Synopsis

This journey takes us to the Ping River, starting from a hydroelectric dam and flowing upstream. When the dam came into operation in 1964, many villagers were forced to evacuate their submerged homes, so a sad song was played. Part of the recording evokes sympathy for the villagers, as flooding from the same river in the city is now frequent, due to extreme weather changes.

Description

The Unsung Lyric of Ping is the result of artist Som Supaparinya looking back on her previous work from 2012, My Grandpa’s Route Has Been Forever Blocked, and reflecting on the many changes to the same riverscape seen nowadays. The work has been done in collaboration with Helen Ganya, who has responded to these changes with audio, using on-site recording and sound archives to create an atmosphere of unpredictability. 

The work is a compilation of still images and video footage, recording the drastic stress put upon the Ping River as a result of climate change in the year 2024. It is divided into two seasons; the dry, summer season and the wet, monsoon season, both of which show water levels not being where they should be. This raises questions on water management and how we cope with natural disasters.

In the dry season, when the air and sky are filled with dust from the burning forest and the water level should be low, we still see the raised levels left over from the previous season’s major flooding. In contrast, the same area has dried out by the wet season and is unprepared for the large-scale flooding coming in rapidly from the far north of Myanmar and China.

The camera acts as an observer, with the sound of birds reminding viewers of the animals’ hardships. An old folk song about the construction of the Bhumibol Dam that submerged villages and forced many villagers to relocate, resonates with us city dwellers when we encounter the hydro-meteorological disasters ourselves. 

When large amounts of water run through the river, the dam can be an obstacle to the river flow, sometimes blocking the natural path of water until it turns a large lake into an empty, dry landscape. 

(edited by Rob Low)

Credits

The Unsung Lyric of Ping

By Helen Ganya, Som Supaparinya

Camera: Chatchai Suban, Som Supaparinya

Screen Score Composer: Helen Ganya

Director/Editor/Color: Som Supaparinya

Still Photography: Som Supaparinya

Assistant Director: Taratchanan Pongpanich

On-Location Sound: Som Supaparinya

Sound Recording Archive: John Moore

Folk Song Archive of Kaewtalai Kanthachan

Locations

Chiang Mai City เมืองเชียงใหม่, Lamphun City เมืองลำพูน, Bhumibol Dam เขื่อนภูมิพล, Wat Phra Borommathat Doi Koeng วัดพระบรมมหาธาตุดอยเกิ้ง, Wat Phra That Kaeng Soi วัดพระธาตุแก่งสร้อย, Doi Tao Lake ทะเลสาปดอยเต่า, Kaoh Rapids แก่งก๊อ, Mae Ngood Village บ้านแม่งูด, Na Kho Ruea Village บ้านนาคอเรือ, Phya Kum Weir ฝายพญาคำ, Nong Phueng Weir ฝายหนองผึ้ง, Tha Wang Tan Floodgate ประตูน้ำท่าวังตาล, Mae Fak Dam เขื่อนแม่แฝก, International Day of Action against Dams 2024, Salween River, วันหยุดเขื่อนโลก 2567, แม่น้ำสาละวิน

Ping River meets น้ำแม่ปิงสบ, Mae Chaem River น้ำแม่แจ่ม, Mae Klang River น้ำแม่กลาง, Li River น้ำแม่ลี้, Mae Wang/ Mae Kan River น้ำแม่วาง/ น้ำแม่ขาน, Mae Kuang River น้ำแม่กวง, Mae Rim River น้ำแม่ริม, Mae Tang River น้ำแม่แตง, Mae Ngand River น้ำแม่งัด

This project is supported by 

British Council’s Connections Through Culture Programme

© Helen Ganya and Som Supaparinya 2025