The theme for this first contest was “Hope” and 178 would-be writers responded to the call. Of these, 17 were short-listed and invited to attend a Finalist’s Workshop in March, where professional writers and illustrators critiqued the works and offered advice.

The winners were announced last month at the British Club Bangkok, where winners’ certificates were presented by Ngarmpun Vejjajiva and Asst Prof Onchuma Yuthavong, two of the 10 judges. Also on hand to congratulate the winners were Ayesha Rekhi, Political Counsellor at the Embassy of Canada representing the ambassador Donica Pottie. Excerpts from the winning entries were read by Cindy Sirinya Bishop and Krissada Clapp.

“This contest exceeded our expectations, not only in terms of the number of entries we received, but also in the levels of enthusiasm extended to us from all the contestants who worked so hard to submit such quality works, and from the volunteers, judges and sponsors whose support and encouragement overwhelmed us. To all involved, we express our sincere thanks,” said Nalin Vanasin, president of the Neilson Hays Library.

The winners of the 5 categories, plus a special Ambassador’s Selection Award from the Embassy of Canada, are as follows.

– Original picture books 12 years and under (12 pages, 300 words), Thai/Bilingual Schools

First Place: “The Story of Hope” by Pattaranan Ritwichai from Plearnpattana School

– Original picture books 12 years and under (12 pages, 300 words), International Schools

First Place: “Hope” by Anchalina Sachdev and Seo Yeon Lee from Bangkok International Preparatory and Secondary School

– Original picture books 16 years and under (16 pages, 500 words), Thai/Bilingual Schools

First Place: “Pookan Painted” by Titaya Punyaratabandhu from Satit Kaset International Programme

– Original picture books 16 years and under (16 pages, 500 words), International Schools

First Place: “When the Big Men Came” by Emmy Mills from International Community School and Bethan McClean St Andrews International School (Sukumvit 107)

-Original short story 18 years and under (800-1,000 words) – All schools

First Place: “The Saxophone Man” by Aanya Oswal Monteiro from NIST International School

-Special Prize: Ambassador’s Selection Award from the Embassy of Canada

For excellent story with an environmental theme: “Lamplighter” by Ganpicha Sahasakul from NIST International School

 Eight years after “Avatar” was released to gradually become the highest-grossing movie of all time, earning an impressive US$2.8 billion (Bt95.14 billion) globally, the planet of Pandora is opening up to the world as a foretaste for four sequels, the first of which is slated to hit to screens on December 15, 2020.

Running at The Mall Bang Kapi until September 3, “Avatar: Discover Pandora” is an interactive exhibition that showcases the alien world’s flora and fauna and the culture of its indigenous people, the Na’vi.

“There are four more sequels in development right now but we’re excited today at the opportunity to actually bring ‘Avatar’ to people while we’re waiting. We hope that this will be something that’s very popular here in Bangkok and brings in visitors from all over the region,” says Kathy Franklin, president of franchise development at Lightstorm Entertainment.

Unlike most movie-based exhibitions that focus on props and costume to get the message across. “Pandora” relies on state-of-the-art technology.

“Since the movie is largely computer generated, we don’t have props to exhibit so this was an opportunity to work with GES to really make it physical and tangible and let you go someplace that was only in your imagination. Our idea was to bring this alien world to life and allow visitors to interact with it, so what we are showing is how Pandora relates to earth. Hopefully everyone will leave this exhibition not just excited about the world of ‘Avatar’ but also having learned more about Earth,” says Franklin.

In addition to “Avatar: Discover Pandora”, the film has a number of other franchise projects including “Toruk- The First Flight” in partnership with Cirque du Soleil, “Pandora- The World of Avatar” at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, a global Avatar mobile game in production with Kabam and Avatar graphic Dark Horse Comics.

The exhibition, as Franklin says, is exciting in that it allows visitors to experience familiar settings and scenes.

Fans of the movie know that Pandora does not exist, but the exhibition is created in such a way that visitors will start feeling it is a real place as they learn more about the science and travelling to the Na’vi’s home. The imaginary characters and details become believable and tangible through such scientific explanations as why the Hallelujah Mountain levitates with the help of magnetism.

The fun interactive exhibition is based on James Cameron’s blockbuster and is a collaboration between his Lightstorm Entertainment, 20th Century Fox’s FoxNext Division, and global events provider GES. To bring the exhibition to Thailand, they worked with Singapore’s Mactus Live Company and Thailand’s Pixel One.

The idea for the exhibition was born about two years, Franklin says.

“It’s the kind of show that allows you to visit an alien world and the way you do that is both entertaining and inspiring. We saw it as an opportunity to bring Pandora to life for the whole family,” she says, adding that Cameron’s suggestion was simple – “He wants it to be fun,” she says.

The travelling exhibition started its tour in Taipei, Taiwan where it drew 300,000 over its 90-day stay. After Thailand, the exhibition will head to show China where it will stop off in various cities.

“We started in Asia because we believe that the opportunity here to reach an audience is very compelling. Our hope is that audiences around Asia will learn from the experience,” Franklin says.

The exhibition is divided into 10 scenes but can be enjoyed by those who haven’t seen the film as well as those who might have forgotten much of the storyline. Curators from the Pandoran Research Foundation welcome visitors at the entrance and introduce them to a 22nd-century world where man can travel 25 million miles to the moon Pandora. The Avatar programme is then explained before giving way to a showcase of plants, animals and the Na’vi culture.

A projection shows the Helicoradian, a super-sensitive plant that when you touch it will coil up and retract to the ground just as it did when earthling Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) in his avatar body touches it in the film.

Visitors will also meet the Direhorse and Viperwolf as well as the super tall Na’vi people, experience riding the bird-like Banshee simply by stretching out their arms and waving them as in flight, and the bio luminous plants that are synonymous with Pandora. And in the scene showing the human invasion, visitors can control the AMP Suit (Amplified Mobility Platform Suit) which is used on Pandora, rather like playing a computer game. The highlight of the exhibition is the Tree of Souls – the sacred place of the Na’vi and where visitors can try to see the woodsprite – the seed of the Tree of Souls that will earn them good luck from the Na’vi’s god Eywa.

Chatuphon Sitthichai, chief executive of Pixel One Event & Festival, says he decided on seeing the show that it had to come to Thailand.

“What I love the most is the storytelling. Pandora might not exist but they had me believing that it was real and tangible.”

And rather than staging the exhibition at Siam Paragon Shopping Centre, Chatuphon and his colleagues opted for the more out-of-the-way MCC Hall at The Mall Bang Kapi.

“MCC Hall has 2,2000 sqm of space compared to Taipei’s 1,200 sqm, so it helps to complete the exhibition and draws more visitors,” he explains.

“The exhibition needs a long run so we’ve worked hard to clear the schedule to serve the exhibit. Besides The Mall Bang Kai is a centre for families and they are our exhibition’s target group,” adds Voralak Tulaphorn, senior vice president for marketing at The Mall Group.

Chatuphon says that it takes around 45 minutes to go round the exhibition but there is no time limitation for visitors who want to stay longer. The group can handle around 70 persons per round and some 7,000 visitors a day.

While “Avatar” didn’t beat the Thai record for top grossing foreign film, it came in Bt293.9 million.

“Avatar 2” the sequel is scheduled to open worldwide on December 18, 2020, followed by “Avatar 3” on December 17, 2021. There will then by a three-year break with “Avatar 4” set for December 20, 2024. “Avatar 5” for December 19, 2025.

PAGING JAMES CAMERON

•   “Avatar: Discover Pandora” is on at MCC Hall, The Mall Bang Kapi until September 3. Tickets are Bt490 for adults and kids age 12 and up, and Bt390 for children four to 11 years old or 90 to 140cm in height.
•  Special privileges are available for M Card holders and for groups.
•  Tickets are available at http://www.AvatarDiscoverPandora.com, https://Store.AIS.co.th, at the venue and from all branches |of 7-Eleven.

Organised by Sukosol Entertainment, the Thai Red Cross Society, Singha Corporation and That’s Entertainment III, Kamala will be performing an entertaining and eclectic selection of songs, including memorable hits from classic Broadway musicals and the latest Hollywood soundtracks

As always, this is a family concert featuring the extraordinary talents of Kamala’s children, Marisa, Sukie and Noi (Krissada), as well as her granddaughter Natalia and grandsons Dino and Finnegan.

This year’s songlist includes performances from the Broadway musical “Aladdin”, “City of Stars” from the Oscar-winning movie “La La Land”, as well as family favourites from recent Disney hits “Beauty and the Beast” and “Moana”, plus 2017’s most popular song “Shape of You” by Ed Sheeran. And the whole family will perform “Hope”, a new song written for the Craniofacial Centre and featuring more than 30 singers and musicians.

There will be a tribute from “Singin’ in the Rain” to Debbie Reynolds, one of Kamala’s favourite performers, who passed away just one day after the tragic death of her daughter Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia from “Star Wars”).

Look out too for a medley of “River” songs including “Moon River”, “Cry Me a River”, and a special tribute to honour the importance of Bangkok’s own Chao Phraya, with Marisa singing her rendition of “Loom Chao Phraya” plus a new song from Kamala titled “River Blues”. They will also pay respects to HM the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej by performing a selection of his compositions to honour his memory.

As always, each performance is supported by Bangkok’s finest big band orchestra under the direction of Piti Kayoonpan, with regular special guest Dolchai Boonyaratavej, and the dancing skills of the talented students from the Aree School of Dance Arts. Tanee Poonsuwan will conduct the chorus, as well as perform in the show.

Tickets on the shows on August 17 and 19 cost from Bt1,000 to Bt2,500 (Bt500 for students.

Tickets for the Gala Dinner on August 18 are Bt40,000 to Bt45,000 per table of 10 guests.

Tickets are on sale at The Sukosol. Make a reservation at (02) 247 0123.

With the stage calendar last month filled with such experimental works as Full Fat Theatre’s “Co/exist” and For What Theatre’s “What we talk about when we don’t talk about the elephant in the room”, a fellow theatre critic wondered out loud whether we’d finally reached the era of post-dramatic theatre and post-structuralism.

OTW Theatre’s comedy “Sut Saen Chek Chai” doesn’t directly answer this question though it does again prove the diversity of contemporary Thai theatre. In short, this domestic comedy doesn’t aim to do too much, and yet hits all the right notes. And sometimes, that’s all the audience needs for a good evening at the theatre. You simply enjoy it while you’re there; you don’t need to analyse or discuss it further with your friends.

OTW Theatre’s comedy “Sut Saen Chek Chai” is performed by All are up-and-coming theatre artists comprising theatre graduates from Srinakharinwirot University. Photo/Ben Kosolsak

A Chinese-Thai family who runs a small noodle shop is encountering major financial and domestic problems. The father has passed away and mother has been disappearing for six months. Running all the chores is their second son (Jirakit Soonthornlarpyod) who also has to take care of the youngest son (Atikhun Adulpocatorn), who’s still in high school. The eldest son (Wachara Kanha) is pitching in but his food delivery job doesn’t really allow him to help much; and the third son (Teeraphan Ngowjeenanan) is planning to go overseas to work.

When it’s almost at a dead end, the play takes a surrealistic and comedic twist as the mother (Neelacha Fuangfookiat) appears in Chinese goddess attire with her assistant (Kamolsanti Chutisorn) and takes all of them up to heaven. In a TV game-show lookalike, audience members become council members of the heaven and it is their votes that help decide the fate of these characters.

Director Yadamin Jamsuksai adapted the script originally written by Tananop Kanjanawutisit and deftly balanced the first act’s drama with the second’s comedy. The characters, their relationship and situation were credible and, as evidenced by our votes later on, different audience members empathised with different characters. Her actors also worked well together. Jirakit delivered his best performance to date as a new family leader; Wachara was low-key but arresting; and Neelacha, the most senior of all, simply lit up every scene she was in.

The play is a fond reminder of how family plays an important part in the lives of Thai, and how many people, like the second son here, put family first and foremost without even questioning it. It also reminds us how ridiculous our TV game shows have become. No matter how insanely difficult the questions or arduous the tasks contestants are asked to tackle, in the end, it’s our popular votes, not their skills, which decide the winner.

Credit is also due to set designer Lapin Laosunthorn who deftly made a small foyer of the studio look really like a living room of a Chinese-Thai family on the ground floor of a shophouse. Democrazy Theatre Studio is already a shophouse, but the extra decor made it far more believable, and the use of an actual door, sliding panes and staircase was well calculated and fit the transition of the play. Equally deft, his lighting counterpart Palita Sukulchaivanich clearly differentiated the scenes on earth from those in heaven.

Comprising theatre graduates from Srinakharinwirot University all of whom are also affiliated with other companies, OTW lives up to its full name “On the Way”. All are up-and-coming theatre artists, and many would agree that this new troupe, that’s just a year old, is definitely on the right way.

THE LAST LAUGH

– The last performance of OTW Theatre’s “Sut Saen Chek Chai” is at 8pm tonight at Democrazy Theatre Studio, Soi Sapan Khu, Rama IV road (MRT: Lumphini, exit 1).

– It’s in Thai with no English translation.

– Tickets are Bt 450 at (083) 371 6836. For more details, go to Facebook.com/DemocrazyStudio.

An obsession with self

For young Thai artist Peera Vorapreechapanich, the mobile phone is a weapon, always on hand to shoot what moves around him. In his solo show “Check-In” opening at Soy Sauce Factory on July 8 at 7pm, Peera satirises today’s society and reflects on the obsession with selfies and “checking-in” on the social networks in an attempt to create one’s own history. There are also political messages in his work, particularly in his selfie with the Democracy Moment hinting at the current political situation under a junta government. He notes that “Freedom is in (the camera phone in) in your hand.”

The show runs through August 19. For more information visit Facebook page/soysaucefactory.

Hair today

Absent from the scene since 2014’s “Rebirth”, Thai female artist Imhathai Suwatthanasilp brings her hair creations to Numthong Gallery with a new solo show “Ruan Sam Nam See” (“7 elements”) opening on July 22 at 6pm.

She has named her exhibition after a Thai proverb, which Is often used to provide advice to young girls who are about to get married on the role of a housewife. Imhathai has interpreted and defined this proverb in her own way, using her signature technique of hair embroidery for her amazing installation art.

The show runs through August 31. For more information visit http://www.GalleryNumthong.com.

A new take on sublime

After organising art shows at her own Toot Yoong Art Centre for a decade, Bangkok-based French artist Myrtille Tibayrenc is finally putting on her own solo show.

“Sublimation”, which opens on July 21 at Serindia Gallery at OP Garden (near The Oriental Hotel) on Charoen Krung Road, is based on web-found images of landscapes, portraits, porn, and contemporary events. Tibayrenc transforms her subject matter to create art that is provocative and uses these timeless scenes, cut out of their context, to form a new story – a parallel emotional understanding of our modern world.

The show runs through August 20.

H Gallery is hosting “Meridians”, a solo exhibition of paintings by Bangkok-based artist Lesley Dumbrell until August 27. A leading member of the women’s art movement in Australia during the 1970s, Dumbrell’s longstanding practice of meticulously rendering patterns explores an expansive approach to abstraction. While suggesting mechanical or digital reproduction, the artist’s sharp lines and clean forms hint at multiple significance and resonances.

“Meridian”s also introduces new sculptural works that extend relationships between the perceptual and experiential.

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

If B-Floor Theatre’s Teerawat “Ka-ge” Mulvilai is the local theatre critics’ darling, having been championed with several awards, then another B-Floor member Dujdao “Dao” Vadhanapakorn is his female counterpart. Over the past five years, she has been honoured with four awards for three different works – one for movement-based performance, two for art direction, and one for her performance in a spoken drama, although she’s better known for her physical theatre.

Dujdao “Dao” Vadhanapakorn and her troupe perform “Blissfully Blind” at Bangkok City City Gallery from July 13. Photo/Adidej Chaiwattanak

This woman with many hats describes herself, fittingly, as a dance movement psychotherapist, an experiential performance artist and an empathic communication specialist. And like in “The Secret Keeper” two years ago at Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC), Dao’s new experiential performance “Blissfully Blind” starting on July 13 at Bangkok CityCity Gallery combines all her artistic and professional skills.

“Unlike with a play, I don’t have a specific message to clearly convey to my audience,” Dao explains.

“I’m trying to understand what’s happening in our daily life, specifically the fact that we’re ‘blissfully blind’ to certain information or incidents, and analyse what they are and why we choose to do so. I then create physical movements for my performers based on these findings.

“I’m not saying that these are bad: they’re just mechanics that help make us feel safe. For example, in Thai society, most of us are grateful to our elders and value family legacy highly. But then when we reach a point when a certain set of information starts to come into conflict with those beliefs, we choose to be blind to it and simply hold on to what our parents have been telling us. Besides, many people choose to accept many beliefs, meanwhile ignoring many facts, in order to be able to fit into certain groups of friends as they regard these relationships more dearly. In addition, I find that education makes us blind. The higher education a man or woman has, he or she thinks that he/she’s always righteous and disregards the thoughts of others, who may not have finished as high a degree.”

Mont Watanasiriroch of Zeight brings a light installation to “Blissfully Blind”. Photo/Anantachai Phasuk

Knowledge, she adds, is related to light, and Dao says, “That’s why Zeight’s Mont Watanasiriroch and I are using a lighting installation in this work. But sometimes when it’s too bright, we may not be able to see anything.”

As for the venue choice, she says, “It was love at first sight. it’s a very nice space and my body responded to its high ceiling when I attended a visual arts exhibition there for the first time. The gallery owner also knows and has watched B-Floor’s works and so we’re allowed to experiment and get out of our comfort zone.”

In “Blissfully Blind”, Dao teams up with all her performers from “The Secret Keeper”, namely Amornsri Pattanasitdanggul, Vidura Amranand and Navinda Pachimsawat.

“I’d rather work with artists with a background in dance, not theatre, for this work. But these are not dancers who want to show off their great dance techniques. They’re delicate towards their bodies and movements and have a very open-minded attitude,” she says.

There’s also a new addition, Phuttiporn Suttimanad, a recent dance graduate from Chulalongkorn University. “She watched ‘The Secret Keeper’ and interviewed me for her research paper. The kind of questions she asked and the look in her eyes made me ask her to join us in this new work,” Dao explains.

Dujdao “Dao” Vadhanapakorn and her troupe perform “Blissfully Blind” at Bangkok City City Gallery from July 13. Photo/Adidej Chaiwattanak

And like “The Secret Keeper”, there are no male performers. “I really don’t know why. Well, when I start conceptualise my work, it’s my voice that I hear, a female voice, and what I see in terms of movements are all female,” Dao admits.

Apart from the performance in the evening, Dao says, “You can also experience our lighting installation in the afternoon every weekend. It’s the same concept but without the human performer element.

“It’s my intention that [unlike watching a play or a dance performance] each member of the audience has a different experience of this work. It’s very loosely structured and organic and the audience has many choices. We cannot see or know everything that’s happening, and we cannot agree on everything. But the only way we can live together peacefully is to open our minds and, without any prejudice, listen and talk to those who think differently from us.”

EXPERIENCE IT

– B-Floor Theatre’s “Blissfully Blind” is at Bangkok CityCity Gallery, Soi Sathorn 1 (five-minute walk from MRT Lumphini, exit 2) from July 13 to 30 (except Tuesday and Wednesday) at 7.30pm. Tickets are Bt 700 (Bt450 for students) at (094) 494 5104.

– The lighting installation at the same venue is open for public viewing every Saturday and Sunday.

– For more information, http://www.BFloorTheatre.com, or email BFloorTheatre@gmail.com

This initiative, which was conceived by BACC Exhibition Department, selects participating works from a range of submissions with the goal of igniting the careers of young artists by giving them effective opportunities to create both in Thailand and overseas.

Twelve selected works from last year’s project were showcased on the 7th floor of the BACC earlier this year in an exhibition that saw all the qualifying artists present details of their creative processes and concepts. Following the project’s conclusion, the panel of judges selected three outstanding artists as the winners of two mobility fundings and one artist residency scholarship.

Details of the project can be found at the EarlyYearsProject Facebook Page or the BACC Website. For more information, call (02) 214 6630-8 extension 531.

DURING THE course of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s 70-year reign, Thailand Post issued 79 sets of postage stamps related to the monarch, in 353 different designs, and sold more than two billion individual stamps.

That was from the first collection in 1947 to the time of his death last October.

On display at the Grand Postal Building is every set of stamps related to the late monarch.

And it’s now put all of them on display in the exhibition “Stamp Khong Phor” (“Stamps of the Fatherly King”) at the Grand Postal Building in Bangkok.

The fascinating multimedia show continues through October.

“His reign has ended, but his legacy continues,” says Thailand Post president Smorn Terdthampiboon.

“He is the heart and soul of the nation, and his great devotion to improving people’s lives throughout his long reign is illustrated clearly by the large number of stamps that tell the magnificent history.”

The exhibition walks through that history from the inaugural “Siam” series produced in 1947 to what’s billed as “the longest stamp in the world”, issued last April.

The “Siam” series was the first set of stamps issued during the late monarch’s reign, in 1947.

The stamps are displayed next to blow-up versions so you can appreciate the details, along with the original photos of the late King and his family from which the stamp imagery was derived.

There are also videos and animated films about the King’s tireless travels upcountry, during which he’d reach out to people in the remotest places to see what they needed.

Stamps from 1996 commemorate His Majesty’s golden jubilee on the throne.

The first of five exhibition rooms – “Genesis of the Thai People’s Happiness” – has a video of the coronation on May 5, 1950, four years after he ascended the throne at the age of 19. You can listen to the oath he gave that has reverberated through the decades: “We shall reign in righteousness for the benefits and happiness of the Siamese people.”

On view are stamps in six designs issued in 1996 to commemorate the golden jubilee of his accession to the throne. One of them features a portrait of the King in full regalia, enthroned beneath the nine-tiered umbrella. Another has Their Majesties the King and Queen making their first public appearance after the ceremony.

A Bt100 stamp – again showing the late King on the throne – was printed with embossed golden foil using a four-colour press.

Their Majesties’ travels around the country are captured on stamps and in photos seen in “The Royal Couple” exhibit hall. There are also pictures of their wedding at Srapathum Palace on April 28, 1950, and of MR Sirikit Kitiyakara being crowned Queen soon after.

Their Majesties’ portraits appear on stamps commemorating their wedding and their 15th, 25th and 50th anniversaries (in 1965, 1975 and 2000). The most recent stamp devoted to the royal couple came out last year, in celebration of the centenary of Thai Rice Research. It shows them visiting Thung Makham Yong, a royally initiated paddy field in Ayutthaya, in 1996.

Heart-shaped stamps embellished with Swarovski crystals were issued in 2010 to celebrate Their Majesties’ wedding anniversary.

Marking six decades of the couple’s marriage, a pair of heart-shaped stamps appeared in 2010. The first has their marriage portrait on a pink background and the other a more recent portrait together on a field of yellow hearts. Both stamps are embellished with Swarovski crystals.

Smorn says 10 of the 79 sets of stamps related to the late King are considered “definitive”, while the rest are commemorative.

“His Majesty had to grant permission for each set before it could be published in the Royal Gazette and finally issued to the public.”

Embossing with gold foil first appeared on a Bt100 stamp released in 1987. 

Thailand Post applied emerging technology and printing techniques first to stamps related to the King before they were used on stamps depicting other subjects. The first embossed printing in gold foil was used for a Bt100 stamp marking his fifth-cycle birthday in 1987. Embossed printing in gold, silver and copper foil was initially used for a set of three stamps for his sixth-cycle birthday in 1999.

A Bt9 stamp issued in 2011 carries an image of the late monarch harvesting rice, along with an actual grain of rice from that year’s Royal Ploughing Ceremony.

Veena Chantanatat, former chief of Thailand Post’s design division, conceived 11 of the 79 royal sets of stamps. The Silpakorn University-trained artist preferred transposing photos of the King to drawings – her personal area of expertise.

“The challenge is in not distorting the image when copying it from the photo,” says Veena, who only recently retired from the job she held for 30 years.

“The photos have to be carefully chosen in terms of beauty, appropriateness and especially proportions, since text has to be added.”

A set of nine stamps issued in 2007 to celebrate the late King’s 80th birthday proved particularly challenging because they bore a series of portraits beginning in childhood.

“It took a long time to select the right photos of him at different ages,” Veena says. “And I spent another three months completing the drawings.”

The third room, “4 Regions: The King’s Royal Visits” has photos and stamps showing people’s gratitude to the father of the nation for supporting them.

A 2006 set of six stamps marking the 60th anniversary of His Majesty’s accession to the throne depicts him on his travels, interacting closely with ordinary folks and even sitting on a dirt road to rest.

The “9 Works for Thai Subjects” exhibit is devoted to his development projects that improved many aspects of life, from education and medical care to agriculture.

“One of the jobs I’m most proud of was designing four stamps in 2015 for his 88th birthday,” Veena says.

“The stamps had representations of earth, water, wind and fire to indicate the numerous projects the King devised to ease people’s suffering, like means of producing alternative fuels, rainmaking techniques, the Chaipattana aerator, windmills and solar cells and dams and irrigation projects.”

The final room, “3 Principles the King’s Philosophy”, focuses on the guiding words espoused by the late King in his advocacy of a sufficiency economy and sustainable agriculture – understand, reach out and develop.

Here you can see the last stamp issued during his reign – the magnificent 70-millimetre-long edition that immediately became a global collector’s item as the “longest” stamp ever issued in the world. It bears six different images of the King working at royally initiated research-and-development centres.

Released last April to celebrate His Majesty’s 70th anniversary on the throne, it utilises AR (augmented reality) technology so that it can be scanned with the Asian Stamp mobile-phone application. The AR code is implanted on the stamp and, when scanned, plays a nine-minute video about the R&D centres.

It was not just history’s “longest” stamp but also the first “living” stamp, able to “interact” with people.

On leaving the exhibition, visitors see an enlarged image of a forthcoming stamp, a preview of the one to be issued on July 28 to mark His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s 65th birthday. It will be the first stamp of his reign.

The Bt10 stamp embossed with gold foil and produced with the four-colour printing technique has a portrait of the King on a yellow background, with his initials and emblem in the upper right corner.

POST OFFICE PAYS TRIBUTE

>> The exhibition “Stamps of the Fatherly King” continues through October 31 at the Grand Postal Building in Bangkok’s Bang Rak district.

>> It’s open daily except Monday from 9am to 7pm. Tours are conducted in Thai every hour.

>> Sister exhibitions without the multimedia technology are being held at the Philatelic Museums in Bangkok’ Sam Sen Nai district, Chiang Mai, Phuket and Khon Kaen until December 31.

>> Find out more from the Thailand Post Contact Centre at 1545 or visit http://www.ThailandPost.co.th.

Continuing through August 6, “Mastery of an Art” is part of Van Cleef & Arpels ongoing series of exhibitions at various museums in the world, with Kyoto meeting the criteria for this year’s choice.

From approximately 1,200 years ago to the beginning of the Meiji Restoration in 1868, Kyoto served as the capital of Japan. Although the city experienced various ups and downs, it gradually evolved into an elegant society.

From the start of the Heian Period in 794, the city attracted all manner of people and things, and produced a host of high-grade items related to food, clothing, and shelter. In the field of clothing, for example, lavish attire adorned with gold brocade, such asjunihitoe (a 12- layered ceremonial kimono), kosode (short-sleeved kimono), tsujigahana(a dyeing technique using vivid images of flowers), and noh play costumes were created. In addition, as there were many outstanding techniques available in the area, including everything from weaving to dyeing (as seen in the still flourishing tradition of Nishijin textiles), Kyoto was able to satisfy a variety of needs. This was made possible by the skills and spirit of seasoned cra­ftsmen.

In this respect, Van Cleef and Arpels and Kyoto share a similar heritage. In both cases, highly skilled artisans have transmitted the mysteries of their art to successive generations. This inspired the present exhibition, which focuses on the “mastery of an art.”

The exhibition is designed to forge a unique bond between high jewellery, an emblematic example of French savoir-faire, and the 1,200-year history of the traditional craft­s of Japan and also will serve as a testament to the spirit of cultural exchange and friendship that exists between France and Japan, and more specially Paris and Kyoto.

Find out more at http://HighJewelry.Exhn.jp/.

THE CHAMPAGNE flowed freely on the French Riviera on Sunday night as Swedish filmmaker Ruben Ostlund celebrated winning the Cannes Film Festival’s coveted Palme d’Or for his satirical drama “The Square”. French filmmaker Robin Campillo was feted with bubbly too for bringing home the Grand Jury Prize for his Aids drama “120 Beats Per Minute”. Sofia Coppola looked ecstatic at becoming only the second female in history to win the Best Director award for her interpretation of Thomas P Cullinan’s “The Beguiled”. 

And Australian actress Nicole Kidman, who appeared in four of the pictures screened at this year’s event including Yorgos Lanthimos’ “The Killing of a Sacred Deer” and Jane Campion’s “Top of the Lake”, was certainly happy to take home the “70th Anniversary Prize”, an award created especially for her.

Asian filmmakers, however, had little to celebrate. Indeed, their presence was hardly felt at this year’s festival and while there was one South Korean and one Japanese movie in the main competition, neither picked up a prize. Southeast Asia was equally poorly represented, with only one film in the parallel Director’s Fortnight, namely Mouly Surya’s “Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts”. For the first time in the past several years, the absence of films from South Asia like India was notable.

Usually a filmmaking powerhouse, South Korea had four titles spread across all sections two of them directed by Hong Sang-Soo.

His black-and-whiter oeuvre “The Day After”, screened in the main competition, starred his muse Kim Min-hee in the role of Areum, a young woman who becomes involved with her philandering and very married boss.

In “Claire’s Camera”, which was filmed entirely in Cannes and screened out of competition, Kim plays Man-hee, a woman who works for a film sales agent. Fired by her boss for no apparent reason, she meets Claire (Isabelle Huppert), a teacher and poet who has comes to Cannes to watch her friend’s movie.

Naomi Kawase was back at the festival for the sixth time with “Radiance”, which screened in the main competition. Masatoshi Nagase, who previously worked with her in the commercially successful “An”, returned in the role of Nakamori, a photographer who is losing his eyesight. He meets Misako, a young woman who works as a writer of audio description of films for visually impaired people and who is facing problems after her descriptions fail to receive positive feedback.

The picture, which picked up the ecumenical prize, an independent award created by Christian filmmakers, is far from Kawase’s best. The story and shooting style failed to stand out, especially when compared to other titles in the main competition.

Screened in Un Certain Regard, Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s latest science-fiction venture, “Before We Vanish” told an interesting story of alien parasites that take control of human bodies and prepare for an invasion.

Takashi Miike was also back in Cannes’ official selection, with Takuya Kimura starring in his latest bloody swordfighting film “Blade of the Immortal”, one of four movies he has made this year.

Based on the famous manga, Japanese superstar Kimura plays Manji, a cursed samurai who became immortal and suffers because of it. In the cinema version, he encounters Rin (Hana Sugisaka), a young girl who is seeking revenge on her parents’ murderers. Since Rin looks like his long-dead younger sister, Manji becomes her bodyguard and slaughters the whole gang of villains.

The only film from Mainland China this year was “Walking Past the Future” by Li Ruijun, whose previous “Fly with the Crane’”(2012) was screened in Venice. This was the director’s first time in Cannes and “Walking” was shown in the Un Certain Regard section. It’s centred on a family of migrant workers in Shenzhen who lose their jobs in a factory and move back to Gansu province, where they expect to start a new life but face problems instead.

Although no Thai movie was selected for this year’s event, the country did put in an appearance through Jean-Stephane Sauvaire’s prison drama “A Prayer Before Dawn”, which was shown at the festival’s Midnight Screening. Joe Cole plays a character based on Billy Moore, a drug-addicted British muay thai boxer who served time in Bangkok’s Klong Prem Prison.

While there is nothing new about the story of a loser trying to find redemption, the movie was well made and presents a very real image of Thailand’s prisons and prisoners, with authentic dialogue spoken by Thais.

While most Thai media only focused their attention on the Thai celebrities invited by festival sponsors to walk on the red carpet, those who deserved to be under the spotlight were ignored.

They included the Thai cast and crew of “A Prayer Before Dawn”, namely Vithaya Pansringram who plays the warden, Pornchanok Mabklang who plays the role of a transexual prisoner, and net idol Panya Yimumphai aka Keng Laiprang, who plays a prisoner. Keng was criticised on social media as being an inappropriate representative of Thailand but his first acting job proves that he has earned a place not just at the film industry but on the red carpet at Cannes.