British artist creates pebbled portrait as tribute on King Rama IX's birthday
A British artist on Monday displayed a "land art" portrait of King Bhumibol Adulyadej the Great in Chiang Mai to commemorate the late monarch’s birthday and National Father’s Day.
Justin Bateman, 46, from Portsmouth, England, but now residing in Thailand's northern province, said that this was the second year he had created "land art" in Chiang Mai by arranging multi-coloured pebbles into a portrait of King Rama IX.
Bateman said he had been collecting pebbles from different parts of the country to convey the idea that they represent each part of Thailand, especially the shining goldish pebbles he had fished out from Mekong River.
He said he used gold-coloured pebbles to signify the respect and love that all Thais have for King Bhumibol, who was often referred to as “Father of the Land”, that even a foreigner like him could feel it while residing here.
“This is the work that I am most proud of,” he added.
Just like last year, his work was displayed at a gallery on Nimman Road in Muang district. The artwork, which is 2m x 1.5m in size, four times larger than his work last year, took the artist four weeks to complete. Bateman said he intended to turn it into a permanent display.
The British artist had earlier made headlines in Thailand for creating a similar land art portrait of Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt.
