Exciting new genre of art debuts in Phuket tomorrow night

PHUKET: Well known local artist Rose Maitland Smith will be on hand to open her new art exhibition tomorrow night, January 17. About 20 of her unique, striking and colorful paintings have arrived at the Boathouse by Montara on Kata Beach and will remain on show there until mid-March.

Rose, who exudes in person the same energy and optimism that is so evident in her “abstract expressionist” works, says she became an artist by default, driven by a desire to share.

“When I’m painting, I try to set my mind completely free so the feelings I have about the world around me can be felt on the canvas. When I sail around Phang Nga Bay, for example, I feel that nature is perfect and I want to share that feeling with people through my paintings,” she explains.

“I also want my work to make a home or office more beautiful. I love interior design concepts and use colors and textures to create feelings.”

Now working in acrylic on canvas and mixed media, Rose initially found it difficult to call herself an artist. “Children would ask me if I was an artist and I would say, ‘no’. Then, through the years, [adults would ask the same] and I gradually began to respond with a ‘Yes, I am!'”

As part of a family devoted to creating and selling high-end furniture and art, Rose is curator of the “32 Thalang Gallery 34”, on Thalang Road in Phuket Town.

Next month, she will add an entirely new medium with which to share her creative energy – television, with the launch of her “Rose’s Favorites” on the Phuket Gazette‘s nationally broadcast “Phuket Today” show. There, she will be telling us about her lifestyle choices in Phuket.

“Rose’s Favorites” will air nationally every day on True Visions and nine times a day on Phuket’s local cable channels. It is also available on demand on the Gazette Online, the Gazette’s Youtube channel and Facebook.

— Bruce Stanely