Thailand (Lonely Planet, 13th Edition) - China Williams [261]
Lost Heavens ( Map; 0 5325 1557; 228-234 Th Tha Phae; 10am-6pm) This store specialises in museum-quality tribal arts, including textiles, carpets and antiques, as well as ritual artefacts from the Yao (also known as Mien) tribe.
Kesorn ( Map; 0 5387 4325; 154-156 Th Tha Phae) A collector’s best friend, this cluttered shop has been trading old stuff for years. They specialise mainly in hill-tribe textiles, beads and crafts, but lately the owner has become interested in the cloth version of the protective tattoos (sàk yan) that contain zodiac- and numerology-based spells.
Sun Gallery ( Map; 0 5387 4028; 86-88 Th Tha Phae) Na Chanok Siemmai (nicknamed ‘Sun’) runs this friendly art gallery, where you can poke around without being a heavyweight collector. He displays his own pieces as well as his friends’ works, ranging from abstract to 3D collages. And if you’re a miniature aficionado, there are also photo postcards.
Siam Celadon ( Map; 0 5324 3518; 158 Th Tha Pae) This established company sells its fine collection of cracked-glazed celadon ceramics in a lovely teak building. Enjoy the Victorian-era structure and its dainty fretwork longer with a proper English tea at the attached Tea House Siam Celadon ( Click here).
Gong’s Shop ( Map; 0 5323 3235; Th Wichayanon) You can never have too many wrinkly cotton dresses in this tropical climate and with sizings to fit the Western gals, Gong’s selection won’t make you feel like a giant.
Under the Bo ( Map; 0 5381 8831; Chiang Mai Night Bazaar Bldg, Th Chang Khlan) This decor shop carries many unique pieces of tribal art, including furniture, bronze and wood figures, woodcarvings and weavings. There’s another shop out on the road to Hang Dong in the Kad Farang shopping mall.
KukWan Gallery ( Map; 0 5320 6747; 37 Th Loi Kroh) Set slightly back from the road, this charming teak building houses natural cotton and silk by the metre. It’s a great place to shop for gifts, with scarves, bedspreads and tablecloths available in subtle colours.
Pantip Plaza ( Map; Th Chang Khlan) Near the night bazaar, this shiny shopping centre is a more legitimate version than its grey-market counterpart in Bangkok. Mainly licensed suppliers of electronic hardware, such as computers and cameras, fill the space without a single bootleg software vendor in sight.
Riverside
La Luna Gallery ( Map; 0 5330 6678; www.lalunagallery.com; 190 Th Charoenrat) In the old shophouse row on the east bank of the river, this professional gallery picks a fine bouquet of emerging Southeast Asian artists. Many canvases have a social commentary angle and give the viewer a window into the different artistic styles in the region. A more portable piece is the art calendar featuring a different painting and artist biography for every month.
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CREATING AN ARTISTIC SPACE
‘Don’t expect much from The Land. There isn’t much to see,’ Ajahn Kamin Lertchaiprasert warned me as we sped along the klorng road to the piece of land that has hosted a uniquely Thai artistic experiment since 1998. Indeed it is just a small rice paddy tended full-time by a local farmer and his two water buffaloes. There is no electricity or running water. There is no exhibition space or great artistic monument, only a few open-sided huts on stilts and a sh·lah with a wave-shaped floor. But output isn’t the point of the project.
‘The space is not a gallery or a classroom,’ Ajahn Kamin wrote in 2005 after completing that year’s One Year Project, the title of The Land’s periodic collaborative residency program. Every two or three years, international participants come to live on The Land, where there are workshops on meditation and artistic discussions. Some visiting artists have initiated architectural projects on the property. Some permanent pieces are still usable, others are now just trash heaps. ‘It is an experiment of life. The artists can do what they want at The Land,’ said Ajahn Kamin.