Khun Preeda Thai House – an obligatory visit
Khun Preeda Thai House is a Private Living Museum with Historical Architecture of Traditional Thai House. Below an interview with Khun Preeda Phongpitakvises who is the owner of this fabulous place is steeped in history and relics spanning over 40 years.
1.What is the concept of your Museum?
First, live with it and fully utilize it as part of your daily life. Second to preserve this invaluable heirloom culture and art, which we were born with it. Finally, enjoy it every day and make it into a living museum and pass it along to the next generation.
- When was the Museum created and what motivated you to build it?
To be precise, this museum was consecrated and blessed on April 17, 1990. I am a country boy, from Angthong Province, some 45 minutes away from Bangkok. This small, sleepy town is where we used to be commuted via small boat during high tide season. There were Thai houses, big and small on both sides of the canal. At that time, we lived in five Thai houses connected with each other thru the terrace. It was a very happy and peaceful way of life in the old days, everyone knows each other from father to great grandfather. Well, I came to Bangkok in ’66 for higher education and lived in a concrete house, limited space, no trees, no canal to jump in for swimming. I miss my parent’s Thai house a lot. Oh well, I was too young to pursue the passionate this living environment, so it gradually sinks in quietly waiting to emerge when the time is ripped.
Sometimes later, I noticed that concrete houses started to raise up, people abandoning old teak wood home, leaving them at the back-yard, decaying, rotten and eaten up by termite. Not until 1970 when I started to work for the American Embassy, Bangkok where my passionate of Thai house, again, started to emerged and I was confidence to pursue it
My original idea was to build this Thai house for my family to live in and to fulfill my passionate of an old home. With all of the collections I have been collecting for ten some years they fitted in the house perfectly. After talking to the curators, archaeologists and visiting the Bangkok National Museum, it reminded me of what I have had at my parents’ house. That was one of the turning points motivated me to start my private living museum rather than seeing these treasures being ignored.
- We know Thai history is very rich, does the Museum have plans to expand any type of art in particular?
It is very true, as we are all aware that countries in South East Asia were influenced by the Chinese, the Indian and the Khmer cultures. These cultures dominate this area for well over thousand and thousand years ago. To specifically speaking of my particular favorite art, my passionate goes with the Blue and White Porcelain, Chinese rose wood furniture and fine Thai art. These three subjects are soooo much to learn and study as well restoring them too, which seems to be a never-ending job.
- What is your dream for the Museum today?
My dream of my private museum is encouraging more people to visit to explore, converse and discuss to the greater horizon, so that we can learn from each other. Hopefully, this small private museum will be a center to study not limited to the foreigners, but Thais as well.
- The pieces in your Museum are fine works of art, your speech during the guided tour makes us reflect on Thai culture, your passion for the Museum is touching. What is your greatest achievement within the Museum?
In my point of view, my greatest achievement is still not yet to come. Hopefully, my dream of the greatest achievement is seeing visitors walked out of my museum with the expression of, “Now, I have learnt a lot and gotten the insight of the Thai house and culture. You see, museum is just like a living school, there are sooo much to learn.
- What is your Museum’s message for future generations?
Wake up! Don’t overlook the invaluable of what you have.! It is very sad to see the younger generation who claim to be Thai, but know nothing about their own culture. Come, visit the museum, converse and be inquisitive! It is free of charge.
As I have just mentioned earlier that the setback part of my achievement is the younger generations do not seem to appreciate and value their own culture. If allowed, I just want to re-answer your question of the greatest achievement that “my greatest achievement, which likely not to happen, is to see the older and younger generations spend more time at the museum.” It is the best and biggest school to cultivate and expand the horizon of your knowledge.
- Please, feel free to invite the expats to visit your Museum.
Thank you for asking. In order to bring these Thai houses back to live, I decorated and displayed them in the way we, Thais were, in the past centuries. This private living museum housed with my collection of Thai, Chinese and Khmer artifacts dated as far as Neolithic period. My message to the expats in Thailand is, I would like to take this opportunity to invite foreign communities to visit and witness the unseen beauty of our culture and to share the depth knowledge of Thai culture and Thai house. “Just give me a call, or stop by for a cup of tea, we can exchange the idea and learn from each other. My final message to the Thailand expats is “For the purpose of educational visitation, this Private Living Museum is open for foreign communities at “no charge.”
Unless, visitors would like to take the benefit of a high light of “Thai lunch (or Thai Dinner+Thai Dance) at the Thai house, which will be some expenses.
Furthermore, in order for the foreigners to better understanding and gaining an insight of the Thai culture, they have to live and eat with it. Which means that foreigners are welcome to spend a night(s) at this museum under the “Cultural Exchange and a B and B Program.” In this particular case, guest will have a chance to actually gain an insight of what, when, where, why and how do we Thais live. And then they will be able to say “Now I know everything about That culture.”
To visit Khun Preeda Thai House Appointment Only so plan your visit to experience and enjoy:
Home : 02-511-2490
Cell: 097-270-0697
Website
preedathaihouse.weebly.com/
Preeda Phongpitakvises
[email protected]
