Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother played a significant role in revitalizing traditional arts and crafts. Her keen aesthetic sense and observant eyes serve her well in the sizing up of local crafts and in selecting feasible projects to be promoted in different areas of Thailand. Because she breathed new life into Thai arts and crafts through her tireless efforts, Her Majesty was presented with the title of the “Pre-eminent Protector of Arts and Crafts” in 2012.

In her speech to an audience and well-wishers on the eve of the royal birthday anniversary on 11 August 1979, Her Majesty Queen Sirikit said, “I have always been proud of the fact that every Thai has the blood of craftsmen in them, whether they are farmers or orchard workers, wherever they may be. They have keen sense and are perceptive to all aspects of arts and crafts. They just need to have a chance to learn and train, and their skills will soon be apparent.”

In another speech on the eve of the royal birthday anniversary on 11 August 1988, Her Majesty said that she had opportunities to visit the people across the country, when she accompanied King Rama IX to every area. Her Majesty then found that Thai people have great artistic skills, despite their distance from the progress of the capital. 

She also commended them for their roles in sustaining the inheritance of Thai arts for their own country. She could tell that even those who never had knowledge about handicrafts before also had a deep, innate connection to the arts. After a short period of learning about handicraft-making, they would be able to create beautiful crafts.

The Foundation for the Promotion of Supplementary Occupations and Related Techniques (SUPPORT Foundation), established by Her Majesty Queen Sirikit, has trained hundreds of thousands of villagers in all aspects of traditional Thai arts and crafts. It has also revived some items of cultural heritage that might have been lost.

In recognition of Her Majesty’s great contributions toward preserving, promoting, reviving, developing, and protecting folk arts and crafts as Thailand’s cultural heritage, the Ministry of Culture presented Her Majesty with the title of the Pre-eminent Protector of Arts and Crafts, stating that Her Majesty’s contributions to arts and crafts were evident and recognized in both Thailand and overseas.

The Cabinet, during its meeting on 21 August 2012, acknowledged the announcement on the presentation of this title in honor of Her Majesty on the occasion of her 80th birthday anniversary, 12 August 2012. The announcement was published in the Royal Gazette on 1 September 2012.