PM keen on improving Thai products through architecture

BANGKOK, 5 November 2013 (NNT) – The Prime Minister is keen on enhancing OTOP products through architecture after a meeting with Canadian-American Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry.

During the meeting, PM Yingluck Shinawatra expressed her gratitude to Mr. Frank Gehry who shared his experience and points of view with Thai entrepreneurs, who could adopt his knowledge in architecture to their products. PM Yingluck told him that his creativity in design could make Thailand’s OTOP products more modern while still carrying and reflecting the Thai culture.

Meanwhile, Mr. Frank Gehry said he was impressed with Chiang Mai Province. According to him, Chiang Mai is a beautiful city, adding that if it gets redesigned, the city will become even more attractive to tourists. He cited Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, as an example. One particular museum could turn an unattractive city into a must-visit place, the renowned architect said.

Both parties agreed that good architectural designs should reflect culture, not to imitate one.

Frank Gehry is a Canadian-American who won the Pritzker Prize. His works are cited as being among the most important works of contemporary architecture in the 2010 World Architecture Survey, which led Vanity Fair to label him as "the most important architect of our time."


-- NNT 2013-11-05

Amazing what you can do with only 10 billion baht!!

The new OTOP headquarters:

Chiang Mai, is no longer an interesting city. Its fast turning into a concrete jungle. Chiang Mai, people, have no say. In what happens there! Bangkok Sino Thai people control it all!

Chiang Mai, is no longer an interesting city. Its fast turning into a concrete jungle. Chiang Mai, people, have no say. In what happens there! Bangkok Sino Thai people control it all!

I am told that Rip Van Winkle does not agree with you.

"enhancing OTOP products through architecture"

Al those cute handicraft things could be enhanced by architecture?

Bangkok Sino-Thai people? In the Sino-Thai Shinawatra clan's own city?

Chiang Mai, is no longer an interesting city. Its fast turning into a concrete jungle. Chiang Mai, people, have no say. In what happens there! Bangkok Sino Thai people control it all!

The architects here at my office laughed. There is already good architecture here; and yeah, Gehry is good- but it is completely unrelated to what Yingluck suggests. You know, the economic disparity of slums all around a 5 star hotel detract the environment. First, she might want to start by improving people's lives and living conditions. Some places are great, but Gehry didn't mention how she should clean up the dirty cities by stopping the dirty corruption; so architectural wonders CAN standout.

Edited November 5, 201312 yr by gemini81

Imagine being the interpreter. You'd need to be up to speed both with your architectural terms AND whatever Yingluck was talking about.

How can OTOP products reflect architecture? Does she even know what they are? The conversation seems the more bizarre given Gehry's style of architecture and the interior design of the room and the faux Louis XIV furniture, in which they are conducting this fascinating discussion.

Going to be somewaht interesting to see how this particular ''brand'' will be marketed via OTOP.

Living as I do in the wilds of Isaan there is a remarkable variety of architecture styles in our village as there is in the surrounding villages ranging from custom made shelters delightful traditional style wooden and wood and concrete block mixes, houses in assorted designs and some extremely interesting colour schemes and building material mixtures too.too.

It sure would be an interesting matter to sit in on a planning permission application in the U.K. if any the greater majority of the current Thai style architecture was applied to the building design for which permission was being asked for..

Methinks yet another crackpot idea from a crackpot administration,

As an aside remember that the OTOP concept actually originated as did tuk tuks in Japan, as per usual the Thai's are great imitators as opposed to innovators.

Edited November 5, 201312 yr by siampolee

Guys like Gehry and Koolhaus are charlatans, IMHO. Both created monstrosities in Seattle, and all the sycophants came to ooh and ahh. Gehry's contribution was a blob said to be inspired by a melted electric guitar, housing the "Experience Music Project", a high priced rip off "museum", vaguely related to rock music, and a shrine to Paul Allen's ego and his muse, Jimi Hendrix.

Koolhaus created the very ugly main branch of the Seattle Public Library. Its waste of space makes it a very limited vehicle for the storage of library materials, but no matter, the sages of today say libraries aren't about books anymore.

I've never understood the adoration these guys receive, making monuments to their own weirdness, sacrificing function for form.And I fail to see what any architect would have to do with the OTOP concept. I just hope Chiang Mai remains a Gehry-free zone. We don't need one of his pretentious, overpriced, high maintence creations.

Others may disagree, of course.

One particular museum could turn an unattractive city into a must-visit place, the renowned architect said.

Too late, they've already pulled down the Downtown Inn.

"One particular museum could turn an unattractive city into a must-visit place, the renowned architect said."

Obviously, Mr. Gehry didn't walk to any of the streets in Chiang Mai. Otherwise his reaction would have been: "How the f*** do you expect people to get around this place. By Helicopter?"

Before building beautiful museums, perhaps some attention should be paid to the infrastructure. Right now there are utility poles and telephone booths in the middle of every street. Making walking them more like a military obstacle course than a pedestrian walkway.

....completely scattered......like grasping at straws.....