georgetown festival 2021

I applied for a residency in the George town festival 2021. I don't know how many people applied, but surprisingly i got selected for the program. So happy. Never got in a residency program before, this is my first time being in something like this. Due to the covid situation. The residency is online. And not physical. Well, it better in any ways possible for me. 8 artists were selected. And i might be the only one from sabah. I think. 

As per today the organizing team is wonderful. A young energetic group of art workers. I need to learn so many things from them. I am sure i might be too old for this group of people, but I'm not gonna let that interfere with my goals, that is to have at least 3 group show this year.

Karya Pilihan Tahunan Negeri Sabah 2014

I joined the competition again this year with this piece of installation titled " Sabah bah ni." Its an essemblage . I gathered sand from the controversied beach of Tanjung Aru put it in a bowl. And the sands from the Simpang Mengayau beach at the tip of Borneo. Some more sand in a glass..

I broke one of the bowls to symbolize the broken people of Sabah, with no power over their own land, the land being squandered by people in places of authority. sabah has no good leaders leading the people..all of them are silent.

Both beaches are in deep shit. Tanjung aru beach and also simpang mengayau beach. I had a visit there once, went camping, and when we paid our camp site rent to our landlord, we started chit chatting.. i found out he does not own the land anymore, he is renting it from this man who is on of Sabah's politician. Plannings of building resorts were undergoing.

This artwork is about that. We will soon buy tickets to see our beaches, our sunsets. 

New studio

1. Wife is pregnant with our 2nd baby.

2. So, we have to let go of our rented terrace house. Moving back the inlaws.

3. Found a rentable space for my studio.

4. Cool space in a commercial area.

5. Now it feels...legit...hehe

Getting into blogging

So i am back... Will write more stuff very soon...see you guys around ya..

Abingkoi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uN3ofL4bgQ

click at the link above to see what I've discover in Korolok, on my way to Abingkoi, Guided in the forest by to little girls.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhiLVMEsHqc

check out how kids in Abingkoi create their own toys out off thrown away things

three types of artist in the Sabah Art Scene

I have learned something very new today, and i curse myself for not learning it before this. And after understanding this issue, I have regain my respect for those whom I thought has gone astray from the true essence of the pure meaning of the arts.

When I started doing contemporary art, my intentions were just to be relevant in the movement of the arts, to have a voice that every artisan would listen to. Well, to an extent, I am what I would consider "relevent" well at least to my peers  and some of my family members. Some of the insights that comes out from me i would consider useful, others are just a broken verbal pipeline. as I moved on with this notion of relevance in my head, I became a "head level" artist. a thinker, politics, sosialism, marxism in the arts were my fundamentals.

I started to consider those artists who were talented but "stuck" selling touristic art in the sunday market are just doing it for the money, and some as I further thought were just creatively blocked, having no other paintings except those which represent nature, landscapes , animals... things that i thought were boring beyond belief. but today, I learned something..something very important.

as I was walking in Deasoka, just beside Gaya street, there was a bazaar of crafts and art done by local artists. i listened as a senior painter who was teaching a junior painter on how thing are in the strokes of his brush. he was telling him that when his "jiwa" is in the painting then he would feel his strokes and he will find himself in the painting. at first it didn't mean anything to me, but as  thought about it, it gave me this revelation that painting for this "touristic" painter, is actually something that gives them motivation to do it again again and again and again, it was more than just a motivational nudge, it was spiritual. with every brush stroke, it brings them closer and closer to that something that they long to be with, be it nature, a passed wife or husband...or maybe even God.

Whatever that thing is, it has a very powerful connection with Sabahan artists, a people who are very much "heart level" and almost in tuned with culture 24/7 365. I assume this experience would also give them some amount of pleasure, so for people who complain that the Sabah art scene in Stagnant, think again, they are doing it because they are getting something great out of it, something that money cannot buy, something that a lay man could not explain, something that we cannot touch or see. one thing for me to do now is to find out for myself what the hell this "thing" is...

colaborate

being a solo act is cool, but once in a while you need someone else to bounce ideas with, a collective perhaps, collaborative works are essential to the growth of one's skill.

big art museum always do group exhibition or collaborative art projects and getting newer audience, and more advantages could be harvested by doing things together.

you won't be over shadowed, think positive. good things will come to those who collaborates

we are born to live in a community. something like that. to work together. probably thats my way of thinking , being from the villages. i feel a spirit of togetherness, that is much more intense then just being on your own.

group shows will give more variety, more perspectives and so much more. and you get to learn more from each other from collaborating.

being a curator

Being a curator rocks!

but it has its crying to sleep moments. so before you even think of being one, here's some tip how to set up your on art exhibition, so you won't cry yourself to sleep before the the big day. i am no expert (yet) just sharing what i have learnt these few months, hope this can help, here goes in no particular order:

1. have yourself a theme, what story/idea you want to tell your audience.

2. select appropriate artist for the theme.( visualize who your audience are)

3. confirm venue.(and time)

4. make sure you have enough money (grants, piggy bank, mom and dad....)

5. schedule everything to the detail ( airport pik up, breakfast, set up time... everything)

6. Follow the fuckin schedule.

7. have a detailed budget plan.(rent/food and beverages, perdiems, hotels for artists, food during artist talk,taxi fare from hotel to art museum, sending and also returning artworks)

8. enough food for the launching.

9. PA system for launching speech (prepare kleenex just incase emotions run wild)

10. have awesome lighting.

11. publicity. find "the list" where you can connect with everyone who is with the media.

12. have a team behind you.

13. always ask if you can borrow/take/rent/ignore..... always ask...

14. hire a photog, dont take photos yourself, you wont have time.

15. thank you notes.

16. always document everything in hardcopy ... for future reference.

well, this is just a few things to begin with, theres actually a lot more stuff to do, but they are all worth the time, risk, tears and money...go ahead try curating...

brat artists

i have heard a lot from emerging artist, young artists, most annoying, those young art students with daddy's money in the pockets.

"I'm doing art because of passion, not money...."

ok, i respect you kid, but, before you walk it alone without big daddy behind you, dont make statements like that ok, it might bite you back in the artistic ass of yours.

a lot of artist are surviving on art projects funded by someone else, probably a patron of some sort, my point, artist always need the support. need!

grants, commission, prizes, paychecks are always good....not forgetting the passion though, the fuel that you started with from day 1.

tangan jalan, mulut ... dont brag too much kids, when seniors said  you have to work hard, they werent kidding. kerja mau rajin kids.

"Being MAPHILINDO" last prep day and launching

run and learn: new curatorial constalation ... thanks Japan Foundation!

Juggling

Balancing between work and art is hard.
But I have to face the consequences of my choices.

Neither one should be diminished, but there will be sacrifices, Here and there. Which is ok for me.

Come to realize this situation,  i am fortunate ones who got it good.

My priority are both. Which will bring some speed bump along the way. It's OK. All is good. Art goes on...

The picture I shared is where my work and art collide. In the end, both shall prevail. ..

welcome to malaysia, now go home.

Title: "Just Kidding"
Media: Linocut on paper
Size: 29.5 x 41.5 cm (A3)

One of my latest linocuts, not really the best, but for now this would do, perhaps.

The Cracko Art Group will be opening an outlet very soon, very very soon. The gang is currently busy making merchandises and stuff for the new space.

for now we're just thinking of selling merch in the CAG shop. perhaps we can do something else soon, but maybe not for now.

hope we get to make more friends at the new joint. see u soon.

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Egn Going To Japan

So,

I was selected to join this awesome curatorial workshop.
we were given a task.
propose an art project related to curation, theme "future curation now".
three got selected to be given funding.
I was one of the three.
the funding includesd a  weeks study trip to Tokyo Japan.
So, I'll be packing my bags again very soon.

my hope with my art project: to bring Sabah Art Scene to a whole different level. hopefully.

here some clippings from the Japan foundation Website:

The Japan Foundation will be holding “Curators’ Workshops” from this year as part of the cultural-collaboration program for Southeast Asia. Workshops have already been held in February and March of this year in Jakarta and Manila, and one will be held again this June in Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok.

The concept and role of “curators” depend entirely on the institutions, history and environments of the arts of each country. Therefore, what we aim to achieve in and from the workshops is to develop a shared understanding of the similar problematics, and, through extensive discussions, to explore each of the “curatorship” roles in the artistic fields in Japan and Southeast Asian countries. From this, we seek to establish the artistic field’s network of the next-generation.

After this workshop, we will invite a few young curators from four countries to Japan in August and September, and develop a shared awareness of the conditions and situations in Japan. With these processes, we plan to organize exhibitions and art projects in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand during the year 2014.

here's the link for further info, grants and future projects can be seen here...come see:

http://www.jpf.go.jp/e/culture/exhibit/exchange/1406/06-01.html

Malaysian Contemporary art: project 70 days