Sculptor U Kyaw Lin working on a new piece

HANDICRAFT sculptors in Yangon said in December that sales have declined significantly during the past year, largely due to decreased demand from overseas buyers.

U Kyaw Lin, a sculptor at a handicraft shop on Kaba Aye Pagoda Road, said he has come to rely on domestic sales to locals and tourists as orders from abroad have dropped in the past four years.

“Many tourists think we try to sell handicrafts to them at twice the price we charge locals, which isn’t true,” he said. “They try to bargain the price too low, and I think they don’t appreciate the art of sculpting, so sometimes I decide not to sell.”

Sculptor U Htay Win, who works at the Htike handicraft shop near Shwedagon Pagoda, estimated that sales at his shop have declined by as much as 50 per cent from 2004, but said ivory-coloured Buddha statues remained a popular item among tourists.

U Kyaw Lin, who has been in business since 1996, said his shop sells about 10 sculptures a month, which brings in about K500,000.

The best-selling items at his shop are Buddha statues of nine, 18 and 27 inches in height – measurements that are multiples of nine, as many Myanmar people believe that the number will bring good luck.

However, other types of sculptures sell well to people from different countries and cultures, U Kyaw Lin said.

“Chinese people prefer to buy statues of the Chinese goddess Qu Yuan or of dragons. Indian people buy Buddha statues with Indian features, and Thai people prefer Buddha statues of the traditional design from their country,” he said.