House of dolls

Limbs are made using wire, hay and cotton.	Foreign art objects also on show at the museum.
This duet-dance captures the mood perfectly.	Replica of a scene from a `khon' mask drama; it is almost as good as the real action.

If you come across dolls in the form of classical Thai dancers or khon at the duty-free shop at Suvarnabhumi Airport, you might just wonder who made them or where they came from.

The answer is a short drive from Pratunam to Soi Moh Leng in Makkasan to a place called Bangkok Dolls House and Museum.

After entering the main gate a wooden door on the right leads visitors to a museum, a showroom and a small doll factory that Khunying Tongkorn Chandavimol founded some 50 years ago.

Limbs and other parts of the body are elegantly painted before they are assembled and dressed.	Hand-made dolls in various classical Thai dancing postures are a hot item.

She had wanted to make Thai dolls since 1945 when she accompanied her husband to Japan and immediately took a fancy for the dolls she saw there. She then enrolled for a five-day course at the Ozawa Dolls School in Tokyo hoping to, apart from dolls, also create quality Thai art objects.

After rolling out her first doll in 1956 which is showcased at the museum, she was still not satisfied. Many experts in the field at the time lent her a hand, including Prof Silpa Bhirasri, the founder of Silpakorn University, who helped with features and shapes of dolls; Prof Luang Visal Silpakarm of the Ancient City (Muang Boran) fame helped with design and dressing; and national artist Thanphuying Phaew Snitwongsenee chipped in by filling in on poses typical of Thai dancing.

Her dolls and their postures, based on classical dancing and the Hindu epic Ramayana, look strikingly real and through them Khunying Tongkorn has helped preserve and promote Thai culture.

Accurate to every detail, the dolls have received appreciation from HM the Queen. When Princess Alexandra of Kent, Britain, visited Thailand in 1959, the Bureau of the Royal Household placed an order with Khunying Tongkorn for a pair of dolls that were presented to her as gift. In 1978, Bangkok Dolls won first prize - the Gold Peacock Feather Award - at an international competition held in Cracow, Poland.

The factory today produces all types of Thai dolls, said Boonloun Termseng, the general manager and adopted daughter of Khunying Tongkorn.

"We produce dolls accurate to the tiniest detail, as the Fine Arts Department would have it."

The factory has a staff of seven and the dolls are hand-made. It begins with molding the head and drawing the face, making the legs and arms using wires around which are wrapped straw and cotton, and then it is sheathed in skin-tight cloth.

"We also insert a wire in every finger so we can adjust the posture," said Tim who has worked at the factory more than 20 years. The body parts are then attached together to form the figure. Dressing and accessories come next.

There are more than 100 designs on shows. The dolls variously depict classical and folk dancing, mermaids, hill tribe people, life of farmers upcountry, historical costumes dating to the Sukhothai period, Lord Rama and the traditional long-drum dance, and models of khon masks.

Cuddly and made-to-order dolls such as monkey god Hanuman with a golf club or tennis star Paradorn Srichaphant in a red T-shirt executing his trademark backhand shot are also on view.

One of the highlights is a scene from the Thai version of Ramayana, which portrays a battle between Rama, the incarnation of Lord Vishnu and demon king Ravana. The set, three metres long, has 35 characters in various poses and dresses acting out the scene.

In one corner of the museum are displayed dolls and art objects from around the world.

The museum opens Monday to Saturday during 8am to 5pm. Admission is free of charge.