Doors are unlikely to open to the public again for at least another year or so.
The good news is that this is because it was awarded a B20 million budget to be restored, renovated and then reopened as a Phuket town museum to be properly proud of.
It will retain the same name and maintain the same aim – to educate locals and visitors alike of the rich and diverse heritage of the Phuket Baba people.
Great news indeed, especially for the island’s Baba community, as it promises to show recognition of the contributions that their people have made to the culture and coffers of the town.
Many were rightly overjoyed with the news. But some, especially from among the artistic community, are likely to be less pleased.
Many artists on the island believe that Phuket and especially Phuket Town, as it is home to many exceptionally talented individuals, should have a proper arts museum.
Some believe that the Baba community are already well represented, what with a rather large section dedicated to them and the Chinese community in the Thai Hua museum on Krabi Road.
Meanwhile, artists in Phuket often struggle to get their work the exposure it so rightly deserves. They have to resort to putting on exhibitions themselves, even paying for artists to come to the island, much like next weekend’s ‘50-50 So Everything is 50-50’ event due to be held at the Phuket Art Village.
The awesome-sounding event, of which The Phuket News is proud to be sponsor, will include artists from Singapore, South Korea, the Philippines and promises to be a great event with a fantastic mixture of art, shadow puppet shows and live music.
A public event at a private venue seems to be the way for the art community. For art enthusiasts, they must seek events out in a variety of ever-changing, sporadically placed spots around the island. A few days in a hotel here, a night at a restaurant there.
There are already many museums around the island, several of which are poorly curated and devoid of visitors, such as the Tin Mine and Thalang National museums.
Add to these the new Baba museum and Thai Hua museum (the latter of which actually stands apart from the rest, with informative, well thought out exhibits), and Phuket is already full of venues that celebrate the past successes and significance of Phuket history. But there is very little to celebrate what is being done by the current generation of Thai people on the island.
In lieu of sufficient governmental support, The Phuket News will continue to support these and many more art events in the future.