หนังสือ BRONZE STATUES MADE FROM THE LOST WAX CASTING TECHIQUE

AND THEIR MEANING IN CONTEMPORARY THAILAND

ผู้เขียน Mrs. Mangala Pradhan
ปีที่พิมพ์ 2016

ราคา 550 บาท

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ABSTRACT 

Bronze statues have been a vital part of Thai culture over the past number of centuries. The process of making these statues has evolved over time and moreover, these statues have always been very prominent within the Thai community. This research attempts to understand and study the beliefs behind the making of bronze statues of Thai leaders and historical figures. More importantly, the research attempts to document the process and constrast traditional techniques of bronze casting with the contemporary method of bronze casting. As the bronze statues of past kings and monarchs are also worshiped by the majority of local people in Thailand, the spiritual dimension of making such statues is also considered.

This research studies the popularization of the contemporary lost wax process and the reasons behind its popularity. In this latter respect it tries to understand the popularization of making bronze statues of Thai leaders and heroic figures nationally and individually. Is the reason for this to be found in the deep rooted Eastern culture, especially in the Thai ancestral worship, or is it related to faith in the monarchy, Buddhism, Hinduism, and animism that is the reason behind the public display of such figures which ultimately ends up as a cult object and places of pilgrimage and veneration.

The research attempts to make an inventory of and to document the process involved in the use of the contemporary and traditional bronze casting technique, which has its own aesthetic and technical value. Although bronze statues manufactured from the contemporary bronze casting technique lacks its value compared to the bronze statues made from the traditional technique, the popularity of the contemporary lost wax process is explicable in terms of the easily available modern material and equipment as well as the modern way of making art objects.

The chapter on antiquity of bronze in Thailand discusses the discovery and dissemination of bronze in different prehistoric and historic ages, and the present stage of modern bronze that has given rise to the establishment of contemporary bronze culture in Thailand. 

The lost wax bronze casting techniques in Thailand is discussed in relation to the establishment of the Department of Fine Arts, how this has involved conserving the aesthetic technology of traditional bronze casting technology as a valuable asset, and how the contemporary bronze casting technique has been acquired to make more scientific, realistic bronze statues. The difference between the traditional and contemporary methods is discussed with the specific technology utilized in other parts of Asia.

The chapter on how bronze sculptures reflects Thai society discusses the popularity of the bronze sculptures of the kings, heroic figures and pioneers, how this is unique in Thai society, as well as the different kinds of belief systems prevalent in Thai society.  

The conclusion is about bronze sculptures placed on the public spaces and how the rituals attached to them reflect the belief systems in Thai society. Whatever may be the intentions of the builders, the monuments made of bronze transcend its aesthetic value to the people. The makers of the sculptures can be considered as the pioneers because it is through these people that it is still possible to transcend that value to the public and sustain the tradition of art.