Arts

AIRASIA INFLIGHT MAGAZINESt. Patrick’s DayGREENINGTHE EARTHDepth of DevotionTHAIPUSAMIN MALAYSIARevivalof theArtsCambodiaChiang Rai,ThailandMONO-CHROMATICMARVELSEat! Eat! Eat!FEEDINGFRENZYIN TAIPEISMUGGLINGME IS SOOO 2012! 03IT’S 2013, PEEPS.READ ME ONLINE.www.airasia.com/travel3sixty2013

CHECK-INContents March 2013NAVIGATOR68BLOSSOMINGOF THE ARTCambodia’sCultural Revival76BIG EATIN TAIPEIFeasting in Taiwan84DEPTH OFDEVOTIONThaipusamin Malaysia92PERILOUSLY DARK,PASSIONATELYWHITEChiang Rai, Thailand100GREEN INTHE FACESt. Patrick’s Day108PILOT’SPERSPECTIVEA Lifetime of Flying114TRAVEL LOGThe Climb of My Life!1006876122

032013FEATURE • Thailandwww.airasia.com/travel3sixtyPERILOUSLYDARKPASSIONATELYWHITENorthern Thailand’s Lanna heritage,art and architecture are traditionallydepicted in a spicy colour palette.However, portraying their uniqueinterpretations of heaven and hell,two of Chiang Rai’s famous artisticsons have dramatically flipped theswitch to mono.WORDS: CAROL WEST PHOTOGRAPHY: ROBERT MUIR

Dragging a metal chain leash, alarge black dog paced the pathwaybetween two low-slung, glass andsteel art galleries. In the stillnessof mid-afternoon, the eerie sightand metallic sound were strangelydisturbing. Robert and I had justarrived at The Black House, orBaan Si Dum, 10 kilometres northof Chiang Rai. Glancing aroundnervously, I wondered if the dog’ssudden appearance had beenstage-managed. This feeling didn’tdissipate when viewing the gallery’sblack, white and crimson paintingsthat depict the destructive energy ofmythological, fl esh-tearing creaturesthat emanate from the darkly creativeimagination of Thailand’s treasurednational artist Thawan Duchanee.BLACK & WHITEBoth the Black House and the WhiteTemple located two kilometres to thesouth of the former, run counterpointto what I was anticipating whendrawing up my temple itinerary inChiang Rai. The fi rst capital of theancient Lanna kingdom foundedby King Mengrai in the mid-13thcentury, Chiang Rai is Thailand’soldest city in a province separatedfrom Burma and Laos by mightymountains and fast fl owing rivers.Set in the heart of the fabled GoldenTriangle, it’s a region richly endowedwith ancient culture and ethnicdiversity. At Wat Chedi Luang inChiang Saen, we watched machetewieldingmen scale perilous heights,hacking the unrelenting foliage awayfrom the ancient chedi. ChiangSaen’s largest and oldest, it’s theperfect embodiment of Lanna artistry.PRECEDING PAGE(LEFT): Skuills, antlers,beaks and feathers adda surreal touch to theBlack House.PRECEDING PAGE(RIGHT): Thaimythology takes flightat the White Temple.RIGHT: The simplicityof a bronze bell setagainst the complexdesign of theWhite Temple.94 TRAVEL 3SIXTY˚

LEFT: Terracottaroofs retain thetraditional Thaiarchitectural elementto the Black House.Such decorative touches areobliquely expressed at the BlackHouse where artist, architect andphilosopher, Thawan Duchanee,has moodily re-invented aspects ofThai Buddhist architecture. Sunlightshoots daggers of light across theAssembly Hall’s immense blackinterior that’s supported by sturdyteak pillars. Python skins spantables roughly hewn and polishedfrom enormous trees while ancientroot systems are fashioned intoseats. Described as a mysticalmasterpiece or, macabre andrepetitive, the operatically scaleddécor incorporates enormous hornedchairs, animal skulls, vast shellcollections, ancient weaponry andanimal furs. This taxidermic excesssuggested ‘Hall of the MountainKing’ rather than the Buddhist‘Middle Way’.DARKENED DAYSAnimal skins lay sprawled at entrydoors, the vertebrae of a pachydermwas neatly assembled beneathanother Thai teak house wherecabinets were filled with arrows,daggers, knives, swords and spears– the paraphernalia of death. Inanother house, feathers and beaksfanned into exotic displays andenormous, black-horned chairswere arranged around a tableaccessorised with tortoise placesettings and pots of un-pluckedbirds, a sumptuous pagan settingfor a marauding Vikings’ dinnerparty, I surmised.TRAVEL 3SIXTY˚95

RIGHT: Fearsomedoor guardianswelcome visitors tothe Black House.Looking for an escape fromthe dark interiors, skulls andserrated teeth, I strolled throughthe garden past artfully arranged,free-form granite sculptures andgrazing horses towards three purewhite domes. A circlet of chairs,immense black crocodile skins andrings of giant conch shells were therecurrent themes here accompaniedby the dank, musty smell of paganritual. I swore I smelt it vividly orperhaps it was just my imaginationworking overtime, having beenassaulted by the dark and disturbingdisplays. While some visitorsbemoan the lack of descriptivepanels at the Baan Si Dum, I forone, thought it increased the senseof intrigue and amplified the surrealvision embodied in Duchanee’s darkinterpretations.COLOUR OF LIGHTWhile signage to the BlackHouse is minimal, it’s impossibleto avoid Chalermchai Kositpipat’sdazzling Buddhist and HinduWhite Temple. To some, the crystaltemple is an overblown vision, atheme park dedicated to heavenand hell. But to the celebratedartist and teacher, Wat RongKhun or the White Temple, is asymbol of Lord Buddha’s purityand the artist’s personal vision ofheavenly joy. Kositpipat’s spikywhite architecture resembledcarved blocks of snow overlaidwith ice crystals that displayed anunerring eye for detail. Even theshoals of Japanese koi fish in thesurrounding moat were albino.

Designed to be viewed bymoonlight, during the day the refl ecteddazzle of this plaster confectionembedded with mirror mosaicssparkled with an eye-watering intensitythat left me groping for my sunglasses.A life-like statue of revered localmonk, the late Prakoo Sawai, greetsvisitors to this unfi nished masterworkof more than 60 buildings, belltowers and sculptures that began in1997. Like Barcelona’s celebratedarchitect Antoni Gaudi who began hisunfi nished masterpiece La SagradaFamilia in 1882, Kositpipat doesn’tplan to conclude the project duringhis lifetime but will leave the task tomore than 60 acolytes and suggests apossible end date of 2070.Chalermchai Kositpipat emergedin the late 1970s as a leader of theneo-traditional Thai art scene crossinggenres by employing allegory, as wellas cartoon-like fi gures. Adjacent to theWhite Temple, the Hall of Masterworksdisplays a comprehensive sweep ofhis paintings, fi nely detailed imagesthat highlight in minutiae the cycleof life, as he seeks to challenge andcreate new forms of Thai culture andTheravada Buddhism.HEAVEN & HELLThe White Temple is an extension ofhis provocative art style and providesan immense three-dimensional‘canvas’ where his ongoing fascinationwith heaven and hell is explored.Mirrored mythical beasts guard thebridge to the White Temple where awrithing ‘sea’ of 500 hands claws theair, trapped in a fl oating torment ofhell. Called The Beauty of Anguish,it is the one dark spot amongst arecurring theme of love and happinesshere. The entrance to the assemblyhall is graced with a skull rather thana Buddha image and the wall friezesinterweave pop culture referencesLEFT: Mirrormosaic adornfigures that guardthe entrance tothe White Temple.TRAVEL 3SIXTY˚97

WAT RONG KHUNBan Rong Khun,Chiang Rai, approx 10 kmssouthwest of Chiang RaiOPEN: 8.00am to 6.00pmEntry is freewww.tourismchiangrai.comBAN SI DUMMoo 13, Tambong NangLae, Ban Dhu, Chiang RaiOPEN: 9.00am to 5.00pmEntry is freewww.thawan-duchanee.comRIGHT: Gildeddoorway and hornedanimal skull markthe entrance to theBlack House.RIGHT, BELOW:ChalermchaiKhositpipat’sWhite Temple is asymphony to purity.and global issues with lyrical Thaiimagery continuing a political andsocial commentary that fi rst airedin Kositpipat’s work in 2009. Theartist provides no answers, insteadleaving visitors to draw their ownconclusions from what they see,observe and absorb.Strolling across the verdantparkland, I chanced upon a white,mirror-encrusted, concrete bannersymbolising victory and, bell towersand sculptures awaiting decorativefi nishing touches that will eventuallyreach them. To ChalermchaiKositpipat, mirror mosaics signifywisdom and I refl ected that in thefi nal analysis, appreciation of artand architecture comes down topersonal taste. What appeals to onemay appall another but by takinga monochromatic approach toThailand’s gilded extravagance andrichly hued imagery, these largescale,long-term projects are sure toprovoke, shock and encourage bothlocals and visitors to think a-newabout spiritual symbolism.GETTING THERE AirAsia fl ies daily toChiang Rai from Don Mueang Int. Airport Bangkok.Go to www.airasia.com for details.98 TRAVEL 3SIXTY˚