This is Thailand
For those of you with any questions regarding Thailand, Thai culture, history, tourism, laws, rules, food, nightlife, sub-cultures, dating; generally anything as long as it is relevant, we have a panel of three experts who will respond to your enquiries. Email: james@chiangmaicitylife.com. 1. I recently went to Ban Chiang, where I bought several cheap (55 baht) reproductions of the famous pottery. … Continued
What’s Happening?
Now – 15th March HER EMOTION @ 9 Art Gallery, Chiang Rai 053 719 110 An art exhibition themed ‘Her Emotion’ by Suwanne Sarakana and Suppharat Ratcharin. Women’s emotions are complicated but interesting to observe. The two women artists in this show each represent their individual female emotions in a manner unique to their upbringing. 21st March – 30th April MESSAGES @ Tita Gallery (opposite the F … Continued
Your Say
[right][/right] Your say is an open forum for you the reader to express your opinions. Write to: editor@chiangmaicitylife.com, subject: Your say. Letters can be on any subject and priority will be given to letters under 200 words.Letters may be edited for clarity or conciseness. Name and contact details must be supplied . • Love is What a delightfully presented article on Tom and Dot Delaney. Well … Continued
City Sport
[right][/right] The Chiang Mai Cricket Sixes will soon be here again, this will be the 23rd year the Sixes has been held in Chiang Mai (the official name is now the San Miguel Chiang Mai Cricket Sixes). The competition and all its attendant frivolity, high-jinx and beer guzzling will take place from March 28th to April 3rd at the Chiengmai Gymkhana Club. If you don’t already know what the tourname … Continued
Community Service
• Care for Dogs – Dog of the Month for March – Grover Grover here is a cute, calm, smaller sized dog who loves attention and is a little sad at being left behind for so long at the shelter. He has been through a lot in his little life and now needs to feel the kindness of strangers. If you feel you can give his coat a brush every now and then, feed, walk and pet him daily _ you could be the one fo … Continued
A Retiring Attitude
On New Year’s Eve I was reminiscing about the passing year and I thought to myself, “Boy 2008 really went fast”. Then the ball came down and told me it was 2010. “Holy cow! What happened to 2009?” That got me to thinking about how I could slow down these quickly passing days. If all I did was to drink beer all day then my days might pass more slowly. But I have been keeping myself rather busy. So … Continued
City Vibes
Artist: Lindstrom and Christabelle Album: Real Life is No Cool Rating: Lindstrom’s 2008 release ‘Where You Go I Go Too’ hinted at what this dance producer could achieve and on ‘Real Life is No Cool’ the listener experiences those achievements at their zenith. Inspired by House and Disco, but with clear soft spots for Folk and Funk, Lindstrom enlists the mesmerising talents of vocalist Christabelle … Continued
The Hiding Village Thoed Thai
Well hidden it is too, tucked away in the mountains some 24 sinuous kilometres from Mae Salong, 13 kilometres from the Burmese border and rarely seen by anyone until they built the road that led into the town in the mid ’90s. Thoed Thai, formerly called ‘Hin Taek’ (a ‘broken stone’ was found in the Mae Kham river when the village was discovered), is something of a Thai oddity; it’s a unique, remot … Continued
Art Galleries & Exhibitions
La Luna: Happy 6th Anniversary La Luna, a veritable lodestar in the Chiang Mai art scene, has exhibited some of Thailand and South East Asia’s finest artists over the last six years and introduced us to many up and coming talents. La Luna, in its beautifully fun and contemporary gallery, focuses on art from the Asia Pacific region, mostly Thailand, Malaysia, Myanmar and Vietnam, and of course prom … Continued
Voice in Technicolour
Like many foreigners who visit northern Thailand, Sara Latshaw and Zoe Lambe got stuck in Chiang Mai. Not stuck in the sense of stranded – rather, The Rose felt like a good place to set up base for a while, and hasn’t yet lost its allure for the two young women. But unlike the ubiquitous English teachers stationed around the city or the itinerant backpackers passing through, Latshaw and Lambe have … Continued
Arty Pants
OK Chiang Mai – time for your exam question. The world of modern art is completely out of touch with reality: discuss. If I was a good student (which I never was…too much wine, women, song and other nefarious substances when I was studying), I would construct the perfectly balanced six paragraph essay to answer this question. The first would introduce the theme; the second and third would explor … Continued
6th Junior IMPAC Dublin Literary Award
Citylife is pleased and proud to have been hosting the northern region’s Junior IMPACT Dublin Literary Awards for the sixth year. Over the years, standards of submission have been consistently high, with essays of great linguistic skills, wonderful creativity and originality. This year’s panel of judges were Sansanee Wannangkoon, Director of the Language Institute, Chiang Mai University,Tim Johnso … Continued
Editorial
When I was at school here in Chiang Mai, I always received appalling grades in art class for my inability to colour within the lines. So it came as a startling surprise when I went to international school to find that I was top of the class in art, I was told, for my ability to think outside the lines. Odd thing, this art. To some, a portrait of His Majesty the King, a family portrait and a Mekong … Continued
Artist Abroad
Laura Spector, with her long term visual arts collaborator Chadwick Gray and her fiancé Bradley Whyte, run ArtSpace, “Chiang Mai’s part time underground performance and exhibition venue,” says Spector, “where we do fundraisers, storytelling, auctions and performances with singers, songwriters, jazz musicians as well as teach art classes, both drawing and painting.” Spector, who along with h … Continued
The Day of The Dude
If you ask most foreigners what they’re doing in Thailand, they’re likely to tell you they’re ‘on holiday’. Yet few realise that the word literally means ‘holy day’. With its roots in ancient religious history, taking a break from the world is still one of the most spiritual things one can do, even if your holiday consists only in getting sunburned, overfed, and inebriated. It’s no secret that wes … Continued
Public Art spaces
A Shrine for a Tuk Tuk Chumpon Tongprasert (55), tuk tuk driver and part-time shrine builder, has constructed himself a monument next to the spot he regularly parks his tuk tuk by the Holiday Inn. With its concrete base, ceramic fruit, Buddha statues and other dolls, ornaments and creatures, it’s not going to win any art awards, but we think it is utterly charming and creative. Chumpon, who drives … Continued
Bright Lights, Big City…and Blaring Noise
Mark your calendar right now – International Noise Awareness Day is coming April 28th. Chiang Mai will be promoting this event to the max, with speakers ramped to ear-splitting levels. Yeah, that’s how we do it here. Now in Bangkok, on the other hand, there’s a group that might be raising a little cane at the slightest whiff of sound. And who might these contrarians be? The Quiet Bangkok Group (QB … Continued
Louder than Bombs
As an addendum to William Parham’s article on noise in Thailand and its constituent annoyances and dangers, we thought we’d go in search of the noisiest places in Chiang Mai. This wasn’t a difficult task as besides receiving sack-fulls of complaints from residents who’ve gone round the bend with local din manufacturers many of the staff at Citylife work and live next to these places. Think Park’s … Continued
Creative Escape
Home may be where the heart is for some, but for Vatcharin Bhumichitr, it’s where the art is. Originally trained as a fine artist at Bangkok College of Fine Art, he left Thailand over three decades ago, relocating to the UK to study graphic design and book design, after which he turned his focus to another form of creative expression: culinary art. After opening a string of successful Thai and SE … Continued
Art Listings
Art Space Ji-Qoo 4/2 Soi 5, Nimmanhaemin Road Tel: 053 894 250 Monthly exhibitions, makes for an exciting art venue in this gallery on three floors. 116 Art Gallery 94-120 Charoen Muang Road Tel: 053 302 111 The 116 Art Gallery is set in the 75-year-old Anusarn building and contains works in a huge variety of art mediums ranging from acrylic and oil paint, to graphite, pen and watercolour. Thai an … Continued