THAILAND AND PAINTINGS OF ARTIST PATAMARES LIVISIT

                                           

THAILAND AND  PAINTINGS OF ARTIST  PATAMARES   LIVISIT  ( born 1960 ) .

About Thailand , we generally know that it is  an economy that  has been  run  over by Western values   due to  tourism.  A Buddhist  nation  where massage parlours are  also attracting tourists. We generally believe that Thailand is a  place where every young tourist wants to go for fun and enjoyment. That is not totally correct . People visit Thailand for its  tranquil beaches, exotic cuisine, magnificent temples and scenery, colourful history, or cultural and archaeological sites.Thailand  is also  known it's delicious mangoes and strict rules about conversations on its monarchy.

Some of us might  also be   knowing  that Prince Jagat Singh ( 1949-1997 ) from Jaipur’s  Kachhwaha  royal  family had   married  Priyanandana Rangsit  from the royal family of Thailand . And some of us might have also tasted Thai food especially  curries, Som Tam Salad, Tom Yum Soup, Pad Thai noodles, Satay, among others.I believe most of us know this much about Thailand .

Unless we visit the country , we don’t know many things about  this beautiful  land .   Thailand has its  ancient culture and traditions. A culture that is influenced by Animism , Hinduism and Buddhism  . A country where some kings were named as Rama . A country  where Ramayana is also  popular. Namsate is wai to which you need to respond with folded hands.Sawadika is  a traditional greeting in Thai that means "Hello". The Thai version of the Ramayana  epic is known as the Ramakien. The Rama story is thought to have been known to the Thais since at least the 13th century. It was adopted from older Khmer sources.

Buddhism, the religion practiced in Thailand is somewhat unique to other Buddhist nations, having been infused with many outside elements. Hindu practices and traditional Chinese beliefs have influenced local beliefs to an extent, with animist beliefs playing a large role in making Thai Buddhism what it is today. And Monks are highly respected .The Thai people  perform rituals like Namkaran ( giving new names to babies) . The joint family system prevalent in urban and rural areas  keeps family ties strong.

Some  important Thai festivals and celebrations are Chakkri Day, Chulalongkorn Day, the queen's birthday, the current king's birthday, Coronation Day, the Royal Plowing Ceremony, Songkran (The Water Festival), Visakha Bucha (Buddha's Birthday), Krathong (Festival of Lights), Magha Puja, Yi Peng Festival, and many more. Thi people love their King and Queen .No disrespect to royal family  in any form is tolerated  in Thailand.

 Belief in superstitions is  a part of Thai culture . People  consult a priest or monk for an auspicious date before arranging a wedding, buying a house ,  going on a  long journey ,  buying a car  , entering a newly built house and  many other situations. 

Some of us must have also seen the beautiful canals and water ways in this  country .  Apart from being used for  transport , these canals have floating markets . This is exactly like our  Dal lake  waterways. Early morning  vegetable market  in boats   looks like our Dal lake vegetable Mandi . The inland waterways in Thailand  are about 4000 km and are used to ferry goods , agricultural output ( mostly rice ) and passengers .Bangkok , Ayuthya ( Ayodhya )and many more towns have flourishing floating markets  selling anything and everything to locals and tourists .

Over half of the vocabulary of Thai language  is derived from or borrowed from Pali, Sanskrit, Mon and Old Khmer. It is a tonal and analytic language, similar to Chinese and Vietnamese.Thai script and many more South Asian scripts were the direct descendants of old Tamil Pallava Script. For this  reason,one  finds similarities between Thai and old Tamil scripts.It is pertinent to mention that Khmer has been influenced considerably by Sanskrit and Pali  through Hinduism and Buddhism.

Thailand  has a history of  dance , drama , music and paintings  supported and patronized by the royal family.  And This country is full of art galleries where one  can see some finest  contemporary art  on display . This art includes modern,  abstract, impressionist , landscape , portraits , decorative and   realistic . Many artists, painters , singers , musicians and dancers  are  active  in Thailand presently. This aspect is mostly unknown to us.

And I feel pleased to introduce Patamares  Livisit   ( born 1960 ) . Patamares is a   young   frontline contemporary painter from Bangkok, Thailand  who paints  landscapes , market  scenes and portraits and most prominently the waterways of the country . His style is varied that  includes   realistic and  Impressionist genre.  I am lover of his exclusive paintings in impressionist style that depict life in waterways. He is a master in use of colours for  painting  markets of waterways  or what is known as  "Floating Markets"  of  Thailand .Patamares' s works are exhibited at Sombat Permpoon Gallery and galleries throughout Thailand.

( Avtar Mota )

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