|
|
Opening doors
Affected by the enthusiasm surrounding this year's La Fete, a collector of Thai modern art has agreed to let ordinary Bangkokians view his private collection
La Fete 2005 is upon us, and a vibrant part of this Franco-Thai cultural festival is Art Connection, a project that aims to promote and celebrate modern art in Bangkok. There will be the usual exhibitions by local and French artists around town but one of the surprises this year is that the organisers have managed to persuade the owner of Piphitmaya, a private gallery tucked away on a soi off Ramkhamhaeng Road, to open his collection to the public.
On display is work by two of the Kingdom's most celebrated modern artists, Araya Rasdjarmrernsook and the late Montien Boonma, both of whom are also represented at the Venice Biennale, which opened last Friday.
The exhibition is called "Two Thai Artists at Venice Biennale".
The owner of Piphitmaya _ its name translates as "not real/imaginary collection" _ is Jean-Michel Beurdeley. You wouldn't think twice if you saw Beurdeley in a black beret cycling along a leafy Normandy lane, a baton du pain under his arm; he really does look that French. All the more surprising, then, to discover that this softly spoken man turned his back on life in Paris and moved to Bangkok in December, 1998.
He had spent 30 years running a successful gallery in the French capital, specialising in antiques and objets d'art from Asia. He was, however, familiar with Bangkok, which he used as a base for buying trips around the region, searching for new stock here, in Hong Kong and Japan.
Beurdeley comes from a long line of collectors. "My father and grandfather were both collectors as well as art dealers. My grandfather, for example, collected 18th-century prints. So collecting is in my blood. I've always collected modern art and often been ahead of the pack in spotting tomorrow's trends." By way of example he tells how he was in at the beginning of the massive worldwide explosion in demand for Japanese art back in the '70s.
One point he does make is that a country's art market will pick up in tandem with its economy. "As people have higher disposable incomes they want to buy examples of their own country's art. French businessmen want to buy French furniture and art, and the same is true in Asia.
"Taiwan's current economic boom is sending prices for Chinese art and antiques sky high as wealthy Chinese collectors buy back works exported around the world and compete with international buyers on the local market," he adds.
The financial boom in the '90s led to an increased interest in Thai modern art. Artists found that there was a growing local and a nascent international market for their work plus a small but increasing demand for exhibitions. After the crash of July 1997 the situation changed drastically, but the economic recovery of recent years has given rise to the current buoyant market for Thai art, demonstrating that the post-'97 slump was nothing but a hiccup.
And it's not just local interest that's driving the domestic art market. Exhibitions in Paris, at the Venice Biennale and other international art centres show that there's a growing demand for Thai modern art around the world.
Beurdeley says he's always had a taste for the Orient, but it's not just Asian art that excites him; he has a particular fondness for modern art from this country. The Thai "voice" and spirit is what attracts him, believing, as he does, that the voice and soul of Buddhism is what differentiates art in the Kingdom from that in other parts of the region.
With the emergence of Thai modern art in the 1990s, leading proponents such as Montien Boonma soon came to Beurdeley's attention.
He owns around 50 pieces at the moment, and although far from being a rich collector, his collection is growing organically. He still deals in art, and if he makes a profit from a piece he acquired in the past he can plough it back into the collection when he finds the next must-have piece. "Even money I'd set aside for a new car has sometimes ended up funding the purchase of new pieces. It depends on what's available on the market, how much money I can spare and how much I want something," he confides.
Piphitmaya is usually open only to visiting academics, museum and gallery curators, and a few select customers. And since it's often difficult to see collections of Thai modern art, especially by artists of the stature of Montien and Araya, Beurdeley's decision to open his gallery to the public this Saturday and Sunday is especially welcome.
If the turnout is good, he says he'll consider organising further public shows, both of his own modest collection and works by other Thai modern artists. But he's looking forward to the day when the latter have a permanent space _ a local equivalent of London's Tate Modern, perhaps, or the Guggenheim in New York _ in which to display their oeuvre. That home could be Bangkok's long-mooted Museum of Modern Art _ but it remains to be seen if that on-again, off-again project will ever see the light of day.
Piphitmaya is located at 30 Ramkhamhaeng Soi 24, Bang Kapi. 'Two Thai Artists at Venice Biennale' will be open to the public this Saturday and Sunday from 9am to 6pm. For more details, phone 02-718-5520 or 09-666-6094.
Bangkok Post 15 June 2005 www.bangkokpost.com
Mark Child
|
|
