After unwrapping mankind's struggles to halt time's tide, 'Perishable Beauty' frees us to go with the flow

Impermanence is a universal fact of life. But instead of taking a “let it be” approach, the exhibition “Perishable Beauty” at the Thailand Creative and Design Centre is delving into the many ways humans struggle to conquer  and even benefit from  decay.
Introducing the truth that everything’s subject to change is a glass cabinet in which a banquet has been left to rot, a symbol of our fruitless attempts to forget the ultimate dominance of death.
But our denial of decay reaches even beyond death, as shown in exhibits dealing with everything from mummification to cloning to the making of ornaments from a deceased beloved’s ashes.
Elsewhere, a mockup of a cosmeticsurgery lab reflects people’s efforts to carve eternal youth from ageing flesh. Who do you want to look like? Marilyn Monroe, Paris Hilton, or a South Korean superstar? We’re told that 11 million cosmeticsurgery procedures were performed in the US in 2006.
In one room, a blossoming cherry tree stands beside a glass case of fluttering banknotes. Its symbol of how transience can be profitable is rooted in Japan’s sakura season, which has become a tourist attraction that generates huge windfalls of foreign cash.
Visitors then jump into a flower market to sniff out how keeping petals at peak freshness through clever time management has made Holland and the UAE the world’s top exporters. This part of the exhibition may get Thai minds wandering to pak klong talad, and wondering if similar procedures could make the famous market a leading exporter of tropical flowers.
Before leaving, check out the display of a lemon and its last drop of juice. A metaphor for business opportunities that have to be sucked up before they run dry, it should get your creative juices flowing even as the economy and politics sour.