I would want to check out the rare charcoal irons as well. After nodding like someone has just put a coin in me, I get to carry two real charcoal irons weighing close to six kilogrammes in total with both hands—and so can you!

Ratchaburi people may not recognise the Art Normal event by its name but they do register that there is something about art going on, seeing creations on facades of infrastructure around town, such as the aforementioned dam wall painting. Raw, bold and fresh, graffiti goes a long way to grab the attention of young and senior viewers alike. Art Normal graffiti appears in more than one spots. The taxi pickup-truck hub on point C7 of the art map gets passing drivers to pull up their cars to behold the event’s largest-scale graffiti works on three sides of two building walls that face each other to form a shoulder. ‘‘I love these. They are fresh and neat. My stress is melted looking at them.’’ This is how pickup-truck driver Sawang Eamair, 59, welcomes the decoration that just emerged on the wall of the pickup-truck crew’s ‘‘lounge’’ in his 14th year on the job. Art Normal also has little soldiers on the ground to attract the attention of pedestrians. Pink circles with the Thai translation of ‘‘Art Normal’’ inside them are painted on the ground outside every establishment enlisted as an exhibition point. I personally love that the organisers didn’t discriminate against manhole covers that appear to fall into the distance range they set for ground sign painting. Aside from these pink circles, visitors can also spot an exhibition point by a railing of pink Art Normal flags hung outside the house or shop.

About the author Writer: Koonrath Lauryn Love Latest stories in this category: