Shaping the future of THAI CERAMICS

Shaping the future of THAI CERAMICS

A third-generation ceramics maker discusses the future of the local ceramics industry and how he hopes to influence it

SAMILA SUTTISILTUM

'It was just a course housewives took as a hobby in the evening ... but that was really the first time I touched clay with an intention to create something out of it," recalled Wasinburee Supanichvoraparch of his introduction to pottery.

That the heir to one of the first and foremost ceramics producers in Thailand, Tao Hong Tai, did not lay hands on the base material of his family's business until his early twenties came as a big surprise, for Ratchaburi-based Tao Hong Tai is not just another ceramics factory. Tao Hong Tai is more or less a ceramics establishment with a history closely related to Ratchaburi's reputation for the ceramics known as ong Ratchaburi - a literal translation of which is "Ratchaburi's jars". Founded by Wasinburee's grandfather, a Chinese migrant, Tao Hong Tai has expanded its range of ceramics over the past 75 years from Thai-style water jars and terracotta plant pots to a wide collection of decorative furniture, sculpture, tiles and other, European-style terracotta creations.

Despite continuous growth of the family business, Wasinburee said he was never pressured to enter it nor taught it.

"I spent my childhood both here at the factory and with my grandmother in Lop Buri. When I was here, I played with clay the way other kids do, but I never made any serious ceramic works out of it," said Wasinburee.

"My mother, above all, tried to persuade me to study medicine or law because she had seen how tough running the factory was. She had seen how exhausted my father and my grandfather had been and she didn't want me to have the same life. Back then, I wasn't particularly into ceramics and knew nothing about it, but I told my mother that if I didn't continue the running of the factory, who would?"

On his father's suggestion, and with a sense of duty but not of passion, Wasinburee travelled to Germany to further his study of ceramics after just one year at university in Thailand. After taking a German language course and the basic ceramics class mentioned above, he enrolled in a technical school in Landshut, Bavaria, where the Ratchaburi-born Thai was left struggling to understand the strong accent of the locals. Added to the boring nature of the first year of the course, he was left deterred and homesick.

It was not until one evening when he was invited to the house of a classmate that Wasinburee experienced the revelation that triggered his love for ceramics.

"It was really a case of 'a strand of hair before the eye obscures whole mountains'," he recalled with a laugh.

"This friend of mine often nicked clay from the school to take home and do whatever he wanted with it. He made me realise that ceramics were more than what my grandfather and my father had been doing at Tao Hong Tai or what the teachers taught us in school. It inspired me to continue to work with ceramics. I came to Germany with the urge to continue my family business but came back with a love for ceramics, and I believed that was the whole point of going to Germany. I often tell people that if your study in Germany teaches you nothing but the love for art, then it's worthwhile."

After completing the equivalent of a master's degree in Kassel, Wasinburee returned to Thailand with a love for ceramics and an unrestricted approach to ceramics production. He began to inject a modern touch to production at Tao Hong Tai. Most notable was his introduction of vivid, retro colours like red and orange to normally earth-toned Oriental ceramics.

"I never wanted to stop what we'd been doing. I just launched a new modern line of products to give Tao Hong Tai more diversity," he explained.

"Around that time, I noticed that some home decoration magazines had begun to feature retro furniture, so I had this idea of using bright retro colours in our Oriental-style ceramics."

Wasinburee discovered that the use of bright colours like red and orange in ceramics had been discontinued due to the high level of cadmium used in the paint. After finding a factory that could successfully produce ceramic paint with an acceptable level of cadmium, albeit at a higher price, Wasinburee launched Tao Hong Tai's modern ceramic line, which was quickly embraced by a niche group of architects and interior designers and later by the general public. The success predictably led to copycats that saw all the ceramics factories of Ratchaburi producing red-tinted shades.

"I never expected it to become a success. I just wanted to try to do what I believed in and if it was a failure, it would be an experience we could learn from.

"I know being copied is unavoidable, but when I began to look into these products I took the safety issue very seriously. However, some paint factories just exploited the situation by offering cheaper paint to other ceramics factories. They were cheaper but made with outdated technology that left them dangerous. Although they are not dangerous to the customers since they are not food containers, they are dangerous to factory workers and, above all, the environment."

Wasinburee acknowledges that a good part of being copied is that it drives him to find new ideas and inspiration for new works, although he couldn't help hoping that other factories would appreciate the value of creative design and find a character of their own.

"I never think we're better than other factories. I believe technically, all factories are equally skilled. However, only a few of them have the courage to do what they believe in," said Wasinburee.

"When I first created the ice-cream-inspired striped motif, another factory did exactly the same, even using the same colours - red, orange and yellow - without changing anything. They didn't even try to switch to, maybe, yellow, red and orange. They can sell the product, of course, but this is no good for the ceramics industry. It will kill the industry and eventually, it will kill the other factories."

That his designs are copied isn't the only issue that has caused Wasinburee disappointment. Determined to help improve the local ceramics industry and to encourage younger generations to take an interest in ceramic art, Wasinburee opened the formerly private Tao Hong Tai factory to visitors, despite disapproval from his father and grandfather. A new building was built where visitors - students, professionals or just interested members of the public - can witness ceramics production from beginning to the end.

Unfortunately, Wasinburee was again left feeling demoralised after discovering that other ceramics producers had attended the workshop incognito in order to find more techniques to copy.

"It's very discouraging, most of all because it made my father and grandfather feel that they were right in the first place and that I was wrong. My intention was that I didn't want Tao Hong Tai to grow alone. I want all factories and the whole ceramics industry to grow together."

Although he admits that the experience upsets him to certain extent, Wasinburee has not been entirely deterred from his mission to advance the ceramics industry. Late last year he invited friends from several professions to work with clay and to use Tao Hong Tai's facilities to create ceramic works for an exhibition entitled Chapter 75: Clay Overture. Having been on show at Thong Lor's hip concept store Playground since December 14, the pieces will today be moved to the factory's Ratchaburi base where they will be displayed until March.

"My father and grandfather were completely against it, of course," said Wasinburee with a laugh. "In terms of marketing and business, the show is a terrible project. It's like we just gave away our know-how for free. And there were so many people [producing their creations] in the factory, which was very chaotic.

"However, I still believe I have done the right thing. It's like we have encouraged young students to take a look at ceramic art and shown them its limitless possibilities. The money from the sale of the creations will be used as funding for young students who want to learn more about ceramics at Tao Hong Tai. We may have to suffer a little, but we know that, with this project, there will be more personnel to work in the ceramic scene in the future."