If Apinan Poshyananda, 49, the permanent secretary-designate of the Ministry of Culture, had to boil his outlook down to an aphorism, it would probably sound something like: "Don't be afraid. Learn to read art." That's the message that appears on one of his favourite works of art, a copy of which he displays in his office. It also reflects Apinan's belief that encouraging public participation in all works of art is an imperative.

Apinan, a former professor at Chulalongkorn University and the current director of the ministry's Office of Contemporary Art, was named the new permanent secretary on August 1, pending endorsement by His Majesty the King. The ministry, set up three and a half years ago, has five agencies under its jurisdiction, including the Department of Religious Affairs, the Fine Arts Department and the Office of the National Cultural Commission.

"We have got a road map. Essentially, we want to conserve and develop Thai culture and the arts etc in a way that benefits the country economically while at the same time making society less vulnerable to the influence of foreign cultures. Economically speaking, our cultural, historical and artistic heritage should be managed in a manner that allows us to achieve a higher added value for the tourism industry. There should be no shoddiness," he said.

"Success will depend on how we present our vast cultural assets, for example the national museum network. This should all be done with a view to increase their potential as the far as the tourism sector is concerned. For instance, many foreign visitors currently visit the Temple of the Emerald Buddha inside the Grand Palace during their trip to Bangkok. They typically spend three hours on the grounds, so why don't we renovate the nearby national museums to encourage them to spend more time in that area?" he said.

Apinan, who holds a PhD in art history from Cornell University in the United States, says Thailand is experiencing a "cultural crisis" because of the forces of globalisation and trans-nationalism.

"Some people feel our nation-state and culture are being challenged or even threatened by more powerful foreign cultures, which are becoming increasingly dominant here. In addition to waves of Western culture, we've recently seen the rise of K, or Korean, particularly since the screening of Dae Jung Kum, a very popular Korean TV series.

"This has made it necessary for us to build some form of cultural immunity in our society. One of the best ways is to encourage more public participation in all forms of indigenous cultural activities," he said.

"In my opinion, the sense of cultural crisis could be partly attributed to the stereotyping that goes on between the generations. For instance, we tend to see traditional art as belonging to older people whereas contemporary art is for younger people, especially teenagers. In fact, there is plenty of fusion between the two. The indigenous Joe Louis theatre is a good example. It's neither traditional nor contemporary. It's a good fusion of both.

"The point is to give the public lots of opportunities to participate, whether as artists themselves or as patrons or consumers. The Korean model is quite interesting. There the government and private sector work together to invest in and develop related fields in art and culture simultaneously, as exemplified by the Dae Jung Kum project, which included not only TV series but also animation, music, fashion and theatre.

"The Korean government has stepped in and provided matching funds to support the private sector in these projects for both domestic and export sales. As for Thailand, we've adopted some features of the Korean model to promote Thai artists and their work. We also believe that we need to provide a permanent space where the art movement can work. A 35-rai plot near Bangkok's Thailand Cultural Centre has been designated as the site for a new complex, featuring a concert hall, a large-scale art gallery and a theatre among other things.

"This project has been approved with an investment budget of Bt5 billion, to be implemented over a period of three to five years. We hope it will create lots of opportunities for the public to learn to read art. That's probably the best immunity of all," he said. "Also, many Bangkok residents have complained that there are few places to visit during weekends or public holidays except those ubiquitous department stores and shopping complexes. Soon, they should have a new choice."

Nophakhun Limsamarnphun

nop1122@yahoo.com