Buying Paintings in Thailand
Has anyone ever bought any of the reproduction art available for sale in various places in Thailand...Patong, Pattaya, Patpong, etc?
If so, do you think the prices were reasonable and what do you think about the quality of the workmanship?
Is there one place that seems to specialize in this and that always seems to consistently have high quality paintings?
I am considering buying some for my office in the USA and want to hear others experiences with this first.
Thanks
Re Buying Paintings in Thailand
I'd say that the general standard of workmanship in the repro shops (factories?) is not all that high. It depends how fastidious you are. They vary, of course, and even within the same shop you will find good and not so good (because there are usually several artists at work). So look around, there are so many, and don't necessarily be put off by first appearances. In Pattaya there's a double-fronted one at the far end (from Boyztown) of Walking Street that I consider better than average and another a few yards round the golden statue bend in Jomtien, on the right, going towards the beach. If reproductions of traditional Thai paintings appeal to you, I'd strongly recommend a small shop called Kanok Gallery on Pattaya Tai, opposite the Day-Night area. One of the two artists there, A.J., a pleasant fellow, carried out the commission of a large painting for me which I was delighted with, and it was reasonably priced too. A scene of old Bangkok from about two hundred years ago, full of those stylised, naive little figures which I find lovely. The painting now has pride of place on my living room wall.