After spending three weeks in Vietnam and having an introduction to the hustle and bustle of Bangkok, my first couple of days at the residency were met with great food, a family atmosphere and peace and quiet.  Whilst living in Sam Rit for a total of 5 weeks I was able to have an authentic Thailand experience.  From the mini restaurant/local store that made beautiful Thai cuisine for $1 a plate, the beautiful surroundings of rice fields, attempting to communicate with my very limited knowledge of the language, friendly faces and local families to trust in, Sam Rit residency was a hard place to leave. 
 
Whilst staying in Sam Rit, Aem and Elysha introduced me to all of their family and other residency workers who were always on hand to drive me to bus stations, into Phimai - a town not far from Sam Rit, and welcomed me into family dinners that went late into the night.  My main aim for the residency was to begin developing a body of work which was a result of ideas and brainstorming that I had been working on previously.  Using the surrounding rural areas and temples as inspiration I was able to focus on my paper cuts - a practice I had not visited for some time.  I also took advantage of the free wall space in which to practice my murals for a later date.  At the end of the residency I had finished with a work a day, not to mention to drawings and note taking in my journal during this time.

Once I left Thailand I was off to the USA for another adventure.  I plan to use what I made during my residency program to further inform my own ideas of art and continue in my practice, hopefully resulting in a solo show in 2015.  Not only was the experience refreshing for me but it also allowed me to lay some more groundwork to further establishing myself as an artist.  I recommend anyone wishing to experience an authentic side of Thailand whilst having a wonderful studio space to work in must make Sam Rit a priority. 

- To check out some of Jordan's works completed during his residency, head to our Facebook page here.

My family and I were privileged to be the first official residents in the Sam Rit residency.  It was very exciting but quite daunting going into the unknown, but Elysha, her family and friends went out of their way to make us feel welcome and comfortable.

We integrated into the village, communicating as best we could, going for walks and bike rides, seeing the country, the farming practices and the people.  We soon learned to say sawatee Ka (hello), smile and ‘wai’ to everyone except children.  When riding a bike we ‘wai’d’ with one hand.  The greetings in Thailand are very formal with no touching but by the end of our stay we had introduced our new friends to the Aussie hug.

Our holiday seemed very relaxed but we experienced and saw so much in such a short time it’s hard to know where to start and when to stop. My goal was to collect ideas for an exhibition, to experience an authentic Thailand away from any tourists.  I also found the time to paint about a dozen of these ideas which I will later develop into larger paintings.  I found the studio a very spacious and airy room to work in.

My husband had the most relaxed holiday he has had in twenty years and we sent our 11 year old daughter to the village school during her school holidays. She enjoyed making friends and the Sam Rit compound was rarely without some of her friends. 

We left, not without a few tears, promising to return.

After an amazing 3 weeks in Thailand exploring the islands down south I made the trip to Sam Rit. I felt so comfortable and at home in the village. The residency house is private enough that you can have your own little secluded Thailand timeout and yet if you want to see some friendly faces (there are plenty and they’re all curious) you can just pop over to the corner shop, which doubles as a mini restaurant, and see the ladies who will whip up a feast for you.

During my 2-week stay in the village I spent some time in the studio. It was wonderful to have that space to work in and inspiration was flowing well! Reflecting on my time there, I feel as though Sam Rit Residency was a beautiful experience that I will remember always. 

The highlight of my Sam Rit stay happened within the first 15 minutes of being in the village. After meeting up with the lovely Elysha and traveling back to the village from Bangkok with her and another good friend, we came up on the residency gate. It was around 9pm and as you can image, it was very dark. The front gate was locked and after Elysha unlocked everything for us we just began cozying in before she offered a tour of the place. We began walking around the front of the house when the security light flashed on and suddenly I looked up to see a big bright white smile with a beard and a bit of an afro just between the hedge and a frangipani tree… It shocked me still and all I could do was point while looking at this face and back at Elysha who had a huge grin or her face and my friend Tina who thought I was afraid of a toad on the foot path. I managed to let out a “no Tina, look!” when she finally realized it was Jeyan. While still shocked and not moving, he walked up to me gave me and hug a proposed immediately. Lets just say it was a happy ending and we are now looking forward to a wedding soon.

I spent my time in Sam Rit with all these beautiful people exploring, seeing sights, tasting delicious food, smelling all kinds of things, feeling the nature around me, and definitely hearing lots of new different and wonderful sounds.

I would definitely recommend going and spending time at the Sam Rit Residency to anyone who is keen to have a real Thai experience. Wonderful facilities, great support/people, and an all round lovely time!

What a blessing this place, its people and its program bestow upon the imagination and wonder of one's thoughts. The setting aside of one's time to contemplate prospects, particularly of the creative kind can be somewhat vast and conflictive to the known reality. A space in offering and support to be at the will and mercy of those creative embers sets motions to a path of self-discovery that is worth plunging into.

I found my time at Sam Rit residency to be beyond a comprehendible fulfilment. Fulfilment not only in the areas of the creative elements within my life but my personal journey and my personal objective future also. Arriving unsure how my time was going to be best spent. I relinquished myself to the environment and space natural rhythm took place. This brought a pure clarity and liberation to the shackles which had hindered my processes. I am sure that your environment plays a major part in controlling and subjectifying your ability to be creative. My time at Sam Rit was not too short, nor was it too long. To clear my conceptualisation, harness what skills and means I count value to have. And most of all become better at being myself in all things and in every way.

For all this to have happened I am in thanks to Elysha, Kairo, Isara, Lindsay and On in addition to the entire village of Sam Rit for their unconditional support for whatever was going on in my head. I am pleased to say I am better for it and I thank you all for being and stars within the space of my own creative journey.

I would have no hesitancy in recommending or referring anyone who wished to discover more about themselves, their desires and their skills a better supported environment or circumstance to do so. I plan to return…

Sa-wat-dee kraup Sam Rit Residency! All I have to say is I-am-impressed! I recently had the pleasure of adding a stay with Elysha and family to my itinerary on my recent trip to Thailand and Vietnam. For the limited time I was in the village I had the privilege of helping out with odd building and cleaning jobs to renovate the Residency buildings. I also helped out with making a handy little map of Sam Rit, showing places of interest, and of course the local restaurants.

In my short stay I quickly realised how great the Residency program is going to be for stimulating the village’s local economy and people. On the other hand, artists and their families, will get a truly unique experience being immersed in the local culture and food of the area—what a place to do art! Like any other rural/regional areas, Sam Rit gets the raw end of the end deal both economically and politically compared to larger centers. Nonetheless, I guarantee you’ll find some of the friendliest, hardworking people in places like this. 

In my time there I was also able to visit some unique attractions around the area. These included a tree that covers an area the size of four tennis courts, stunning Khmer ruins and some even older archaeological digs—I wont spoil it for you! Don’t forget the local markets and massage.

When I’m not back packing, I run a cafe, together with my friends, in Toowoomba, QLD. Drop in and say hello if you’re ever in the area: facebook.com/grounduptoowoomba.

Thanks Elysha and co, can’t wait to visit again!