Bowled over by love
Each bowl created by Nino Sarabutra is different.
&Joy! Creative Lifestyle Boutique and Gallery, which soft-opened just a month ago not far from Laguna, will open its first exhibition, “Exploring Love” by Thai artist Nino Sarabutra on April 17.
Exploring Love is a wall installation of heart-shape stoneware bowls. Each is hand-made, as the artist (who, when she’s not pottering about, is a successful advertising creative director) explains, “In working with these bowls, I keep exploring,” she says. “It’s just like love. I never knew how each one would turn out. Every bowl was different; different clay, different glaze, different temperature, different degrees of care and attention.
“Sometimes the clay was too much, too little, too thin, too thick, too stubborn, too soft. Sometimes I was too quick, or too ponderous. So many times I failed, so often I wanted to give up; as with love. Even when you are quite certain that it is right you can still be wrong. Often I expected one thing, but got another – a pleasant surprise.”
If I am careless with the bowls I can easily break them, drop them or create defects. If I am too careful I don’t get any fun out of them. They pull me down, they lift me up and they keep me going.”
I love exploring new resources and materials. There is no need to always use something modern. I love experimenting with things around me, something that’s already there but never tried before, such as wood ash from my mother’s stove; it gave me golden brown glaze.
Figurine by Winai Chaso.
One of Kai Kingsley's black and white paintings, to be showcased in "Faces".
“So now my Mum is collecting wood ash for me even though she rarely uses a charcoal stove these days. Imagine Mum collecting ash day in day out for months before posting it to me. It’s not only the outcome that matters for me – equally, the process needs to be warm and full of love.”
The gallery – which is the personal project of Dominique Rongé, Assistant Manager of The Chedi resort – has already scheduled two more exhibitions. The first, “People of the Hills”, opening May 23, will showcase ceramic figurines created by Chiang Rai artist Winai Chaso. The second, “Faces”, will open a month later. It will consist of paintings by Kai Kingsley III.
The gallery is on the right side of Srisoonthorn Rd, just to the west of Baan Manik, and about halfway between the Heroines Monument and Cherng Talay (see map below). For more information contact Dominique at dominiqueronge@hotmail.com or see the website.
Dear Phuket Insider,
Thank you for the picture of one of my black and white paintings on French paper. They are not ‘drawings’ –They are original paintings. Now, that may not sound like a big deal, but it does when you are a buyer who pays 55,000 baht for an original painting (framed) by Kai Kingsley III.
Just a little correction,
Thanks,
Kai
Dear Kai,
Thanks for pointing out the error. Fixed now.