{"id":7967,"date":"2015-11-29T12:39:02","date_gmt":"2015-11-29T04:39:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/?post_type=portfolio&p=7967"},"modified":"2015-11-29T13:04:31","modified_gmt":"2015-11-29T05:04:31","slug":"see-filtering-the-filtered-by-debra-chong","status":"publish","type":"portfolio","link":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/portfolio-item\/see-filtering-the-filtered-by-debra-chong\/","title":{"rendered":"SEE: Filtering the filtered by Debra Chong"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

New Straits Times, 8 June 2007
\nSEE: Filtering the filtered
\nby Debra Chong<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\"Hamir<\/a>

Hamir Soib smells Something Fishy.<\/p><\/div>\n

Aided by six articulate artists, DEBRA CHONG attempts to get to the bottom of art, truth, life, the universe and a cup of cold coffee.<\/p>\n

\"Marvin<\/a>

Marvin Chan is the consummate Politician.<\/p><\/div>\n

THE visual artist has more freedom than the writer, postulates Anurendra Jegadeva, quickly adding that he speaks purely from a fine arts perspective.<\/p>\n

Better known in art circles as J. Anu, he was one of six artists who were on hand at the Wei-Ling Gallery in Brickfields to talk about their participation in its current exhibition, Filtered.<\/p>\n

The six were part of a larger group of 11 contemporary Malaysian artists chosen for their acute awareness of the world around them and their bold response to current issues and its impact upon society.<\/p>\n

Take for example, Anu\u2019s study on the migrant Indian community in Malaysia, based on his perception of Hindu astrology and its divine influence over a person\u2019s fate and faith.
\n\u201cThe Indian community here is very accepting of their conditions. There\u2019s nothing wrong with that. I think it is very brave and noble of them,\u201d said the Johor-born artist.<\/p>\n

However, he also believes that the whole idea of Fate and Faith \u201ccan become a crutch\u201d.<\/p>\n

Ninth Planet is a careful composition of a man and woman framed by nine globular icons of Indian myth and stories representing the nine planets (here given a local flavour). At first glance, it would appear that they form the centre of the universe.<\/p>\n

However, as Anu argued, it also seems as if they were trapped, boxed in by the very gods they revere.<\/p>\n

If his arguments seem ambivalent, it is deliberately so. His filters do not cater to only one party; rather, he chooses to mix two opposing flavours to create a more rounded taste, sort of like your cup of cham (a Hainanese drink blending coffee and tea).<\/p>\n

\u201cThings don\u2019t simply change overnight. I want people to think about the issues but it doesn\u2019t have to be ugly or confrontational. I am trying to present a difficult subject matter in the most beautiful terms,\u201d he charged.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Roslisham Ismail, better known as Ise, has no qualms with presenting a horrifically ugly subject starkly. On a trip to Indonesia last year, he saw a wanted poster of Malaysians Azahari Husin (deceased) and Noordin Mt Top (at large), who are believed to have masterminded the Bali bombings. His Export is a crude repackaging of that poster, blown up and reprinted on canvas and specially framed in gilt.<\/p>\n

After Anu\u2019s beautiful \u201cpackaging\u201d, it made me grimace when I first saw the painting; it was distasteful and seemed to smack of sheer sensationalism. I even considered filtering it out altogether. But as the cheery artist explained: \u201cWe always speak of packaging as being very important. I wanted to show that not all of our exports are good.\u201d<\/p>\n

His close friendship with many Indonesians led to a mutual empathy of their anger and their grief. As a Malaysian, he felt deeply shamed that his countrymen had been part of such gross acts on a neighbour, which led to a burning desire to show the rest of his countrymen the realities that had been filtered out.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot many Malaysian are aware unless they go to Indonesia a lot. I have a responsibility to show something, the reality of the situation, the emotions of the Indonesian people, what were their reactions when confronted by such things: why, why do these people kill? Why do they do such things? Apa mereka perjuangkan?<\/p>\n

If Anu\u2019s social realism is defined by the heavens, and Ise\u2019s by a hell, then Ivan Lam\u2019s is defined by consumerism.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m always for consumerism. We\u2019re defined by what we consume,\u201d said the artist, disguised as a lecturer at a local institution based in Cyberjaya.<\/p>\n

Tol\/ VSOP is a three-part parody of the recent debacle over the classified documents between highway concessionaires and the Government, which resulted in a toll hike throughout the Klang Valley.<\/p>\n

Part 1 features an image of the toll plaza at Kota Kemuning, and made more pointed by the text statement (Part 2): \u201cCriminals like artists are opportunity seekers.\u201d Over the top, a partially visible numerical print, 2 20, makes a commercial allusion to the hiked price. It is also a clue to the proverbial udang di sebalik batu.<\/p>\n

A walk around the back of his painting reveals yet another sardonic statement, based on a Hennessey ad from long ago: \u201cLive life to the fullest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taken all together, Lam\u2019s images produce a bitter cynical concentrate, harsh on the tongue and on the brain.<\/p>\n

\u201cArt is like magic. A work of art is deceptive. If everyone is a magician, then no one is a magician,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

His cryptic words, when decoded, point out that many people allow themselves to be misled by illusions rather than choose to learn the truth.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf everyone does it (choose to exercise their brain), then change can happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hamir Soib shares a similar sentiment. Having been in the scene for 14 years, he cannot bear to see artists repeating themselves and recycling the same motifs.<\/p>\n

\u201cArtists should play a big role in making change happen. Instead of waiting, we have to do something to make things happen,\u201d he proclaimed.<\/p>\n

His contribution to the exhibition is called Something Fishy, a blatant dig at the MAS \u201ccontroversy\u201d involving Fernando Botero\u2019s paintings. It features a rotund man, fashioned in the Colombian artist\u2019s style, holding a large fish in his arms.<\/p>\n

As an artist, Hamir had followed the case closely and felt angered and insulted by the million-ringgit purchase of the Botero painting. \u201cIs it because there is a lack of good artists in Malaysia\u201d and again when the Botero collection was flown by MAS to be displayed not in Malaysia for the benefit of local artists and arts aficionados, but in Singapore.<\/p>\n

\u201cMAS is a Malaysian carrier; why do I have to go all the way down to Singapore just to see it?\u201d<\/p>\n

For Zulkifli Yusof, art does not have to be a stand-alone experience. Currently, he is producing a series based on his reading of Frank Swettenham\u2019s Malay Sketches. While he has contributed three pieces to the exhibition, Reformasi, Amuk Di Pasir Salak 2, it is his last that he wanted to talk about.<\/p>\n

Lucky Day was inspired by Chapter 14, A Malay Romance. The chapter chronicles the relationship between husband and wife, Raja Iskandar and Raja Maimunah, which is plagued by social problems of that time: smoking, gambling, womanizing and adultery.<\/p>\n

\u201cRaja Maimunah herself, though she affects a demure fa\u00e7ade, is actually very sexy. She\u2019s able to convey a wealth of sexiness through her eyes alone. It reminds me of the lyrics (from How Me Seksi, by Too Phat featuring Inul Daratista) \u201cku seksi, seksi seksi sekali \/ Dari hujung rambut hingga hujung kaki\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter reading it, I see no difference in the social problems between then and now. That\u2019s where I got the idea for Lucky Day. The kuda calendar depicting the gambling nature and showing the days are all the same, that history repeats itself; actually, the problems are the same now as previously,\u201d he says enthusiastically, eyes gleaming.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am inspired from reading, books, magazines, manuscripts. When you read, your mind travels; it makes you question things. I like to read about the past, about what we should learn and compare with the present day. I like that statement of Swettenham\u2019s: How important it is to live with the society in order to understand that society,\u201d said Zukifli, a methodological artist.<\/p>\n

Says Marvin Chan: \u201cPainting is to have a discourse. To provoke thought. I love paintings, the ideas to be discussed. It means we\u2019re now communicating.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sadly, he sees very little of that happening now, as fewer artists produce art that is relevant to the era they live in and therefore cease to engage the viewers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe truth is fragmented. Check out Wall Street, it used to be a slaughterhouse. They turned it into a stock market. How appropriate,\u201d he quipped.<\/p>\n

His three paintings for Filtered are set in the same sardonic tone; there is The Evil Good-doer, The Immaculate Politician and The Perpetual Child, what Chan sees as archetypes perpetrated throughout society. Indeed, he considers himself to be a little bit of all three, with the clownish mask of The Immaculate Politician being foremost.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing an artist is not a professional choice. It is a lifestyle choice,\u201d says the former award-winning advertising art director. For him, it was with a certain degree of awareness that followed his marriage and birth of his children.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was in advertising; winning awards. I got married, had children. I had an epiphany then. What do I tell the kids? What will be proof of my existence? I didn\u2019t want to be a hypocrite,\u201d he said quietly, leaning back into his chair and draining his cup of coffee while mine grew cold on the table.<\/p>\n

Filtered is thought-provoking on many layers. Essentially, it deals with artists intellectually wading through filtered information and sifting the grains of truth from the chaff generated by the mass media machinery, and then producing their own versions of Truth, based on their personal experiences in order to provoke a response from the viewer in hopes of inducing change.<\/p>\n

At the end of the session, I felt as if I\u2019d overdosed on caffeine. There was Anu frappucino, Ise drip coffee, Hamir with a white top, Marvin black, but Zulkifli should have been taken on the rocks, because his \u201cflavour\u201d, as Chan quipped, was \u201ctoo intense\u201d.<\/p>\n

Due to the lack of space, the writer has had to filter the artists\u2019 responses to Filtered. Ironic, isn\u2019t it?<\/em><\/p>\n

For a deeper appreciation of their artistic intellect, the reader is strongly encouraged to visit Wei-Ling Gallery. The exhibition is ongoing until Friday. June 15, 2007.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New Straits Times, 8 June 2007 SEE: Filtering the filtered by Debra Chong Hamir Soib smells Something Fishy. Aided by six articulate artists, DEBRA CHONG attempts to get to the bottom of art, truth, life, the universe and a cup of cold coffee. Marvin Chan is the consummate Politician. THE visual artist has more freedom [...]","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"portfolio_entries":[17],"class_list":["post-7967","portfolio","type-portfolio","status-publish","hentry","portfolio_entries-news-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/7967","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/portfolio"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7967"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/7967\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7967"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7967"},{"taxonomy":"portfolio_entries","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio_entries?post=7967"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}