Art book pays homage to Tai culture with stunning photos, intimate stories
A renowned Belgian photographer’s love affair with culture and his collaboration with a textile expert has helped shed light on the dozens of Tai linguistic and cultural groups scattered across Southeast Asia and beyond.
The result of their collaboration is a book – “TAI, A Woven Culture” – that is culturally insightful and visually dazzling, weighing a hefty three kilograms.
Co-produced by Belgian Hans Roels and Napajaree Suanduenchai and published by Rover Books, the 348-page coffee table book was sparked by a conversation between the two when they met 25 years ago.
Roels is a renowned photographer with an intense interest in cultures. Napajaree is the co-founder of the Tai Textile Society in Bangkok.
Their collaboration – Roels took the photographs and Naparjaree was the lead writer for the text – is making waves.
The Siam Society described it as “an art book about Tai culture, the ethnic background of over 80 per cent of the inhabitants of Thailand. What unites all Tai people since the last migration in 1300 is their remarkable and unique weaving culture”.
“The most comprehensive and detailed study and representation of the Tai people, with stunning photographs and beautifully presented,” Goodreads says.
The book features 23 groups of Tai who live across Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, South China and Assam, India, and their different cultures.
“What binds them together is the weaving, which is the Tai identity,” Roels explains.
Homage is paid to all Tai communities, including the Tai Noi, Tai Yai, Tai Yuan, Tai Moei, Tai Dam, Tai Daeng, Tai Khao and Tai Lue. The name of each community is partially based on their weaving heritage.
The pictorial chronology of Tai textiles is intertwined with intimate accounts of their unique histories and cultures.
Roels said he took 1,241 photographs for the book and slightly more than 320 of these are included between its covers.
As both Roels and Napajaree immerse themselves among diverse Tai communities, they succeed in conveying the unique history and culture of each one. The Belgian photographer said he was moved by the willingness of Tai people to allow him to photograph them freely.
Over the 25 years, Roels and Napajaree observed that younger Tais were losing interest in the weaving that unites their communities.
“The new generation isn’t keen on time-consuming weaving anymore, which is a shame. However, I’m glad that I started this project in time to enjoy what remains of traditions that are both beautiful and unforgettable,” said Roels.
“Discovering these Tai textiles reminds me of the beauty of these people who are farmers and who create beautiful work through their textiles, which showcase both their identity and dignity of being Tai,” Napajaree said.
“As of 2022, at least 75% of the villages that Suanduenchai and Roels visited no longer produce traditional Tai textiles, leaving the reader as the last eye-witnesses to a spectacular culture.” The Siam Society said.
The book sells for 3,200 baht per copy. It is printed on paper that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council and was printed using wind power. One of its sponsors is By Wind, a Nordic printing company.
One hundred copies of the 3,000 first edition run have been donated to schools and universities. Profits from book sales in the North go to the Thai Education Foundation.
The book was first launched at the Royal Library in Brussels, Belgium in March. The interest it generated has led to its release in Bangkok at the Blue Elephant restaurant, one of the book’s main sponsors. The launch was attended by media and those supporting the book, along with outgoing Culture Minister Itthiphol Khunplome.
