Light of Life art exhibition

A very realistic oil painting

Date: March 8-29, 2008
Venue: D Gallery, Royal Phuket Marina, Koh Kaew, off Thepkrasattri Road
Contact: Gem Thanthanasap, Exhibition Manager; email gem@dgallery.co.th

In March, D Gallery, a new contemporary art gallery at the Royal Phuket Marina, presents “Light of Life” an exhibition of work by Thai artist Therdkiat Wangwatcharakul.

According to the artist, his paintings – in acrylics and oils on canvas – convey “the way of true happiness and peace [derived] through the solitude of one’s surroundings and the environments one is in – as opposed to happiness derived from parties one attends or the people we surround ourselves with.”

Therdkiat has taken part in a number of exhibitions in Thailand and abroad, including solo or group exhibitions in Singapore, Japan, Korea, Spain and the Netherlands.

His most recent exhibition abroad was in 2006, with two other artists, at the the Asian Cultural Center in New York. The show was titled Tradition and Modernity in South East Asian Art.

He was awarded the Jurors’ Choice Prize in the Asean Art Awards 2000, and second prize in the Thai National Arts Competition in 2002.

D Gallery specialises in promoting upcoming and established Southeast Asian artists, principally from Thailand and Vietnam. The gallery plans to host six to eight exhibitions this year.

Phuket Food Festival

Coconut sweet dessert

Date: March 19-28, 2008
Venue: Saphan Hin
Contract: TAT office on Tel: + 66 (0)7 621 2196

Enjoy this lively, colourful and delicious festival, which lasts a belt-stretching ten days. Many authentic local dishes will be on offer, including a lot of seafood. If you like to cook, or simply to watch how Thai dishes, including desserts, are made, this is the perfect chance to do so.

There will also be a wide variety of One Tambon One Product (OTOP) handicrafts from around Thailand for sale, while stage performances by local students and bands from local pubs and night clubs around Phuket will liven up the evenings.

Contact the TAT office at 191 Thalang Rd, Phuket City, Tel: +66 (0) 76 211 036, 217 138 or 212 213, for dates and times of specific events during the festival.

ACYC Race Series 2008

Racing in the Chalong Bay

Date: March to November 2008
Venue: Around Chalong Bay
Contact: Tony Knight at +66 (0) 81 7470074
or visit www.acycphuket.com

The Ao Chalong Yacht Club’s annual Image Asia Keelboat and Multihull Race Series kicks off this year on March 16.

Other dates in the series are March 30, April 27, May 11, May 25, June 15, June 29, July 12-13, August 10, August 24, September 7, September 21, October 12, November 2, November 16 and November 28.

Anyone looking to pull a few ropes – even those who have never done it before – can call the club’s Commodore, Tony Knight (above), who can usually find a space for them on one of the boats.

Laguna Phuket Sea Turtle Conservation Release

Turtle release

Date: March 28, 2008
Venue: Beach in front of the Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket
Contact: Saranya Tantiphiriyakul
at + 66 (0) 76 362300, ext 1304

One of the most delightful annual events in Phuket is the sea turtle release day organized by Laguna Phuket, during which hundreds of infant sea turtles are released into the Andaman Sea. Apart from the turtle releases, there are plenty of activities aimed at getting children and adults alike to understand the serious threat to marine turtles.

Despite years of public education, there are still people who dig up the turtle eggs for food and others who kill grown turtles for meat or for the shells. The annual turtle release is aimed at highlighting the dangers of such depredations.

The sea turtle conservation programme is run jointly by the Royal Thai Navy and Phuket Marine Biological Centre. Hundreds of turtle eggs are collected from the beaches of Phuket and incubated until they hatch. The young turtle are then kept safe until they are large enough to have a reasonable chance of survival at sea.

This year’s event will be held on March 28 on the beach in front of the Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket, from 4 to 6 pm.

Far Away But So Close Art exhibition

Pairoj Wangbon's art work

Date: January 18 - April 5, 2008
Venue: Vichen Gallery, BZenter, Rawai
Contact: vichengallery@gmail.com or Tel +66 (0) 89 793 6366

The work of two highly regarded Thai artists is currently on show at the Vichen Gallery.

Pairoj Wangbon produces striking abstract paintings which, he explains, are a presentation of opposites, of the rules of balance in Nature, of the interdependent forces of support and destruction required for true balance.

His colleague Somsak Kongnaphakdee says that his sculptures are inspired by daily life, what is going on around him, often the simplest, most ordinary things – things that most people don’t even notice are there. The finished sculptures have a sense of softness yet, at the same time, an almost monumental strength.

Vichen Gallery is open daily, except Wednesdays, from 3 pm to 9 pm.

Songkran Festival

Water fighting

Date: 13 April 2008
Venue: Patong Beach
Contact: Patong Municipal Office
tel: +66 (0) 76 342078

Songkran, which lasts officially from April 13 to 15 every year, is probably Thailand's best-known and most popular festival. The classic scene is of grinning people hurling water at friends, neighbours and complete strangers on Songkran Day, the first day of the holiday.

April is the hottest month in Thailand, so one reason for the water fights is simply to cool everyone down. Thais also believe that dousing someone with water will bring good luck to that person. In Phuket, Thais usually start "giving people good luck" on the evening of April 12, with the soaking continuing until the next afternoon – except in Patong, where you can expect to get doused well into the evening of the 13th.
Water fights are, however, only one part of the festival. To see the much gentler traditional aspect of Songkran, get up early and visit any wat (Buddhist temple) nearby. On the first day of the holiday, Buddhist Thais customarily go to wat to present food to the monks, to pray and to pour water (gently) on Buddha images.

Then young family members will visit their parents at home to give them some gift and to pay respect by pouring a small amount of water – gently – over the parents' hands. The parents respond by wishing them good luck and prosperity. You can see this touching ceremony taking place at Wat Suwankiriwong, at the bottom of Patong hill, where the Patong Municipality is arranging for young people in the community to pay respect to their elders this way.

The next place you want to be on April 13 is at the junction of Soi Bangla and the beach road, where the Municipality will set up a special stage for the annual Songkran party, with live music and a variety of stage performances. The fun starts at noon.

Phuket Bike Week 2008

Bikers in Patong Beach

Date: April 10 - 13 , 2008
Venue: Mostly in Patong
Contact: Sumon Singkalah
at sumon@ridethailand.com
or Tel + 66 (0) 76 352069

Phuket Bike Week, coming up to its 14th year, is the biggest motorcycle event in Southeast Asia; last year’s event attracted around 3,000 bike enthusiasts from all over Thailand, from Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Japan, the US, Europe and Saudi Arabia.

This year, Bike Week will feature, for the first time, a motorcycle exhibition. Among manufacturers invited to display bikes are Harley-Davidson, Ducati, Triumph, Victory, KTM, Kawasaki, Honda, Yamaha and many others.

During the week there will be competitions for “Best of Bikes” as well as a variety of concerts by Thai musicians. Anyone can join in with the activities; you don’t have to be a biker to take part. The Bike Week schedule is as follows:

2008 Laguna Phuket International Marathon

Am I on the right path?

Date: June 13-15, 2008
Venue: Laguna Phuket, Bangtao Beach
Contact: Nattira Anakasiri
at email: nattiraa@lagunaphuket.com

This year’s Laguna Phuket International Marathon, the third, is expected to attract some 4,000 competitors, of whom 1,500 will be coming from 40 countries overseas.

Events surrounding the race will start on Friday, June 13, with a two-day exhibition featuring sponsor booths and a variety of activities. Race day on June 15 will see competitors vying for honours in the 42-kilometre marathon, a 21-kilometre half-marathon, a 10.5-kilometre race, a 2-kilometre kids’ run and a 5-kilometre walk.

Japanese “eco-marathoner” Hajime Nishi, who has already competed twice in the event, will be returning. Nishi uses marathons as a way to promote environmental awareness, stopping along the way to chat with people and have his photo taken. The slower his time, the more successful he considers he has been. Despite this, he was the first person to run marathons in all seven continents – including Antarctica.

Online registration is now open and will remain open until June 5, 2008, with the “early bird” discount period ending on March 31. For further information about the event or to register, visit www.phuketmarathon.com