Chiang Rai rice fields transformed into vibrant art
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Chiang Rai rice fields transformed into vibrant art

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
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Thunyapong Jaikum, 42, an artist and amateur farmer, poses next to an image of dragon and cat figures, near rice fields in Chiang Rai province on Saturday. (Photos: Reuters/Artorn Pookasook)
Thunyapong Jaikum, 42, an artist and amateur farmer, poses next to an image of dragon and cat figures, near rice fields in Chiang Rai province on Saturday. (Photos: Reuters/Artorn Pookasook)

CHIANG RAI - A red dragon, a feline deity and dogs and cats cover Tanyapong Jaikham's rice paddies in northern Thailand, a living tribute in rice plants to flooding that inundated nearby areas in September, stranding thousands.

To transform more than 2 hectares (5 acres) of land into the vibrant images, Mr Tanyapong and his team used AI to plot and refine the design outlines and GPS to mark precise coordinates for the careful planting of 20kg of rainbow rice seeds.

Mr Tanyapong, who began the work in October, chose the dragon and the local four-eared, five-eyed feline deity to mark the Lunar New Year's end, along with dogs and cats trapped in floodwaters, waiting for help from the flooding of Chiang Rai and other areas in the north of the Southeast Asian nation.

A drone view shows dragon and cat figures created by Thunyapong Jaikum, a Thai farmer and artist, in rice fields in Chiang Rai province on Saturday.

A drone view shows dragon and cat figures created by Thunyapong Jaikum, a Thai farmer and artist, in rice fields in Chiang Rai province on Saturday.

"We designed the dragon to carry away all the negativity, hoping this crisis would soon pass," Mr Tanyapong told Reuters.

Since the paddy art's launch in December, thousands of visitors, including students, families and locals, have visited, finding inspiration, hope and reflection, he said.

"We couldn’t make a living at all," said farmer Tanet Mala, reflecting on the flooding. "Everything was like a sea." 

A drone view shows dragon and cat figures created by Thunyapong Jaikum, a Thai farmer and artist, in rice fields in Chiang Rai province on Saturday.

A drone view shows dragon and cat figures created by Thunyapong Jaikum, a Thai farmer and artist, in rice fields in Chiang Rai province on Saturday.

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