Model pagodas and images made with full Myanmar cultural essence have attracted more people, U Thein Naing, a model pagoda maker, told the Global New Light of Myanmar (GNLM).
A villager from Myingabar, Bagan, U Thein Naing makes small model pagodas with bamboo strips, and the total number has reached about a hundred, including famous pagodas such as Shwedagon.
“People are more interested in my work than before. At present, there are many local buyers, especially from monasteries. There are some buyers from abroad- Myanmar people in Australia, Thailand and Japan. As they remember Bagan, they order my products with a taste of Bagan. A woman from Australia bought from me and donated to monasteries in Myanmar. Some of my products are sent to foreign countries,” he said.
He started this craft about 15 years ago and for a few years now, foreign tourists have been visiting him to study the art and to buy some.
“When I started this business, I faced some difficulties. My first work was for showing in the Gandhi Museum in India. He wanted a model of Alotaw Pyae Pagoda. As he liked it very much, he ordered another nine-foot model of Shwedagon. After that, I continued to make these handicrafts. It has been 15 years since I started,” he said.
Combining all ten of Myanmar traditional arts and crafts, he takes measurements and creates proportionate model pagodas layer by layer beginning from the base, and it takes at least about three months for one model from drawing a pagoda sketch to making it using three-layer plywood, bamboo, lacquer resin and glue.
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