Baan Kata Art Festival 2013 in Phuket, Thailand

USPA NEWS - There is beauty in dissolution too! This was the theme of this years Baan Kata Art Festival.
Established 18 years ago by ML Mom Tri and HE. Adm. ML Usni Pramoi, Baan Kata Art Festival 2013 was again a resounding success.

Harvard-educated ML Mom Luang Tridhosyuth Devakul, better known as Mom Tri, has been a pioneer in the development of Phuket Island as a premier travel destination. The intention was not only for tourists to come to the island but also for expats thinking of Phuket as a permanent residency. On the hillside between Kata and Kata Noi he build a house for himself which expanded into a collection of several buildings which turned into one the of most beautiful and exclusive boutique hotels Mom Tri´s Villa Royal. Here the Baan Kata Art Festival was celebrated from February 3rd and 4th, 2013.

The festival started on the first evening with an exhibition opening, displaying Mom Tri´s very own art pieces comprising of colorful pieces of wood. Some are remains of former fishing boats falling apart because of their age, washed on the beach but which have become works of art in themselves. Other pieces of wood, are turned into sculptural creations, and there are acrylic paintings on canvas titled “Dissolution of the Aura“. Mom Tri started his artistic endeavors over forty years ago when he walked the pristine beaches of Kata and Kata Noi. Here, he not only found the wood for his sculptures but also found the inspiration for his paintings. He met young hippies on the beach enjoying themselves barely wearing any clothes.

He enjoyed looking at them with an artist´s eye which inspired him to paint their beautiful bodies. He befriended some of them and lots of them continued to come back. He noticed that over time their originally young, tight bodies showed signs of aging, expanding, extracting or even falling apart like the fishing boat from which he had picked up the colorful pieces of wood. Locals, media and tourists alike enjoyed the exhibition opening, which will remain open until 2 April 2013.

For the second evening, Mom Tri had invited H.E. Admiral M.L. Usni Pramoj. Admiral Usni studied law at Oxford University and became a Barrister-at-Law at Gray´s Inn. After his return to Thailand he followed his passion for music and helped pioneer Western classical music in his home country. He was the co-founder of a chamber orchestra which subsequently developed into the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra. M.L. Usni is still an active conductor, violinist, violist, and composer.

It was 18 years ago, that ML Tri Devakul and HE. Adm. ML Usni Pramoi organised the first Baan Kata Arts Fest with the intension of creating a festival that would appeal to people interested in visual and performing arts. As an annual tradition, the festival brings together musicians and artists, and all those who appreciate both.

This year, ML Usni was accompanied by, Tasana Nagavajara on violin, Siripong Tiptan on violin and Kittikhun Sodprasert on violoncello and Yos Vaneesorn on clarinet. The quintet performed Mozarts Clarinet Quintet in A, K581 and Shostakovich´s String Quartet No.3 in F, Op. 73.

See gallery go to: http://www.ilsegibson.com/baan-kata-art-festival-2013.html