Spirits: Creativities From Beyond
The long-told stories about the beliefs and definitions of "ghosts"
Spirits (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
The exhibition brings you the goose bump experience, from many long-told stories about the beliefs and definitions of "ghosts" that will awaken the fears and the survival instincts of mankind. The exhibition presents the fear management process using "Creative Imagination" which is the product of cultures, traditions, as well as businesses related to ghost stories.
what you think is what you fear-4 (2021-11-12) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
what you think is what you fear-3 (2021-11-12) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Opening new perspectives to the definition of "ghost" through various legends, beliefs and facts gathered from all corners of the world. It also shares the perspectives of people of various professions that are related to "Parallel Dimension" along with the creative strategies to coexist and overcome "Fear" with “Understanding".
When fear reigns (2021-11-12) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
When fear reigns, the world of good and evil spirits seizes the imagination. What starts as one person’s fear of the unknown spreads to others, and before long, an entire culture shares a common belief in ghosts. To ward off these spirits and control their fear, people develop rituals, one of which is the tradition of storytelling – a tradition that still has the power to spark the creative imagination and generate profits in the world of business.
Spirits: Creativities from beyond
Preta ghosts - 2 (2021-11-10) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Ungratefulness is unacceptable in Thai society.
Preta. .ghosts who suffer insatiable hunger and thirst becomes a cautionary tale against abusive behaviour towards one's parents.
Ghoul (2021-11-11) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
A corpse-eating ghoul
Go hide in a jar when encountered with a corpse-eating ghoul From folklore to a signature of Thai scary movies, the jar-jumping antic keeps the audience coming back for more.
House Spirit (2021-11-11) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
To live well, respect the "House Spirit"
Time might turn wooden houses into skyscrapers. But faith remains.
Phi Ta Khon - Ghost Festival (2021-11-11) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Phi Ta Khon...
...elaborate embellishment that reflects belief and uplifts the community spirit. When fear evokes more than terror and hideousness, world-renowned artworks and festivities come to life.
Filth-eating spirit
This filth-eating spirit is a clever tactic for Promoting good hygiene.
Sometimes, “Stick” works Better than “carrot” Fear can be put to good use.
Worshiping (2021-11-11) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Learning to cope with our fears
Throughout our history, fear has been the constant behind many of our religious practices – worshiping the sky, paying respect to sacred animals, or making offerings to gods. What has changed is how we manage our fears.
The complexity of human society and the clash of cultures have given rise to countless forms of religious ritual all intended to allay our fears. Whether it is a belief in exorcists and spirit mediums or fairs and festivals to appease the gods, these rites help us keep the darkness at bay.
People's beliefs are a reflection of people themselves. That is why the spirit world resembles the human world. The complexity and hierarchical nature of human society characterizes the society of ghosts, too.
At the top of the ladder are the heavenly spirits, and below them are the creatures of the mountains and forests. Because they are harbingers of both good and evil, people need to perform rites to appease them. At the bottom of the hierarchy are devils and demons who pose only harm. Fortunately, black magic offers ways to keep them at bay.
Living with spirits in the modern world (2021-11-11) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
The state of belief
Although animist beliefs are pretty much the same all over the world, different cultures have come up with different ways of dealing with these visitors from another world.
While people in traditional communities in the countryside cling to old customs and rituals, many of today’s city dwellers adopt the latest technology to facilitate their faith. And people with the purchasing power look for ways to satisfy cravings that reflect their particular beliefs in the supernatural. This explains the creativity that characterizes today's society and the tremendous range of goods available in the marketplace.
Animist beliefs-3 (2021-11-11) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Big money festivals
Animist beliefs + coping mechanism = big money festivals
Various methods for coping with supernatural phenomena have grown out of the legends and customs unique to particular communities and ways of life. When these "coping mechanisms" are ritualized, they become the inspiration for exquisite works of art and world-class celebration.
Animist beliefs + technology = a new world where old beliefs
As long as death remains the ultimate mystery, the realm of the spirits and the supernatural will likely survive in the modern world. New technologies only serve to keep our traditional beliefs alive. The market is full of new goods and services that purport to make contacting the "other side" faster and easier than ever before. These inventions have a trendy, up-to-the-minute look that fits right in with our modern lifestyle.
A wooden house in the city?
A wooden house in the city?
The old-fashioned spirit houses are slowly vanishing. The traditional wooden structures are being replaced by more modern-looking houses made of granite. The change has nothing to do with feng shui or a shift in beliefs. The trend is led by high-priced condominiums that want a sleek, expensive look both inside and out.
high-class beliefs (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
High-class beliefs
Animist beliefs + desire for the best = high-class beliefs
People with money often seek out skilled craftsmanship and top-quality raw materials to satisfy their craving for the best that life (and death) has to offer. Their money goes to finance a whole range of old and new businesses that keep traditional beliefs alive.
modern-day magic (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Modern-day magic
The lucrative business of reassurance (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
The lucrative business of reassurance
Looking for answers (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Send off (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
One-stop funeral service (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Living off spirits (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Living off spirits
When fear is entertainment, all the old beliefs in ghosts and spirits are "cultural assets" with the potential for big profits – especially today. New sound and image technology is scaring the "dollars and cents" out of horror fans both at home and abroad.
Clicks clacks, moans and whispers (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Clicks clacks, moans and whispers
"Khun Paen felt no fear. He recited the spell that woke the child spirit, who began to speak. Khun Paen danced. He leapt into the air and rode on the back of the spirit. The guman thong (child spirit) would protect his father from danger."
From Khun Chang-Khun Paen, the episode in which the guman thong is removed from the womb of khun Paen’s wife, Buakli. The version recited by Master Storyteller Kru Jaeng during the reign of King Rama IV
Although the traditional oral recitation of the folk tale Khun Chang-Khun Paen involved only the clacking of wooden sticks (krab) and the nuanced voice of the storyteller, they were often enough to conjure up pictures of the newborn spirit in the audience’s imagination. The storyteller’s job was helped, of course, by the widespread belief in ghosts and the supernatural that permeated life in the past.
the spirit world live over the radio (2021-11-17) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
In 1957, a radio play about ghosts hit the AM airwaves in the dark hours of the night, captivating listeners in Bangkok and all around the country. The play’s producers were constantly working to outdo themselves, coming up with new spine-chilling storylines that would keep listeners tuned in. Then, with the advent of FM radio, horror fans were treated to a program called The Shock, which gave people an opportunity to phone in and relate their own personal encounters with ghosts and the spirit world live over the radio.
Traces of a deranged mind on paper (2021-11-18) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Traces of a deranged mind on paper
Once fear takes hold of your imagination, it is not long before images of monsters and spirits come spilling out.
Thai ghost comics (2021-11-18) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Short-story writer Hem Vejakorn is a case in point. His tales of demons and ghosts shook up the publishing world in the years right after World War II. His popular success inspired publishers to start printing one-baht comic books filled with Thai-style stories from beyond the grave.
Urban contemporary ghosts (2021-11-18) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
After 1982, novels and comic books began to feature Western ghosts, most notably the "farang" vampires on the cover of Banleusarn’s Shock magazine that hit newsstands in 1983. Today, there are ghost stories of every description available to fans of the genre. So whether you prefer J-horror manga or Western-style horror flicks or the old-timey Thai ghost comics at 5 to 10 baht a pop, you are sure to find something to send shivers down your spine.
Thai Ghost movies 2 (2021-11-18) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
The earliest locally-made ghost movies were cheap affairs that blended fear and laughter. But many of the ghost films made today are quality products with box office returns in the hundreds of millions of baht.
Thai ghost movies 3 (2021-11-18) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Ghost movies (2021-11-18) by TCDCThailand Creative & Design Center
Advances in image and sound technology and the dedication of experts both behind and in front of the camera – everyone from directors to screenwriters, cinematographers, special effects engineers, sound designers, actors, and producers – have resulted in a resurgence in popularity for Thai-made ghost movies here at home and abroad.
Spirits: Creativities from beyond
Date: 25 March - 22 May 2011 | Venue: Gallery 2, TCDC | The Emporium, 6th Floor
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