Body art festival on Koh Samui island | Bangkok Post: learning

About art

The human body has become a canvas for painting. Thailand's hip island resort provides just the right atmosphere.

For more photos, see the original article here.

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SAMUI ASPIRES TO JOIN THE RANKS OF INTERNATIONAL BODYPAINTING DESTINATIONS by Yanapon Musiket

It takes approximately six hours for her to turn a woman into a colourful orchid.

Austrian bodypaint artist Bella Volen, together with her marvellous model, were onstage as part of the press conference for the upcoming "Samui International Bodypainting Competition", to be held on Lamai Beach, Koh Samui, in Surat Thani province.

Hosted by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and the Koh Samui municipality, the one-of-a-kind showcase is set to put one of Thailand's best paradise islands on the map as the venue for top international body painting competitions like the "International Body Painting Festival" in Germany, "World Body Painting Festival" in Austria, and the "Canadian Body Painting Festival."

The event is expected to attract both local and international tourists, and stimulate interest in Thai art. It will also bring together artists and models from various countries, such as Austria, Germany, Romania, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Britain, the US and Thailand, who will create exquisite artworks on Koh Samui's beaches under the theme "Preserve the Paradise."

"Body painting is developed from symbols of various tribes since ancient times," explained Volen, who will also showcase her work at the competition as a representative from Austria.

I think body painting is like a kiss mark, it will gradually fade away, but those beautiful memories remain with you for a long time.

The competition will be a two-day event (March 26 and 27) with two different themes: "Under the Deep Blue Sea" and "Heaven on Earth". Besides the competition, visitors will also be able to participate in many fun activities, including nail painting, henna painting, doll painting, and painting on recycled goods.

I can't wait for the event to begin! This is going to be a first for me...to body paint on the beach," said Volen. "To work in natural surroundings, it would be like bringing human souls closer to nature - and that will give me a lot of inspiration to create my works."

The Samui International Body Painting Competition March 26 and 27, from 5-11pm, in front of the Buddy OrientalSamui BeachResort, Lamai Beach. Free admission

(Source: Bangkok Post, SAMUI ASPIRES TO JOIN THE RANKS OF INTERNATIONAL BODYPAINTING DESTINATIONS, 2/03/2011, Yanapon Musiket, link) 

bodypainting - the art of painting on the human body, using the human body as a painting canvas (See Wikipedia)

nail painting - finger nail art, the creative decoration of finger nails (See Wikipedia)

henna painting - "Henna has been used to adorn young women's bodies as part of social and holiday celebrations since the late Bronze Age in the eastern Mediterranean... Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Christians and Zoroastrians, among others, all celebrated marriages by adorning the bride, and often the groom, with henna" (See Wikipedia)

orchid - plants of the orchid family (Orchidaceae), the largest family of flowering plants, which usually have flowers of unusual shapes and beautiful colors (See Wikipedia)
approximately Y - about or around value Y (but not exactly value Y)
aspires to be Y - wants to become Y in the future, working hard to become Y
join the ranks of Y - become a member of group Y
destinations - popular places that tourists travel to and visit
marvellous - very great, very nice, makes you happy :) :) :)
press - newspapers and magazines, and those parts of television and radio which broadcast news, or reporters and photographers who work for them สื่อมวลชน
press conference - a news conference for reporters, a formal event in which an organization or person provides important information to journalists and the public (See Wikipedia)
upcoming - will happen soon ที่กำลังจะมาถึง

host (noun) - a person or organization which invites people to an event and takes care of them at the event (providing the building, equipment and services needed) 
host (verb) - doing the activities expected of a host for an event
X hosted by Y - event Y hosted by organization Y
municipality - a town, city or district with its own local government เทศบาล
one-of-a-kind - unique, nothing like this, only one in the world like this thing
showcase - to show the best qualities or parts of something แสดงจุดเด่นของสิ่งของหรือคน
X set to Y - X will do Y, Y is going to happen to X
put on the map - make famous, make well-know, people will know about it after this
venue - the place where an activity or event happens สถานที่ที่จัดงาน
international - ระหว่างประเทศ between countries

expected - believe will happen คาดว่า (จะเกิดขึ้น)
attract - to cause someone to be interested in something ดึงดูดความสนใจ
local - in this country (here: Thailand)
stimulate - act so as to increase activity กระตุ้น (See glossary)
stimulate interest in - increase interest in, make more people interested in
model - "a person who is employed for the purpose of displaying and promoting fashion clothing or other products and for advertising or promotional purposes or who poses for works of art" (See Wikipedia)
exquisite - very beautiful; delicate สวยงาม, วิจิตร, งดงาม, อ่อนช้อย
theme - the main subject of something ใจความสำคัญ, ประเด็นหลัก

tribe - a large group of related families who live in the same area and share a common language, religion, and customs (often different and in a minority from the dominant majority culture of a country) (See Wikipedia)
ancient - very old ที่เก่าแก่ ที่โบราณ
showcase - to make a special showing of something to the public (that shows how beautiful it is, that shows its good points)
representative - a person from a certain country or place (who is speaking or doing things for that country)
mark - an area or point on a surface that you can see easily (stands out) รอย, จุด
kiss mark -  the mark on the face made by a kiss (red if the woman was wearing lipstick)
fade away - to slowly disappear, lose importance or become weaker อ่อนลง,หายไป,ค่อย ๆ ตาย
participate - to take part in or become involved in an activity มีส่วน
recycle - to process garbage such as plastic, aluminum and paper so that it can be used again (See Wikipedia)

I can't wait - wants to do something so much that they "cannot wait" to do it
natural (adjective) - found in nature (not made in a factory by humans) ตามธรรมชาติ
nature (noun) - all the non-made things of the work, all the things that were here before people existed such as rivers, lakes, trees, forests, animals, the air, the sky, the ocean, mountains....etc
surroundings - the area around something บริเวณโดยรอบ
inspiration - someone or something that gives you new ideas or enthusiasm to do something แรงบันดาลใจ
admission - the price to enter a place or event ค่าธรรมเนียมในการเข้า

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