FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
nationthailand

A cultural look ahead

A cultural look ahead

The OCAC’s fiveyear agenda looks promising but will it become a reality?

The Ministry of Culture’s Office of Contemporary Arts and Culture (OCAC) has now announced its new policies and strategies for supporting contemporary arts and culture, which is in effect from now until September, 2021. 
    Artists, scholars and critics in various arts disciplines, including many recipients of OCAC’s Silpathorn Award, shared their opinions and offered project proposals in accordance with the new agenda over a recent two-day seminar.
    On the first day, Silpakorn University professor Eakachat Joneurairatana moderated the discussion on costume, graphic, product and interior designs as well as architecture and visual arts. On the second, I did the same for literature, film and performing arts.

A cultural look ahead
    The Metamorphosis (Android Version) bridges the disciplines of arts and science.
Photo/Madoka Nishiyama

The two key missions are, first, to promote and to support the development and distribution of knowledge and educational resources in contemporary arts and culture, and second, to promote and to support the integration of relevant sectors in the creation of contemporary arts and culture to drive forward the creative economy with social and economic values.
    My hopes for the future soared when I saw the word “integration” in the OCAC’s agenda booklet along with plans to cooperate with, among others, the education and foreign affairs ministries as well as foreign cultural institutions. Integration and co-operation in this country are indeed rare – just look at how many different cards we need on a daily basis. 
    On this issue, I added that OCAC should also promote interdisciplinary collaboration of Thai artists in different fields. This has been one of the major trends in contemporary arts for many years and several countries have also been merging arts audiences of various genres. I cited as an example Japanese playwright and director Oriza Hirata’s “Metamorphosis (Android Version)”, his adaptation of Czech writer Franz Kafka’s novel into a French-language play starring a Cannes Film Festival award-winning actress, which brought German-language literature buffs, theatre goers, film lovers, French-language students and robot enthusiasts to the same venue. By contrast, contemporary Thai arts works are still attracting a genre-specific group of audiences, owing in part to the lack of arts appreciation classes at all levels of education and the fact that each genre is being taught separately, with little integration.
    After a few hours of discussions, proposals from the literature working group included, among others: organising literature festivals, in addition to the existing book fairs, taking an example from that in Ubud, Bali; conducting research in book cover design and book distribution; creating a contemporary arts and culture TV channel or programme; and arranging exchanges of Thai and foreign writers.
    Film artists and scholars proposed that OCAC operate a cinematheque at the new arts centre to help promote and distribute independent films; support independent films throughout their process from pre-production to distribution in addition to training and workshop opportunities; offer prize money for films that have been invited to leading international festivals; and also include in this category artists who are working in film and video installation and motion graphics design. 
    Performing arts practitioners and scholars proposed that OCAC should substantially support the existing major festivals, like Bangkok Theatre Festival (BTF), instead of creating their own festival, which lacks sustainability, like Bangkok Bananas, support the existing networks of artists, scholars and critics; and promote the development of an audience network. They also should be clear on what the Thai identity really is in the contemporary world of arts.
    All three groups, interestingly, concurred that databases of working artists and their works should first be updated and linked to the website of OCAC. With the limited budget allocated to OCAC, let’s see how many of these projects are realised in the next four years and four months. 

A cultural look ahead

The Nation’s theatre critic Pawit Mahasarinand, left, and OCAC director Vimolluck Chuchat addess the issues. Courtesy of OCAC 

I still recall attending a similar event several years ago and one of our proposals back then was the double tax refund to promote the private sector’s support of contemporary arts activities. After all these years, and many governments, it’s finally come true, but it’s not quite like in many other countries. You need to directly donate to OCAC’s fund, not directly to any particular arts groups or projects, in order for your receipt to be valid for a double tax refund. 
    Apart from giving an overview of its first support agenda, OCAC director Vimolluck Chuchat gave an update on the expansion of the Thailand Cultural Centre (TCC). Scheduled to open this year, it will house the permanent office of the ministry and in a few years, new art galleries, theatres, cinemas, as well as multi-functional spaces that should help realise this new agenda. However, its hope of becoming the Asian cultural gateway may remain a distant hope, if not a pipe dream, as it’s not yet been d ecided how this new arts centre will be run. The current TCC is known as a venue for hire as it’s not producing its own programmes. More importantly, there is no news about its curation and programming. This is unlike such foreign counterparts as West Kowloon Cultural District, the construction of which has not been completed but the curation team has been working and organising relevant programmes for a few years now. 
    I half-jokingly added that perhaps the TCC should start by integrating itself with the MRT’s TCC station. Arts lovers know only too well that they have to risk their lives crossing a very busy street to reach the TCC. OCAC would do well to remember that no arts centre can be successful unless its physical structure and programmes are both accessible. 

nationthailand