Introduction
This volume is the first comprehensive survey of all aspects of Thai mural paint-ing. It includes short versions of the most important Buddhist stories extensively illustrated by appropriate depictions from Thai murals. The following historical overview includes all regions and periods, based on materials from nearly 200 temples. Also included are interpretations of the concepts of nine selected temples and a full list of the temples visited. The whole book can therefore function as a well-grounded introduction, to be used for preparation as well as during an on-site visit to a temple. Although various books on Thai mural paintings have been published, some worth reading, none has yet fulfilled the requirements necessary for a concise introduction. Between 1982 and 2003 nearly thirty volumes of the bilingual Thai Mural Painting Series were published. Every volume gave a detailed description of one or sometimes two selected murals. Unfortunately, the principal author of this series, No Na Paknam, did not use his vast knowledge of mural painting to complete a survey, leaving at his death much valuable detail on individual temples but no summary. The series concentrated on mural painting from central Thailand (then Siam) from the 18th and 19th centuries, the so-called "classical" period. Only three examples from the North, one from the South and one (unfortunately, rather mediocre) from the 20th century were included. This selection further "canonized" Thai mural painting, and virtually all available studies limit themselves to the same selection of thirty or forty temples from the enormous number of examples from over three centuries and all Thai regions. Klaus Wenk's luxurious volume of 1975 concentrated on only fifteen murals from the 18th and 19th centuries. The best known books on Thai mural painting of the past decades, Rita Ringis's Thai Temples and Thai Murals and K. I. Matics's Introduction to the Thai Mural, gave valuable details on development and technique. However, they could not fulfill the promise of Matics's title because both the material and the field of study were too limited. The more recent volume by Santi.
About The Author
Gerhard Jaiser, born in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1966, studied German and English language, literature, and philosophy at Stuttgart University, finishing his doctoral dissertation on the writings of opera composer Carl Maria von Weber. In 1999, he became lecturer at his home university, and since 2003 has been lecturer in German language and literature at the Universitas Indonesia in Jakarta. His fields of research include cultural studies and inter-culturality as well as foreign language teaching.
About The Book
Thai Mural Painting, Volume 1: Iconography, Analysis & Guide is the first comprehensive survey of all aspects of Thai mural painting. It includes short versions of the most important Buddhist stories extensively illustrated by depictions from temple murals. The historical overview includes all regions and periods, based on materials from nearly 200 temples. Also included are interpretations of the concepts of nine selected temples and a full list of the temples visited. The book is a well-informed introduction, useful for prepar-ing to visit a temple or for consultation on-site. A second volume deals with the most important subjects of temple painting, such as everyday life, nature, and the depiction of foreigners-topics not yet adequately explored. Further volumes will treat painting techniques, the influence from other cultures upon Thai mural paintings, and related subjects.
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