Fua Harubhitak
Fua Haribhitak., a Thai famous artist, has been known for many aspects of Thai art activities, that are the pioneer of impressionism in Thailand, master and expert of Thai art, and conservationist in traditional mural painting of Thai Temples.
Every role that he played, he devoted his body and soul with passion and faith to all his art works. This enthusiastic effort returned him many kinds of art awards, such as he was rewarded 3 times for the Golden Medal of the National Art Exhibition, the Ramon Magsaysay Award of Public Service in 1983, and the National Artist Award of Thailand in 1985.
In 1934, Corrado Feroci, or in Thai “Silpa Bhirasri”, found the school of Fine Arts under the Fine Art Department. After that, Fua Tong-yoo (previous surname) came to study at the school and he had a chance to learn personally with Silpa Bhirasri.
Every day in the school, Fua developed relationship with his classmate M.R. Thanomsak Kridakorn, a young girl from noble family. They were falling in love, but her noble family obstructed their love, as if a love story of a noble young girl and a poor young artist. But nothing can divide them. Finally, M.R. Thanomsak Kridakorn ran away from home to live with Fua. Then, a child was born, namely Mr. Thamnu Haribhitak.
Silpa Bhirasri recommended Fua Tong-yoo to study aboard about the root of eastern art and culture at Visva-Bharati University, Shantiniketan in India with a private funding of his wife. Soon after living in India, he received bad news that his grand mom Thapthim, who had raised him up, was died. Consequently, he also received another one that his beloved wife was insane.
The bad news brought him down as if everything of his life had gone. So, he asked for protection from the God Vishnu. And then he changed his surname to “Haribhitak.”, which means Protection of Vishnu.
Although Fua Haribhitak.had lived in India for six years, he was student just for one year because after that the WWII had begun and he was captured to the concentration camp in a desert for five years. While he was prisoner, he still shone his talent with winning the first award held by the camp.
After the WWII finished, he came back to Thailand. In 1947, Silpa Bhirasri supported him to be art teacher in the faculty of paintings and sculptures, Silpakorn University. Meanwhile, he got the 2nd marriage with Miss Somthawin Haribhitak.
In this time, he began to survey traditional mural paintings at many old temples in Thailand for copying linear of some important mural paintings before they will be decayed by the time. For example, those of Wat Suthat Temple that he had been impressed by their beauty since his childhood days, or those of Wat Suwannaram Temple in Phetchaburi province that are a temple in his grand mom’s hometown.
In 1948, His linear-copy collection of the traditional mural paintings was opened to international level by exhibition at the Thai Embassy in the United Kingdom. And then the collection was transferred to exhibit in Thailand in 1952, held by Silpakorn University. This was the first time in Thailand that Thai people can perceive values of Traditional Thai art which are contained in mural paintings and ancient architects
One of his important work on linear conservation of mural paintings is of the Ho Trai (= library of Buddhist treatises) at Wat Rakhang Kositaram. He had devoted all his effort for 20 years to complete. The Ho Trai, with a trend to decline, was in the middle of a pond near cremation site of the temple. With his age of 50 years-olds, Fua cleaned slowly and carefully the mural paintings with certain solution for removing any soot from incenses and candles, covering beauty of the paintings. Finally, he discovered and revealed one of mural painting masterpiece from dirty particles that had covered its gorgeousness for hundred of years.
