Reconstructed since 2013 to reminisce about my 3 great aunts, elder single sisters of my own grandfather, who lived in "Baannai" earlier. Baannai got its name from being the house (“Baan”) located on the most inner (Nai) area of the vast family land. The 3 ladies are known within the family as “Khun Baannai” or the Baannai ladies. All of the ladies were born during the reign of King Rama VI and had lived throughout the 4 reigns until King Rama IX's reign. Their lives had gone through a number of changes, in culture, politics, living, surrounding, and time. Yet, they still adhered to the characteristics of true ladies that reflected in their living in the warm, peaceful, and lovely home - Baannai.
Inspired by my love for colonial style architecture together with the happy recollections of my childhood gathering with family members in this house, all received tender, warmed and loving care by the house owners, the Baannai ladies", I decided to rebuild Baannai the Reminiscence to resemble the time when the 3 sisters were young ladies living in this house. Although expanded in size to accommodate modern facilities and the number of visitors as well as enhancing the beauty of colonial architecture, the house layout is still based on the original floor plan, each room was positioned as close as possible to how it once was. This is the emotional fulfillment as the owner.The design concept of Baannai is centered around the three Baannai Ladies, starting from the logo or the symbol of Baannai: Three flowers combined as one. It represents the love and harmony of these three deeply bonded sisters. This concept also apply to how we name and decorate each bedroom of the house.
- The outer layer (protection) is the aster, representing the eldest sister. The aster symbolizes high class, dignity, virtue and loyalty.
- The middle layer (warmth) is the jasmine, representing the middle sister. It symbolizes warmth, grace and purity.
- The inner layer (care) is the white rose, representing the youngest sister. The white rose symbolizes love and charms. It stands for pure love that is cherished.
The doors and window from the original Baannai are kept as a reminder. They had a higher value than other items because Baannai was renovated throughout different periods of time. People back then would remove the doors and windows that still functioned well and reinstalled them after renovation. We noticed this different match in the house and turned it into the one of the main decoration in Baannai to reminisce the past and to leave a symbol that this Baannai would last for a long time, to maintain love and harmony that sealed the gap between the old days and the present.
