Thai Farmer Turns Rice Fields into Huge Cat Artworks
Many farmers have to think hard about how to keep animals away from their crops.
But a farmer in Thailand has welcomed three very big cats into his rice fields.
However, these aren't just any cats — they're artworks made from the crops.
Tanyapong Jaikham is the farmer — but he's also an artist, and he created this art with the help of more than 200 volunteers on his land in Chiang Rai in the north of Thailand.
The cats appear to be sleeping, with one holding a fish. Tanyapong said the art is based on an old Thai proverb: "In the water there are fish; in the fields there is rice."
Tanyapong began working on the cats in October 2023. The shapes are made through the careful positioning of different rice crops, with GPS used to make sure everything was in exactly the right place.
A drone was also used to check that the cats looked just right.
In December, Reuters even reported that special towers were being built next to the fields so people would be able to see the art from above.
Tanyapong told Reuters: "We're expecting tens of thousands to come and see the art in the rice fields."
He added that people could visit to learn about the way technology can be used to create art.
Thailand is the world's second largest exporter of rice, after India. But making rice fields into art is not new: farmers in other parts of Asia — including China and Japan — have been doing it for years.
