art in malaysia

7/30/2019 Art in Malaysia

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Art in Malaysia

1930s 1990s

1930s: The Beginning

No heritage of indigenous art and architecture,

unlike Thai or Javanese cultures. However,traditional craft forms influenced contemporary

Malaysian art, where they were experimented with

and underwent new interpretations

o Wayang kulit

o Batik: considered a functional, utilitarian

material, but artist Chuah Thean Teng

converted it into an art form in Feeding

Time (1951)

o Wood carvings on fishing boats along East

coast

Borrowed influences from its settlers

o Colonial influences: Malaysia had been under British governance,

which introduced art into the Malaysian education system. Some of the

1st generation Malaysian artists were granted scholarships to study

overseas, and brought back fresh ideas which invigorated the Malay

arts scene

Abdul Latiff Mohidin

Syed Ahmad Jamal

1950s 1960s: Abstract Expressionism

Abstract expressionism was the dominantart trend, where there was an emphasis on

the process of creating art rather than the

product, and the artist was seen as the

creative force

Instead of mere imitation of Western artistic

styles, there was a conscious attempt to fuse

local elements with the Western style

o Subject matter: inspiration from

local, tropical landscape

Rawa-Rawa 1(Marshland1) (1986) by Abdul Latiff

Mohidin

o Style: combination of

gesural elements of

Islamic and Chinese

calligraphy

Tulisan (Writing)

by Syed AhmadJamal


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1960s 1970s: The New Scene Artists

2nd generation of artists

o Studied abroad and received different stylistic influences

o Rejection of emotional content and gestural art

Sulaiman Esa

Redza Piyadasa

Decline of abstract expressionism in pursuit of a new definition of art

o Conceptual art

Challenged traditional notions of art-

making, art materials, and the role of the

artist

Empty Birdcage (1974) by Sulaiman

Esa

1970s 1980s: Search for National Identity and

a Mystical Reality

National Identity

o Spurred by the First National Cultural

Congress in 1971, artistic production began to

turn towards Malay roots. There was growing

emphasis on Malay culture and values

o This coincided with a global pan-Islamic

resurgence advocated by Islamic intellectuals,

which rejected modern Western culture and

values as decadent and irrelevant

o The spread of these ideas manifested in

artists works

Garden of Mystery 6 by Sulaiman

Esa

Mystical Reality

o Manifesto written by Sulaiman Esa and Redza Piyadasa in 1974

o This noted a shift in artistic practices towards Eastern philosophies

such as Taoism and Zen rather than Western oneso Questions the nature and function of art

1980s: Post-modernism

Rapid modernization, industralisation resulted in a

dislocation of the traditional way of life

o This raised political, social and economic

concerns among the people, which were

reflected in art

Sook Ching (1992): A video, site-

specific performanceo This also enabled the scope of art practice

to be broadened to include performance art


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and site-specific art


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Abdul Latiff Mohidin(1941 - )

Influences/ Inspiration

German expressionism

o Emotional tendencies: exaggerated forms and colours

o Traditional religious iconography

o Primitive art forms, especially South-east Asian

Was drawn to strong symbolic qualities of African andPolynesian forms during his visits to the Museum of Ethnology

in Berlin

Nature

o Due to his kampunglifestyle during childhood

Mohidin once said in an interview with T.K. Sabapathy that

every child who has grown up in a kampungis touched by

nature, and that human beings are part of nature

o Nature is viewed as a personified, mysterious force

Pago-Pago series (1960s)

o Nature as a raw force

Gelombang series (1980s)

o Creates a highly personalized world that does not refer to any

particular cultural and geographical place

Works

Pago-Pago series (1960s)

Amalgam ofpagoda andpagar, wooden beams across old Malay houses

Themes

Culture: Recurrent motifs of stupa, lingam, totem and other stylized formsderived from South-east Asian iconography

Habitat: depiction of pagodas and temples, man-made architecture alongside

natural surroundings

Fantasy: Nature as a mysterious force with personified natural elements


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Early Pago-Pago

Pagoda 1 (1964) Pagoda 2 (1964)

Subject matter

Forms are derived from architecture and reassembled to create a new identity

as an organic form

o Traditional Thai Buddhist temples: the stupa and the prang

In his earlier works, forms are more figurative (representing forms that are

recognizably derived from life)

Style

German expressionist, Expressionist and Cubist approach

Highly decorative, patterned surfaces reminiscent of traditional motifs

Colours used are also reflective of local tropical landscapes

Composition

Subjects are placed in tight masses, overlapping each other

Forms in the foreground are deliberately cropped to achieve greater impact

Symbols and Imagery

Use of imagery that provide universal interpretations

There is a fusion of the Western style with indigenous themes

The development of new iconography and revival of existing, previously-

decaying or dead traditions

Pago Pago (1964)

Main subject matter of this work

contains motifs derived from boats,

leaves, bamboos and shells in a totemic

assembly

Nature is personified and symbolic

o Sun behind the forms Forms are nearing semi-abstraction, and


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Mohidin leaves ample room for viewers interpretation of the subject matter

Forms interlock into a dense mass in the centre of the canvas and captures the

viewers attention

Expressionistic brushstrokes are used, in a painterly fashion

Though the structure is predominantly grey, dabs of yellow, orange and teal

(presumably reflections of the natural surrounding) are used to liven up thestructure depicted

Later Pago-Pago

Pago Pago 103 (1967)

Subject matter

Depicts a 3 vertical forms within a spiritual landscape, each animated andalive with their organic energies

Shows Nature in its wild, untamed state without the interference of Man

In his later works, forms are highly simplified and near abstraction

Totemic, monolithic forms are iconic representations of animistic (the

attribution of soul to plants, inanimate objects and natural phenomena)

considerations and bimorphic forms

Style

Use of stylized shapes and forms derived from South-east Asia

Use of thick, vigorous brushstrokes and strong colour contrasts

o Exhibits Mohidins Expressionistic influences

Use of outlines and diagonals to suggest movement and inherent energy each

subject withholds

Composition

Forms are composed in the middle ground, with an undefined background and

a foreground empty of subject matter

Mohidin compensates this emptiness by filling the plane with a vibrant red

colour, which is in stark comparison with the white background

Symbols and Imagery Nature is a metaphor, depicted as poetic, romantic and mysterious by the

primordial atmosphere of the painting


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Malam Merah (Red Night)

(1968)

Portrays an abstracted and

personified natural landscape

Theme highlighted is that of

Natures exuberance and vitality

Unlike typical Pago-pago works,

subjects are no longer restricted

to the foreground

Images are fragmented and

forms are scattered in

disconnected space

Early architectural rigours have

morphed into a fluid, organic,asymmetrical dynamism

Vigorous, sensuous brushstokes are an Expressionist idiom, and tell of

influence from American Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning

Colours are vibrant, forms depicted in white with highlights of wheat-like

ochre against a hale red background

Movement is captured through the tilted shapes and directional brushstrokes

With such colours and movement, Mohidin brings life to the red night

Mindscape series (1970s)

Pago-Pago Mindscape

Viewer is invited to peer into the

process of making images

Every component is to be read

and unraveled systematically

Viewer is asked to accept each

image unconditionally

More meditative in nature;

surfaces are smooth, sealed and

polished and harbour little trace of

brushwork

Themes

Culture: the meditative aspect of religion

Habitat: Mosques, Malay architecture and natural surroundings

Style

Immaculate in appearance

Minimal and conceptual

Strove to present a state of meditative perfection

Fusion of Western style with indigenous themes


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o Natural hues of brown, yellow and

ochre

o Broad sweeping strokes in impasto

o Layering gives textural depth to the

work

o Characteristic of Abstract

Expressionism

o Brings to mind images of amber

waves of light in darkness

Mindscape V (1973)

Contains an inverted dome-shaped

motif that may be a representation ofa mosque

Pigment is spattered on the structure

to suggest an explosion

Colours used are organic, and can be

likened to that of fruits

Intense, basic colours (red, green,

yellow) are also suggestive of searing

light and heat energy

Brushstrokes are invisible

Painting is subject to interpretation,and each viewer would associate the

forms and colour present in the

painting to different things of his/her

imagination and mindscape

Gelombang (Waves) series (1980s)

This series exhibits Mohidins preoccupation with the raw, violent forces of

nature, and is a metaphor for the creative energies of the artist

Gelombang 86 (Waves 86)

(1986) Arus Malam (Nights Current)

(1986)o Powerful and dynamic

o Broad brushstrokes of stunning red

are aggressively applied to the

canvas against hues and shades of

blue, yellow, white and black

o Rich textural effects created bybuilding layers of paint one on top of

another

o Explosion of colour bring to mind a

flurry of activity and fireworks


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Themes

Culture: A meditative approach that reflects the Malay psyche which draws

parallels between life and nature in cultural teachings of the bidalan orpepatah

Nature: An attempt to capture the primeval force of nature on canvas. This is a

culmination of his studies in earlier series and interest in nature.

Style

Emphasis on creating mood and tone rather than a realistic representation of

scenes

Powerful, dynamic brushstrokes rendered in rich impasto (paint applied in

thick layers such that it stands out and the work becomes textural) to mimic

the primal forces of Nature

Modulations of colours and brushstrokes stand out in contrast with the highly-controlled constructions of previous series

Shows influence of Action painters such as Willem de Kooning and Jackson

Pollock

Colour

Earthy tones are used to bring out the spirit of Primitivism

A vibrant and stunning palette of primary colours is used

Rimba (Forest) series (1990s)

Began in 1995

A powerful concentration of the artists creative forces

Mohidin was spurred on by his deteriorating health to create a new technique

that could transmit and consolidate a sense of urgency (and) vigour

The challenge was to do the best work possible, as if it was the last painting

Rimba (Forest) Gelombang (Waves)

Principal formal units are firmly rooted to

the picture plane

Trunks emerge from the bottom edge of

the picture, overlap and race towardsupper corners like arteries and

undergrowth

Dominant colour is black

Movement is dynamic, fluid and

unceasing

Subject matter float across the surface,

freed from the picture planeVibrant, primary colours that struggle to

break free from constraints of the 2D

canvas are used

Dark Rimba (1996) Rimba (1991)


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Redza Piyadasa

(1939 )

Influences/ Inspiration

Art education in the United Kingdom (UK)

o Inspired by Bauhaus artists

Emphasis on analyzing how we perceive artwork and the

structure of visual design

o At Hornsey College of Art, he was exposed to revised curriculum

Included studies in Art History, Literature, Philosophy and

Psychology; this enabled him to pursue a more holistic

approach to art-making

Constructivism

Beliefs

Piyadasa is an intellectual who has had a privileged overseas education. His

time abroad raised his awareness to his own nations social concerns, and his beliefs

strongly influenced his approach towards art. Post-colonialism left Malaysia

struggling to find its own identity and culture. Piyadasas Malaysian Stories (1980s)

reflects this struggle.

He hopes to sow seeds for a thinking process that might someday liberate

Malaysian artists from their dependence on the West. He does so by demanding that

his viewers respond to his work by establishing a dialectical relationship with the

artwork (instead of a merely passive contemplative attitude). As such, he engages in

conceptual art.

He aims to construct a new ideology that is mystical in flavour, based on

Asian values and traditions (especially that of Taoism and Zen). This is his alternative

to the appreciation of reality that is put forth by the West.

He believes that the role of the artist is to generate and shape ideas, values and

opinions in ways that will have a direct bearing on society, and to redefine cultural

identity and cultural consciousness.

Themes

Society

Art and art-making


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Towards a Mystical Reality:

Piyadasas Conceptual Art (1970s)

Works explored the fundamental properties of painting and sculpture, and

their relationship Artist assumes an impersonal stance, rejecting metaphoric and emotional

values

Emphasis placed on pure idea rather than the sensuous object

Questions the role and function of art and art-making

Demands a dialectical relationship between the viewer and the artwork instead

of a mere passive, contemplative attitude

Rejection of formalism, an alternative to the then prevailing movement of

Abstract Expressionism

The Great Malaysian Landscape (1972)

A painting about making a painting, exploring the

fundamental properties of a painting

Stenciled words label parts of the painting, while the

middle portion features a 3-step process of how an

artwork is penciled and painted

The painting within the painting is that of a Malay

peasant ploughing his paddy field

Piyadasa presents to us selected aspects of the

evolution of art, particularly the evolution of a

painting

This piece of work raises the question of whether

there is only one set perspective to look at a painting from; it does so by

pointing to us our perception of the parts of a painting, and hence leads us to

contemplate about alternative ways to view the painting.

Self-Portrait of the Artist as a Model (1977)

Subject matter comprises two main focal

points that juxtapose against each other:

the subject (Piyadasa as his own model)and stenciled words across the bottom

half of the foreground

Background: Representational,

naturalistic depiction of human form

Foreground: Multi-coloured font that

spells The reader may ask What is a

model? or What models are we talking

about?

Unusual composition as portraits are not

usually accompanied by words

Model stares back at viewer with amatter-of-fact gaze


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Two Malay Women (1986)

Malay women in traditional

garb, painted over with flat

planes of colour that clash with

the picture

Symbolises the advent of

modernity upon traditional

society, which is seen as an

unnatural assault upon the

original societal order

Almost confrontational considering the questions Piyadasa is forcing viewers

to contemplate

Using himself as the model implies that the viewer is to engage directly with

him in the discussion of the two questions

This work concerns the issue surrounding the complex role of models

o In art, there are two types of models

Actual/ philosophical models which artist transforms into

visual form

Works of art serving as models for other works of art within a

given artistic tradition

Copying a master in museums

Four Propositions (1977)

Explores fundamental

properties of painting and

sculpture and theirrelationship

Tests ideas that were in

vogue in the discussion of

contemporary art: anti-art,

non-art

Utilises printed text and

stenciled words to convey

the matter-of-fact attitude

of artist

Search for a National Identity:

Malaysian Stories (1980s)

From the 1980s, Piyadasa moved towards

figuration

Departed from conceptual art as artistic resources

had been exhausted, and there were not many

theoretical issues left to discuss

New Economic Policy in 1970s caused social

division between bumiputras (indigenous people)and non-bumiputras

Purpose

To question the notion of a Malaysian cultural

identity, and to promote a larger, all-

encompassing notion of Malaysian identity

To portray the conflict between a multi-racial

environment and the politicized Malay/Non-

Malay socio-cultural dichotomies

To fulfill the artists role in the redefinition of

cultural identity and cultural consciousness,

and to convey the national anxiety and


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Seated Malay Girl (1991)

The Sinhalese Family

Posed, family portrait

Migrant family

Bright, basic colours

Use of repetition

uncertain of finding identity in the modernized world

To reflect and celebrate the various ethnic groups of modern Malaysia

Subject Matter

Drawn from old Malaysian photographs that depict multi-racial and cultural

groups that make up Malaysian society Nostalgic retrospection into Malaysias past

Figures in the pictures are always posed and in a formal

setting

o In the olden times, photography lacked flash

technology and the subjects had to sit stiffly for

images to develop sufficiently distinctly on the film.

Taking photographs were hence a formal and

important affair, and posed pictures were fragments

of memories intended to be preserved for generationsto come

o In posed pictures, the sitter also wants himself/herself

to be best represented

Sparks discussion of olden-day peoples notions of

respectability in their community

o Photographs are a tool of memory, Piyadasa attempts

to evoke a sense of nostalgia in viewers by showing

them scenes from the past

Family poses are

selected

o Depicts migrant families thathave settled and grown in

Malaysia, who were from

different cultural heritage but

common in their struggles and

respect for the basic notion of

family

o Suggests that family is the basic

unit of the nation, and is integral

in Malaysias search for her new

identity in todays modernizedworld

Style

Figurative art

o To make art relevant to the

viewers life experiences,

devoting concerns and questions

to social history and contexts

Use of Pop Art- influenced techniques of

silkscreen, acrylic and collage

o Relatively new mediumpopularized by American Pop

Artist Andy Warhol


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Indian Mother and Child (1993)

Silkscreen and acrylic

Posed photograph

Repetition

Vibrant colours

Innovative media

Background pieced from

different fabrics put

together: social fabric of

the nation? Malaysia as a

conglomeration of different

cultures, including that of

the Indian people depicted

Kapitan Cina (1990)

Traditional Peranakan

motifs of flowers and

leaves embroidery on the

border

Posed photograph

Formal cultural wear with

historical heritage

Green figure bathed in red

background, as thoughvying for viewers attention

The dilemma of old vs. new

o Utilises techniques such as replication and repetition of colour and

photographs, which brings to mind ideas of mass manufacturing

o Questions ideas of mass production and individual identity

o Can individual identity be dictated

or reproduced by politics?

o Can memory and experiences be manufactured?

Figuration by means of appropriating old photo-images of ancestors

o Prompts viewers to take a retrospective look back into the past

o Asks viewer if the identity that has been forged in history is still

relevant in modern days political climate

o Presents a tension between the past and present with little integration

between both elements

Traditional motifs, fabric and way of dressing

Use of garish loud colours and modern medium, all of which

signify the invasive pervasiveness of modern day culture and

how it can potentially diminish the importance and existence of

the preceding Malay heritage

Unsmooth transition between the traditional subject matter and

modern day media and elements juxtaposes them to emphasize

glaring differences in culture of past- and present-day

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