AMONG MANY joys of attending an arts festival these days is the fact that an increasing number of them have become more interdisciplinary, reflecting the nature of contemporary arts in which boundaries between genres continue to blur.

For example, during the final weekend of Singapore International Festival of Arts (Sifa)– on the main theme of “Enchantment”– when I wasn’t watching a performance in a theatre, I was at arthouse cinema The Projector listening to internationally acclaimed Filipino film director Lav Diaz discuss the production of his latest film, which has been commissioned by Sifa. On the ground floor of Sifa’s hub 72-13, I experienced an interactive video installation “Guilty Landscapes III”, in which Dutch artist Dries Verhoeven invited his audience, one person at a time, to interact with a man in a war-torn city on video screen. One floor above, I browsed through artefacts that reflected Singapore’s natural history, and learned more about the green side of the country I visit most often from the exhibition “The Nature Museum” by the Institute of Critical Zoologists (ICZ).

Of course performances remain at the heart of Sifa and festival director Ong Keng Sen signed off his four-year tenure with “Trojan Women”, his collaboration with the National Theatre of Korea and the National Changgeuk Company of Korea, at the Victoria Theatre. While Ong is known as an innovative director who fuses various performing arts traditions and aesthetics into many of his productions, the focus here was the traditional Korean music theatre genre of changguek and the traditional narrative music pansori. Accordingly, he had the six-string zither geomungo accompany Hecuba, a strongly passionate woman. Cheekily, he cast a male actor as Helen, the “face who launched a thousand ships”, while the pianist and composer also portrayed Paris.

The off-white grand set reminded the audience of the neutral stage of ancient Greek theatre. Even though the performance was entirely in Korean and most of us needed to read the English surtitles, Euripedes’s two-and-a-half-millennia old play was reborn to remind us that war not only affects only those who go to war. I’m sure this production would also reignite the younger generation’s interest in Korean traditional theatre.

Meanwhile at the studio theatre of School of the Arts, South African director and choreographer Robyn Orlin’s poetic and poignant work “And so you see…our honourable blue sky…and ever enduring sun…can only be consumed slice by slice…” made its Asia-Pacific premiere, after touring to many European cities.

Orlin worked with queer performance artist Albert Silindokuhle Ibokwe Khoza, whose back the audience saw more than his front, which was captured and projected live onto the back screen by videographer/stage manager Thabo Pule. With monologues, songs and physical movements as well as some traditional costumes and keenly selected and designed props, including plastic tapes which wrapped around his whole body, “And so you see…” showed the current state of South African society that’s more complicated than the audience in this region would think. Most of us can plead guilty to losing interest in it after Apartheid.

One strong commonality between these two works was the collaboration between the director and the performer(s). This differs from the more common practice in which the former puts his grand idea forth for the latter to execute, and that’s in addition to the fact that both are works that the audience couldn’t watch elsewhere in the region.

The writer’s trip was supported by Arts House Limited. Special thanks to Tay Tong and Mervyn Quek.

THE JOURNEY CONTINUES

– “Trojan Women” is back at National Theatre of Korea from November 22 to December 3. Next May and June, it will be part of Brighton Festival and London International Festival of Theatre (LIFT). For details, http://www.NTOK.go.kr

– Keep track of the South African choreographer at http://www.RobynOrlin.com

– More info on next year’s Singapore International Festival of Arts, under the helm of new director Gaurav Kripalani, is at http://www.SIFA.sg.

APPLAUSE WAS long and loud on Thursday night as Stuttgart Ballet closed out International Cultural Promotions’ “Bangkok’s 19th International Festival of Dance and Music” with modern classic “The Taming of the Shrew”. Many festival goers will indeed have felt that the festival saved the best for last, though some, myself included, no doubt found Malandain Ballet Biarritz’s “La belle et la bete” packed more surprises.

“The Taming of the Shrew” is a Shakespearean work less familiar than, say, “Romeo and Juliet” or even the Broadway musical adaptation “Kiss Me, Kate!” – and one has to give credit to the festival organiser for taking a risk that paid off. Thanks to Stuttgart Ballet’s founder John Cranko’s direction and choreography, which were underscored by his exceptional storytelling skills, we could always understand what was going on even without the Bard’s blank verse. While the first act moved the plot very swiftly and was filled with too much pantomime, the second act’s slower pace and more dance allowed time for the audience to empathise with the characters and their emotions.

Cranko’s attention to the details in characterisation was keenly preserved and portrayed by the multi-national dancers. The star of the evening was Spanish ballerina Alicia Amatriain whose Katherina was the most well-rounded character I’ve seen in a ballet performance – outrageously comedic throughout and yet sumptuously beautiful and touching towards the end and the gradual transition was also believable. Canadian principal dancer Jason Reilly, as Petrucchio, was her perfect match in both acting and dancing, and his muscular build was a nice contrast to her slim frame. One of the very few Asian principal dancers in European and American ballet companies, Seoul-born Hyo-Jung Kang also shone as Bianca with her sensuality and effortless movement, and she seems to be following the path set by Sue Jin Kang, the company’s former star who’s now artistic director of Korean National Ballet. Meanwhile, Briton David Moore, as Lucentio, was overshadowed by Kang’s sweetness, later shown to be otherwise, as well as the more colourful characterisations by his fellow suitors German Louis Stiens as Gremio, and Slovak Roman Novitzsky as Hortensio.

The production premiered in 1969, and, so of course, Elisabeth Dalton’s Renaissance costumes and set were in tune with that time. The lighting also looked peculiar, as if either there was not sufficient equipment in this venue or the spotlight operators were not fully awake. But when a performance is this captivating, the design elements, as they should, take a back seat. After all, a good classic remains a good classic when it gets a deft revival, and credit here goes to current artistic director Reid Anderson.

It’s interesting to note that the weekend before coming to the City of Angels, Stuttgart Ballet performed “Romeo and Juliet”, also by Cranko, as part of Esplanade Theatres on the Bay’s “dan:s series”. At first, one might think that this was part of Shakespeare 400, one year late. In fact, the company is commemorating the 400th anniversary of his birth and this year’s programme has many more of his works than before. Still, the company is widely known for its broad repertoire and they’re also performing works by Jerome Robbins, Frederick Ashton and Jiri Kylian, among others. And so, perhaps, next time they’re back in the region – and let’s hope that’s soon – we can get to see their other sides.

“Bangkok’s 19th International Festival of Dance and Music” is made possible through the kind support of Crown Property Bureau, Ministry of Culture, Bangkok Bank, Bangkok Dusit Medical Services, B Grimm Group, BMW, Dusit Thani Bangkok, Indorama Ventures, Nation Group, PTT Group, Singha Corporation, Tourism Authority of Thailand, Thai Airways International and Thai Union.

The writer wishes to thank International Cultural Promotions’ Egasith Chotpakditrakul and Sittikun Boon-it for all their assistance.

SEE YOU NEXT YEAR

– “Bangkok’s 20th International Festival of Dance and Music” will run from September 11 to October 19, 2018 at the Thailand Cultural Centre, Main Hall. And since it’s the 20th anniversary edition, there will be more surprises and delights for the audience than was the case this year, which saw a few repeat productions.

– Visit http://www.BangkokFestivals.com for updates or join the conversation at the festival’s Facebook page.

– Keep track of Stuttgart Ballet at http://www.Stuttgart-Ballet.de.

The exhibition, which brings together works from his “This is Thailand: Thailand from 2006to the present” collection reflects human behaviours in the era of globalisation and capitalism and mirrors the endless environmental problems caused by the ways we live our lives taking advantage of the environment and Mother Nature.

“The significance is the process of searching for new roles, functions and definition of jewellery in contemporary context. Using art, design and crafts, in this case jewellery as an aesthetic, cultural, social, political, and environmental instrument, I am confident that art and design can improve the quality of living together creating a sense of living purpose in a community and healthy environment with shared values, equalities, and environmental sustainability,” said Taweesak.

In this work, cultural leftovers (trash) on the beautiful beaches around Thailand have been given the new lives in the context of contemporary cultural signifiers to communicate to the society.

Find out more details at http://www.attagallery.com and watch the video of “This is Thailand” at Vimeo.com/108465999.

The competition offers Smales – as the members of its kids’ club are known – as well as the children of Ikea Family members, the opportunity to express their creativity by designing soft toys based on their own fun ideas.

The retailer will then select 10 winning designs from around the world to create a Sagoskatt soft toy that will be sold starting late next year at every Ikea store.

Judges from Ikea will consider submissions based on fresh ideas not previously seen elsewhere. They must come from the imagination, inspiration and perspective of kids and demonstrate the possibility of being produced as soft toys.

Smales and children of Ikea family members age 12 and under can also join the Soft Toy Drawing Competition from November 3 to 19 at the front of the Ikea store at Mega Bangna. The selection of winners to represent Thailand will be announced on December 6.

Billing himself as a social and cultural critic who expresses his view through visual art and contemporary jewellery, Taweesak designs formless jewellery that stimulates the senses of ambiguity.

The work reflects the conceptual existence of jewellery as an absolute object and a separate entity from the body. The deeper conceptual and physical relationship between jewellery and body is disregarded, with the jewellery redefined as a catalyst.

“Using both fragmented visual culture and existing experience of jewellery, I generate a condition in which the viewer is compelled to devise a new meaning and new perception in a theoretical and conceptual way in the context and content of today’s culture,” Taweesak explains.

Find out more at http://www.AttaGallery.com.

Forty-year-old artist, Sukit Choosri was awarded “the 2017 UOB Thailand Painting of the Year” for his painting “One Life”, which was inspired by his thoughts on the transience of our existence.

“One Life” encourages the viewer to open his or her mind to see beyond the immediate and the present. The tempera and acrylic painting depicts a young girl holding a lotus flower in her hands, her eyes reflecting a silhouette of the Buddha while enveloped in the shadow of a decaying Bodhi tree. The panel was unanimous in their choice of the painting for the top award because of the artist’s creativity in portraying the transience of life.

“As a Thai artist, I am honoured to win the UOB Thailand Painting of the Year award. The competition not only provides artists with opportunities to exhibit their works on the regional and international stage, it also inspires us to persevere in having art as a career,” Sukit said.

The painting was chosen from among 10 finalists in the Established Artist category and Sukit went home with a cash prize of US$25,000 (Bt750,000). His artwork will now compete with the winning entries from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore for the UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year Award, which will be announced on November 8.

The panel of judges comprises Amrit Chusuwan, dean of the Faculty of Painting Sculpture and Graphic Arts, Silpakorn University; Professor Emeritus Dr Santi Leksukhum, art history specialist; and Chatvichai Promadhattavedi, board member and secretary of Bangkok Art and Culture Centre Foundation Executive Board.

The Silver Award went to “Plastic Tiger” by Ketsakda Wimonsong, an oil painting portraying daily human consumption of plastic and its adverse effects to human and the environment. Ketsakda was last year named “Most Promising Artist of the Year” on the basis of his painting “Effect of Consumerism”.

UOB also recognised Suthep Senkhong with the Bronze Award for his “Melody of Life 1”. He noted that nature is constantly changing, with every movement creating a dimension, beauty, mark, and formless difference, similar to the unavoidable truth of birth, existence, and death. Suthep also won Gold Award at 7th UOB Thailand Painting of the Year.

In the Emerging Artist category, 24-year-old Kananek Treetantiplert won the UOB Most Promising Artist of the Year award for his painting titled “Threefold Refuge”. The oil painting on canvas portrays the contradiction of tradition and materialism in the form of its subject – an electric incense burner.

Tan Choon Hin, president and chief executive officer of UOB (Thai), said that the UOB Thailand Painting of the Year competition aims to showcase to a regional audience the breadth of talent and creativity in Thailand.

“Over the past eight years, the competition has helped to introduce many emerging and established Thai artists to the rest of Southeast Asia. Their success will inspire others to follow in their footsteps and to contribute to the growth of Thailand’s thriving art community,” Tan said.

The winning and shortlisted paintings from both established and emerging categories are currently on display at Bangkok Art and Culture Centre until October 29, and will be at the UOB Head Office on Sathorn Road from October 30 to November 10. The exhibition is open to the public and admission is free.

 It’s at H Gallery Bangkok today through November 26.

In meticulously painted scenes, both with and without a human presence, Klose employs sharp contrasts of light and a gradated palette of colour.

“Between Intimacy and Estrangement” carries a deliberated framing of the immediate space of an individual through limited expanses and an aura of the wistful.

Dark interiors reach out to sun-drenched suburban housing estates and distant horizon lines, the frames of the windows suggesting a fragile confinement.

Klose’s paintings have always demonstrated his interest in structural thresholds and whether the play of light and shadow is abrupt or softly melancholic, the limits of difference between inner and other worlds is acute and compelling.

Klose recently resolved to intensify his methods by limiting the subject matter. A previous series titled “Disquiet” integrated found imagery with observed views, while the earlier works from “Witthayu” maintained a searching ambivalence prompted by the artist’s relocation to the seemingly infinite expanses of Bangkok.

The paintings of the current series were disciplined as a study of how the familiar could be mined for potential previously not noted. For example, Klose’s wife returns, but less as a portrait of a person than a cipher for contemplating a body’s relation to architectural space.

Bathed in shadows and physically de-emphasised, her back is turned in one work and moved towards the edge in others.

For the first time, Klose includes self-portraits, including a portrait of a portrait that reflects on his very medium and method.

Find out more at (085) 021 5508 and http://www.HGalleryBkk.com.

“Spectrosynthesis: Asian LGBTQ Issues and Art Now” features 50 works by 22 artists from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Mainland China, the United States and Singapore.

“Spectrosynthesis” is a mingling of “spectrum” and “photosynthesis”. The show has as its theme “Spectrum of light”, as shone on the LGBTQ community’s rich and diverse history.

The exhibition’s co-organiser, the Sunpride Foundation, supports artistic practice and promotes equal rights for LGBTQ individuals through meticulous research and discourse on contemporary art.

As the first exhibition on LGBTQ issues at a government-run art museum in a Chinese society, “Spectrosynthesis” features works that span nearly half a century of creation.

Brought together under the vision of independent curator Sean Hu from Taiwan, the exhibition presents a slice of art history, particularly looking at the life stories and related issues of the post-war Chinese LGBTQ community.

The exhibits touch upon a profusion of subject matter, such as identity, equality, the mass media’s propensity to hunt for novelty, social oppression, stigmatisation and lust, as well as life and death.

The works focus not only on the real predicaments that LGBTQ people are caught in on a daily basis, but also provide a comment on the evolving social structure, which is likely to change in the foreseeable future.

The exhibition builds on similar thematic exhibitions that are becoming more commonplace in the West. In 2017 Tate Modern and Tate Britain both hosted large-scale exhibitions of LGBTQ artists, well reflecting British society’s long-term accomplishments in promoting human rights.

However, such exhibitions and research projects have been conspicuously absent from the Chinese art scene. Taiwan is widely recognised as the most progressive and supportive centre of LBGTQ rights in the region and is likely to become the first Asian territory to legalise same-sex marriage.

“Spectrosynthesis” is therefore a timely presentation, “the first exhibition I have curated related to LGBTQ issues”, says Sean Hu.

“During the last three years while preparing for the exhibition, I have witnessed a growth in discussions and debates on LGBTQ issues in Asia. The recent constitutional decision in favour of same-sex marriage in Taiwan is of particular significance.

“‘Spectrosynthesis’ presents a wide range of works which relate to the topic of LGBTQ in various ways. The exhibition hopes to stimulate thoughts and challenge values and perspectives on human equality. All parties involved in the exhibition take love as their starting point, and I hope this is the beginning of an open dialogue on the topic.”

Follow the Sunpride Foundation and MOCA Taipei on Facebook and Instagram.

FOR ORDINARY citizens who won’t be able to get too close to the royal crematorium at Sanam Luang in Bangkok – and for anyone else wishing to understand the structure’s individual components better – the Thailand Creative and Design Centre has a wonderfully explanatory exhibition on the subject.

“Insight Thai Architecture”, continuing through January 7 at the centre in the Grand Postal Building on Charoenkrung Road, features full-scale models of the elaborate elements that have been affixed to the crematorium of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

Each piece is accompanied by a textual explanation of its placement and meaning.

The royal crematorium that has risen at Sanam Luang over the past year is called Phra Merumas and incorporates the utmost achievements in Thai architecture – along with some decidedly modern advances in methodology.

Associate Professor Dr Chaiyasit Dankittikul, dean of architecture at Silpakorn University, notes that royal crematoria are “conceptual and temporary structures that are taken apart after the ceremony and never used again”.

“But each one is unique in its design, since it’s built for an individual funeral,” he says, and each time, traditional Thai architecture poses specific challenges in terms of achieving accuracy in shapes and scale.

The centrepiece of the exhibition is a reduced-scale model of the entire crematorium, embodying a veritable renaissance for Thai architectural creativity. The artists are, after all, seeing to recreate Heaven on Earth.

Surrounding the structure are statues of celestial beings – the garuda, the naga and other mythical creatures found in classical Hindu and Buddhist literature and in the Trai Bhumi beliefs that encompass final honours bestowed on a king.

It’s interesting to see the careful thought and painstaking creativity that’s gone into this and how the technology used in building the Phra Merumas has evolved over different reigns and eras.

Exhibition visitors also learn that full-scale architectural blueprints are crucial in getting the proportions right. Erecting a royal cremation is an exacting science and architects’ drawings amount to no less than masterpieces.

Professor Dr Praves Limparangsri, a National Artist and an architect who specialises in Buddhist art, recalls Silp Bhirasri – the revered “father of Thai modern art” – telling him that “1:1 scale artwork is pure architecture”. Silp said it shouldn’t even be attempted if the architecture is in any way “impure”, since it would only lead to mistakes.

“If the planning is faulty, we end up with an unbalanced building that has to be demolished.”

The planners might rely on techniques such as perspective distortion, in which depth of field is artificially adjusted as a guide towards the final aesthetics. But they know that that the dimensions of a given structure, even a large hall with a stupa, have to be precisely mapped out first in an actual-size drawing.

The government’s Fine Arts Department prepared an atelier expressly for this purpose, which Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn named the Witanasatapa- kasala, referring to an architectural workshop.

Here the top of the Phra Merumas, 28 metres in height, was first drawn actual size, as well as blueprints for the adjoining pavilions.

Here, too, modern technology came into use for the first time in the construction of a royal crematorium. Whereas in the past the models had to be individually carved in wood, a time-consuming process, Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machining was used to create 3D samples.

The architect first draws an annotated pattern for each level, to actual scale. This is pasted on a waxed sheet and guides the gradual layering of many sheets of wood. A properly dimensioned perspective emerges, no different from the models produced in the past by skilled craftsmen.

The millions of mourners who queued to pay their respects to King Bhumibol at the Grand Palace got to admire the meticulous carving in the sandalwood sheaths that contain the Royal Urn and Royal Coffin.

These entailed more than 30,000 stencil-cut pieces of sandalwood enmeshed to sheath the urn and coffin around a template of plated iron. Visitors could make out the traditional motifs in the garland-like carvings – lotuses, krajang, garuda, lions.

At the Design Centre, some of the mythical creatures are shown rendered in stencils of creased gold paper. This technique too is a component of “temporary architecture” and has this time been used in decorating the Royal Dharma Pavilion (Phra Thinang Song Dhamma), where members of the royal family and invited guests will assemble to listen to a sermon prior to the cremation.

Working from a stencil with a uniformly consistent pattern, artisans layer textured gilt paper (not the more durable gold leaf) and affix it to a wooden plank. A chisel is used to cut out the pattern, and finally coloured paper – sod waew – is fitted to the back.

The painters, of course, have an important role in the decorating. Their pigments adorn the surfaces of sculptures, canvases and the architectural components themselves. Visitors to the exhibition can learn the fine art of colour tapping, which involves punching a pattern in plastic sheets and using a sponge ball to tap colours through the stencil onto a separate material.

Smooth movements and steady hands can produce decorations of remarkable beauty and consistency. Traditionally, though, paper is used instead of plastic, gold leaf rather than paint pigments.

Fine Arts Department architect Patiwat Tuion notes that the chance to witness the revival of classical art forms is at least a minor consolation amid the heartbreaking loss of the beloved King.

“I was really delighted to see architecture students from Silpakorn and Chulalongkorn universities volunteering to help in any way they could,” says Patiwat, who designed the pavilion in front of Suddhaisavarya Prasad Hall for members of the royal family to pay homage before the late King’s remains.

“The students were very helpful in enlarging our architectural sketches for the crematorium to actual size.

“In learning about traditional Thai architecture, 90 per cent of the knowledge and skills come through hands-on experience. Kokiart Thongpud, who designed the crematorium itself, is a graduate in fine arts, not Thai architecture, but he learned his craft working closely with the late great Arwut Ngernchuklin, who designed the crematoria for Their Royal Highness the Princess Mother and Princess Galyani Vadhana and Princess Bejaratana Rajasuda.”

Patiwat says such work has always relied on the “old masters”, such as Arwut, Praves and Phra Phrombhi- chitr.

“I want to see more talents blossom in traditional architecture. Every educational institute should have a department of Thai traditional art. It’s crucial that we teach the younger generations to preserve this exquisite art.”

At the forefront of dance creation for decades, Stuttgart Ballet is famous for its pioneering works and “Taming of the Shrew” is one of its most lauded creations – a delightful ballet distinguished by spectacular dancing and hilarious action that does complete justice to the Shakespearean classic.

The entertaining two-hour ballet with lavish scenery and costumes, celebrates pure dance and strongly underlines Stuttgart Ballet’s classical traditions.

Stuttgart Ballet has built on its hometown’s long history of classical ballet, which goes all they way back to the 17th-century. Evolving from the court ballet of the Dukes of Wurttemberg, Stuttgart Ballet further underlines the city’s position as an acclaimed centre for dance in Europe. In 1957, Nicolas Beriozoff, a former dancer with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, was appointed to lead the ensemble. In 1961, acclaimed dancer John Cranko took over shaping the company “into a group with an exciting and visually arresting style”. His full-length narrative ballets – “Romeo and Juliet”, “Onegin” and “The Taming of the Shrew”, among several others, captured the attention of the ballet world.

The company’s first tour to the US in 1969 established Stuttgart Ballet as a classical company of note in America; Europe had already been conquered. The triumphant tour had critics talking about the “The Stuttgart Ballet Miracle”. Critics raved over the way he company danced with vitality, with passion and with great respect for the classical art form.

Over the years great dancers emerged and went on to become choreographers of note, among them Neumeier, William Forsythe, Uwe Scholz, Jiri Kylian and Renato Zanella.

“The Taming of the Shrew” underlines the critics’ contention that the company was a Stuttgart miracle. Cranko turned Shakespeare’s famous comedy into a two-act whimsical and witty masterpiece, set to a delightful score orchestrated by Kurt-Heinz Stolze (after Domenico Scarlatti). Critics have hailed this ballet as a “masterclass in transforming classic play into a ballet that celebrates pure dance”. With movement and music, Cranko’s choreography unveils the story of the constantly battling lovers Petruchio and Katherina. Petruchio is determined to “tame” Katherina, but Katherina will have none of it. The lavish sets and scenery by Elisabeth Dalton perfectly reflect Padua.

Today under the command of Reid Anderson, the company has a stylistically broad repertoire that attracts the best dance talent from all over the world. All of these well-established dancers will be performing in Bangkok.

Among them are Elisa Badenes and Alicia Amatriain who will dance Katherina on October 18 and October 19 respectively, while Petruchio is portrayed by Adhonay Soares da Silva on October 18th and Jason Reilly on October 19. Amatriain and Reilly both hold the national title of “Kammertaenzerin”, the highest status a dancer can achieve in Germany.

The show is supported by Crown Property Bureau, Bangkok Bank (PCL), Bangkok Dusit Medical Services (PCL), BMW Thailand, B.Grimm Group, Dusit Thani Bangkok, Indorama Ventures, Ministry of Culture, Nation Group, PTT (PCL), Singha Corporation, Thai Airways International, Thai Union Group (PCL), and Tourism Authority of Thailand.

Tickets are available at Thai Ticket Major (www.ThaiTicketMajor.com), or hotline (02) 262 3191 and at the counters.

For more information visit http://www.BangkokFestivals.com.