The death of the King of Thailand on Thursday 13th October sent the country into a state of mourning.

Thai citizens are showing their grief by wearing black and general solemnity, including closing bars and clubs. Students at Silpakorn University, which is the country’s leading university in the arts, have created nine portraits of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, to help them deal with the tragedy.

The work was created by 50 students at the Faculty of Painting Sculpture and Graphic Arts.

Wattanan Phadlom, a third-year student who was involved with the paintings, said that “Everything happened so fast. When it comes to His Majesty, we didn’t hesitate at all. We gave the nod, bought the equipment and started right away.”

The university is located opposite The Grand Palace in Bangkok so mourners who convene there are able to view the artwork, which shows the King at many different ages taking part in a variety of artistic activities like painting, playing the saxophone and taking photos.

The whole process took three days and involved more than 50 students and alumni.

Polly Hatcher

(Image: Samui Times)