When in Rome...
6 min read
H.H. Lim certainly looked pensive when I met him briefly in Kuala Lumpur and again a week later at his contemporary art space, Izu Zone, in Penang. He talked ab...
The festival may be back, but it's no repeat
6 min read
The George Town Festival is back! Mark down the dates, from June 7 to July 7, when the streets and arts centres of Penang will resonate with scintillating sig...
Let’s take Malaysian art global again!
6 min read
On the global stage, Malaysian artists have, in comparison to neighbouring countries, become shrinking violets.There was a time when Malaysian art went to Lon...
When artists come together
7 min read
One for the album: Some of the artists in the Malaysia-Philippines July exhibition at Galeri Seri Mutiara with the gallerist-artist Koay Soo Kau.In art, n...
Culture in the centre: Arts-ED makes full use of our heritage
6 min read
Experiential and hands-on learning on a real site.Cultural mapping has become the new mantra used by dedicated groups in engaging and interacting with spe...
Constraints on artistic expression multiply
5 min read
Ng Sek San's Malaysian Spring installation "terkongkong" (constricted) inside a room.The latest blow to strike Malaysia’s art scene was the banning...
Championing Chinese Ink- Perception Is What Is
5 min read
At the head of the Neo-Nanyang movement to promote Chinese ink tradition is Cheah Thien Soong @ Cheah Mei. At 71, he has been reinventing and revitalising the g...
Abundant treasures in Penang Batik's Painting Museum
5 min read
It is no surprise that the Batik Painting Museum has been set up in Penang, only that it took that long. The enterprising Dr Tan Chong Guan, an obstetrician cum...
Art goes far beyond simple imaging
6 min read
Chinese New Year (acrylic on canvas, 2005).Tan Chiang Kiong, better known as C.K. Tan, is an artist with a very low profile, although his career started o...
In endless search for inspiration
6 min read
Iguazu Falls, from the Brazilian side (94cm x 215cm,1982).Up to your crown, O Willow, dressed in the greens of jade Myriads of twigs so verdant, droop lik...
Raising the Stakes in Asia’s Art World
7 min read
Art Stage Singapore 2014 saw a record-breaking 45,700 visitors walk past the Joko Avianto-constructed archways at its Marina Bay Sands venue. It was the centrepiece of a giddying Singapore Art Week which witnessed some 70 events all over the island republic accompanying the Chinese New Year revelry.
Top 12 earners at art auctions
7 min read
Chuah Thean Teng, Lullaby (batik, 90cm x 90cm, c.1970s-1980s).Once, the honour of top grosser in Malaysian art in auctions was a toss-up between Datuk Ibr...