Despite her being a lady with a modern educational background and spending her formative years overseas, Her Majesty Queen Sirikit had an abiding love for Thai arts and culture, and she was especially fond of Thai handicrafts.

The more Her Majesty accompanied King Rama IX on various trips to many areas around the country, the more she saw that Thais in every locality could create folk handicrafts of outstanding craftsmanship. She realized that local people possessed the skills to create folk arts and crafts, based on the knowledge that had been passed on from their ancestors.

In her speech to an audience and well-wishers on the eve of the royal birthday anniversary on 11 August 1988, Her Majesty Queen Sirikit said, “I had opportunities to visit the people across the country, when I accompanied His Majesty the King to every area. I then found that Thai people have great artistic skills, despite their distance from the progress of the capital. For instance, fine colors and designs of Thai silk and various types of Thai fabric that are seen generally come from the native capabilities of local villagers. They don’t need anyone to design the patterns and create the colors for them. I commend these people for their roles in sustaining the inheritance of Thai arts for their own country. Even those who never had knowledge about handicrafts before also have a deep, innate connection to the arts. After a short period of learning about handicraft-making, they are able to amazingly create beautiful crafts.”

Her Majesty continued, “Now, I’ve witnessed that our Thai people are comparable to a real repository of national arts and culture. They should only be provided with the opportunity to show their potential.”

Her Majesty was well aware of the value of artistic beauty. She dedicated her time and energy to promoting folk arts and crafts and preserving them as Thailand’s cultural heritage. Her Majesty also promoted the revival of ancient crafts, making them better known in both Thailand and abroad, and made great contributions in support of craftsmen.

This led to the birth of the Foundation for the Promotion of Supplementary Occupations and Related Techniques (SUPPORT Foundation), established under the patronage of Her Majesty to revive Thai folk arts and crafts, create supplementary income for local people, and provide training to help artisans develop craftsmanship skills.