The launch of WORKING and Tara Sosrowardoyo’s exhibition was a success!  A BIG THANK YOU to everyone who made it to Zinc Art Space last Saturday evening! Tara’s works look fantastic in the space, we love it so much we thought we’d share images of the exhibition with you.

Click here for more pictures of the opening event. And here to read a short article about the project in New Straits Times Life & Style section on Sunday, 10.10.10

Colour, Shape, Quantity, Scale at 15 Jln Mesui

A little late, and we’re rather sad the show is already down, but we’d like to give our 3 thumbs up to Liew Kwai Fei’s exhibition at 15 Jalan Mesui. A sharp clean breath of air, and we loved the way it worked in the unapologetically gritty space. Read more on arteri.

Asia Art Forum is back ladies and gentlemen! And yes, we are helping our friends plug their gig this coming May. I was a part of last year’s series and can honestly tell you that it is an opportunity not to be missed, if you are the sort who is interested in the ins and outs of Asia’s dynamic art scene told from an insider’s viewpoint.

This year AAF will be focusing on themes and developments in artistic practice relating to the contemporary art of China, Korea and Hong Kong. The Forum will be complimented by a trip to Hong Kong’s Fotan art district, formerly an industrial area characterised by warehouses and now home to the studios of many of Hong Kong’s most prominent artists. AAF will also be devoting a day to the examination of the art market and will be looking at the role of the collector in Asia, where the audience will have the unique opportunity to listen to personal testimonies of prominent collectors building art collections in Asia today.

Fostering direct encounters with leading members of the Asian contemporary art community, the program offers privileged access to first-hand information and invaluable insights into these developing areas of Asian art history.

The exclusivity of the Forum enables and encourages the exchange of ideas between guest lectures and participants providing a singular opportunity for art professionals, collectors and enthusiasts with an interest in these burgeoning regions currently driving a major transformation of the international art world.

The seminar will take place in Hong Kong over a three day period, 21-23 May. Limited places are available.

For more information please email info@asiaartforum.com

Asia Art Forum is an educational initiative founded and produced by Pippa Dennis in association with Asia Art Radar. 15% of all profits will go to Arthub, a non-profit art and cultural organization which promotes contemporary art creation in China and the rest of Asia.

Asia Art Forum is supported by Para/Site Art Space, Hong Kong

With special thanks to The Goethe Institute and Ben Brown Fine Arts for hosting the sessions.

Programme will include:

• Bang to Boom: Chinese Art in the 1990s
Curator Karen Smith will trace the events, ideas and theories that unfolded through the 1990s to produce the backbone of China’s new art. Cynical Realism, Political Pop, performance art, photography, video, installation, and extreme conceptual expression all have their roots in this decade of tumultuous advance and experimentation, strung between the socio-political events of 1989–that began with a bang when woman artist Xiao Lu fired a gun into her work in February 1989–and the economic boom that began in 2004. The 1990s was an extraordinary incubator for art reflecting the extraordinary times that characterise the era.

• Centre and Periphery: the Dynamics of Hong Kong Contemporary Art

Eclipsed by the overwhelming attention directed at mainland China, Hong Kong artists have been free from commercial pressure to quietly develop a unique aesthetic. Compounded by the fact that Hong Kong is a place where physical platforms for visual art are curiously limited, many artists have survived by carving out private spaces far from the centres of control. This tendency towards privacy and interiority has become part of the fundamental vocabulary in the expressive content of Hong Kong contemporary art. Against this background, critic and independent curator Valerie Doran examines the quietly vibrant dynamics of Hong Kong art, past, present and future.

• Big Art in China

Philip Tinari explores the mechanisms of artistic production in contemporary China, asking how China’s unique economies of labor affect how work is made. Looking specifically at locales and situations including the studio districts of Beijing, the ceramic workshops of Jingdezhen, and the “copy” painting village of Dafen in Shenzhen, it raises questions of artistic authorship and social relations against the wider background of China’s status as “the world’s factory.”

• Asian Art Market Now

Jeremy Wingfield, Phillips de Pury’s Contemporary Art Specialist, will offer essential background and up to date information on the dynamics of the Asian Art Market today. The shift in global wealth from West to East in 2009/2010 has given rise to a new focus by Western art institutions on Asian and particularly Mainland Chinese art collectors. His candid insights into the current situation will focus on the inside players driving the Asian market forward, with special focus on the fresh opportunities available to collectors, institutions and art professionals.

• A Collectors Journey – From Hobby to Museum

Dr Oei Hong Djien, Indonesia’s foremost private art collector, will be discussing his own journey from initial fascination with his nation’s artistic culture to being the first to systematically collect modern and contemporary Indonesian art. He founded The OHD Museum of Modern and Contemporary Indonesian Art to house this unparalleled collection of 1500 pieces. As well as providing useful tools and methodologies for budding collectors Dr Oei will be looking at the role of the private collector in Asia, analysing how fundamental this position is as a preserver and promoter a nation’s artistic practise and culture in a region where governments do not necessarily support such activity.

Course
21-23 May 2010
3 day course, daily, 10-12.30am and 2-5pm

Price
5,200 Hong Kong Dollars (due on registration)
15% of all profits donated to Arthub, a non profit art and cultural organisation that promotes contemporary art creation in China and Asia.

For more information please contact:

Pippa Dennis
M (UK) +44 7786 110 561

Kate Cary Evans
M (Hong Kong) + 852 6103 0470

info@asiaartforum.com

www.asiaartforum.com

http://artradarasia.wordpress.com

(AO)

We were recently in Taipei and have concluded that despite the four-and-half hour flight time, grim weather and so-so food, the trip to Taiwan was definitely worth the time (and money) in order to catch Cai Guo-Qiang’s solo ‘Hanging Out in the Museum’ at the Taipei Fine Art Museum. As photography was strictly not allowed, it is quite impossible to describe the power and epic scale of the artist’s elaborate installations and gunpowder projects presented in this retrospective exhibition. Nevertheless, Rachel managed to sneak a few shots when the guard was not looking. (Please see below for scenes from the show, and apologies to TFAM for breaking rules!) The artist’s attention to detail, precision and the power of his underlying messages are literally mind blowing! The exhibition was divided into two parts: “Dramatic Time Condensed” on the first floor explores Mr. Cai’s tendency to “counteract time, so that movement and dramatic movement –which are only possible in time– are condensed into still objects”, while the second floor, titled “Contradictory, Changeable Gunpowder”, traces the development of Mr. Cai’s gunpowder exploits from early paintings with gunpowder to the blowing up of his ‘sketches’. A comprehensive collection of video documentation also provide further understanding to Mr. Cai’s pyromaniacal ‘drawing’ process and gunpowder performances , and these range from earlier works such as the “Project for Extraterrestials” series (made during the 1990s) to the recent opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

“Head On“, an installation with 99 life-sized wolves, fabricated from sheepskins and stuffed with hay and metal wires, barreling in a continuous stream towards (and into) a glass wall, is definitely a Rogue favourite. Loaned from Deutsche Bank’s collection, this work is a critique of the German reunification. We found the artist’s statement “invisible walls are the hardest to dismantle” –describing the German condition – very apt for Malaysia too. All in all, we spent between three to five hours at the museum (twice!) and found ourselves quite reluctant to leave. To quote our travel companion Mr. Lau,  “Cai Guo-Qiang has single-handedly beat 5000 years of Chinese history” as he held our attention far longer than the National Palace Museum exhibition –5 hours as compared to 1 hour– displaying treasures from the Chinese world. We heart Cai Guo-Qiang : )

Please don’t miss out on this show if you are in Taipei, the show closes on 21 February 2010 (closed on Mondays and CNY).

The Taipei Fine Art Museum

Cultural Melting Bath : Project for the 20th Century

Rent Collection Courtyard

Rent Collection Courtyard

Head On

Inopportune : Stage One

Reflection - A Gift from Iwaki

Lucky Draw Prizes

Rachel was particularly excited about the Lucky Draw at TFAM. The prizes are: (Week #1) A pair of return tickets to Hong Kong; ( Week #2) Tea with Cai Guo-Qiang and a signed exhibition catalogue; (Week #3) TWD $ 20,000 (approx RM 2,200) Voucher from Eslite Bookshop; (Week #4) 1 iphone 3GS; (Week #5) A pair of return tickets to New York to visit Cai Guo-Qiang’s Studio and tea with the artist at the Empire State Building. WOW!!!

To make the trip even more worthwhile, we also caught Takashi Murakami’s print show at Arki Gallery near the Taipei Main Station, which will run until April 2010. We were impressed by the Taiwanese audience’s enthusiasm for art! There were at least 3 rows of people in front of any artwork at any one time when we visited Van Gogh’s exhibition at The National Museum of History. We also had to return to MOCA Taipei twice before we had the opportunity to enter the museum as we could not bear the 2-hour ticket queue outside the museum on our first visit. Rachel managed to squeeze in time to catch the ‘Visual Attract and Attack’ at MOCA Taipei (after the 2nd attempt) and here are pictures of some of the works on show.

The 2-hour queue outside MOCA

The Queen of Hearts in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Yang Moa-lin

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Yang Moa-lin

PixCell-Elk by Japanese artist Kohei Nawa

A sculpture by Takashi Murakami

Movement Age by Chen Zhiguang

Superheroes in fetus stage by Alexandre Nicolas

Baby Hulk

Baby Wonderwoman

Malaysia Boleh! It was a lovely surprise to see Chan Kok Hooi artworks here too!

(RN & AO)

Natee Utarit, The Dwarf (2008)

Who can tell us which of Snow White’s acolytes this may be?

(in Tales of Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow at Richard Koh Fine Art, KL)

Oops. Yet another post about Indonesia. You must be wondering what is the matter with us Rogues. Apologies for going back on our word but it is simply beyond our control as Indonesia’s bustling art scene is far too exciting to avoid. We were away again in Jogja several weeks ago to catch Agus Suwage’s 20 year survey exhibition, “Still Crazy After All These Years”. It was an exhibition we could not miss as this show presented a rare opportunity to view a number of Suwage’s most important works from local private collections as well as from the artist’s personal collection.

Locally known as Agus Suwage’s birthday show –the artist had just turned 50 earlier in April, “Still Crazy After All These Years” is one the most comprehensive solo exhibitions the region has seen so far.  News about this project’s grand ambition (and hefty price tag) to bring together over 100 works from different parts of Indonesia as well as making the necessary improvements to the exhibition space had spread through the grapevine for over 6 months, putting further pressure on Suwage’s exhibition team and curator to put together perhaps the most amazing show Indonesia has ever seen.

And what is the verdict?

This show is definitely worth the trip. It is truly impressive and cleverly planned, charting the artist’s development in a clear and concise manner. The works were laid out chronologically according to major themes, taking the audience through Suwage’s 20 year journey as we witness his artistic explorations and personal obsessions. From early self-portraiture to address a wide spectrum of issues from society, politics to the personal, to the artist’s agile appropriation and reinterpretation of performance art documentation, his love affair with music, and lately ruminations of Death, the show reflects the artist’s consistency, the breadth and depth of his focus, his incredible wit and playful mischief.

On opening night, Suwage played host to nearly 2000 guests and well wishers from Indonesia and beyond. Despite several black-outs and the unexpectedly huge turn out –front of house was forced to turn away people at midnight, “Still Crazy After All These Years” has earned its place in contemporary Indonesian art history as a landmark exhibition.

Here are among RogueArt’s top picks from the exhibition (in no particular order):

And Rachel’s personal favourite:

Also, we would like to give a Rogue thumbs up to exhibition curator Enin Supriyanto and salute the formidable Titarubi and the rest of the team at iCAN for a fantastic a job well done! (AO)

“Still Crazy After All These Years”
(Selected works : 1985 – 2009)
curated by Enin Supriyanto
4 – 31 July 2009 at Jogja National Museum
Jl Amri Yahya No. 1

Find out more about the exhibition at www.agusuwage.com

Sigh. We love Teddy’s Love Tank.

S. Teddy D’s Love Tank (The Temple) is on view from now until Sunday, 4th October 2009 at Level 1, Rotunda, National Museum of Singapore.

Admission is FREE. (AO)

We made another pilgrimage down to Singapore’s NUS Museum a couple of weekends ago (yes, I am a bit late) for the opening of Ahmad Zakii Anwar’s new solo exhibition, Being. We were part of a sizable Malaysian contingent, all patriotically heading down to support one of our art world heroes.

Reclining Figure 1

In the ten large-scale charcoal drawings which make up the exhibition, I think it would not be too much to say that Ahmad Zakii seems to have elevated the tradition of the nude drawing to some higher plane – a physical sublime, or a spiritual classicism. This male figure, standing, seated, reclining, seems a contemporary answer to that extraordinary human being presented by the Renaissance masters, a sort of David for today, of different proportions, much as the artist himself would resist such grand comparisons.

Standing Figure 12

Standing Figure 14

Throughout Ahmad Zakii’s work, we are aware of an inherent spiritualism, an interest in humanism, in Islamic, especially Sufi teachings, and Eastern philosophy. For me, though, it is in this new body of drawings that his ideas find their most precise and powerful expression to date. It is as if each taut sinew, shadow of muscle, burnish of hair, and protruding vein pulses with what drives man’s life, and also with what destroys it. The poses, or ‘self-presentations’ seem to reference yoga positions, and even, as mentioned by Patrick Flores in the catalogue, “Zakii’s fascination with epic heroes in ersatz western films”. Man here, as expressed purely by his body, is heroic, fragile, awkward, beautiful….

…. before I try to write a gushing review, I urge you to try to catch this show. The drawings are particularly breathtaking as they are presented here, in a museum setting with much room for pause and meditation. The exhibition ends 7 June.

Also on at NUS 9-31 May, Spacing Identities: J Ariadhitya Pramuhendra which looks like it could be interesting.

In Singapore, I also spent a very enjoyable afternoon at SAM (Singapore Art Museum), and came out determined not to do any neighbour-bashing for at least a month. It reminded me of leisurely winter weekends in London and Paris in my ‘youth’, where I could seek refuge from the dark and the cold in museums and galleries and happily while four hours away looking at interesting, beautiful, clever and educational things, both strange and familiar.

SAM has very adequate air-conditioning as a reprieve from the equatorial heat. I began with the star exhibition of Wu Guanzhong’s donation of 113 works to SAM which covered rooms on three floors – finding it quite wonderful that this mainland essayist, theorist and oil painter began working in Chinese ink only at the age of 55, and  with such emancipated gusto.

I then thoroughly enjoyed the “PC” show on exhibit (PC – Permanent Collection) – Earth & Water: Mapping Art in Southeast Asia, which created a pretty compelling narrative of seas, rivers, river-crossings and land from early pioneer, modern and contemporary regional works in the collection. It was a good opportunity to revisit some key favourite works bagged by SAM as well as get a peek at some new acquisitions. I was glad to see Jakapan Vilaseenakul’s Mid-Life Crisis installed – it seems particularly resonant now with its slow but cunning crocodiles and watchful crows. PC works were also used in a modest show called Threads, exploring the use of fabric and fibres in art making, where I said hello to Mella Jaarsma’s exotic skin costumes. It’s good to know that the region’s creative output is not disappearing entirely into cold storage or secretive private hands. Thank you SAM.

There was also a show documenting a performance festival “Ket-Noi” for Singaporean and Vietnamese artists held at SMU (Singapore Management University) last year, during the Post Doi-Moi. I ended with a visit to the show of another Malaysian art hero: Latiff Mohidin: The Journey to Wetlands and Beyond, which featured a very important collection of this great poet and painter’s drawings recently donated by a Singaporean collector to SAM. A book comes out soon. It is a fortunate institution that can put up two major donations on exhibition at once.

We made a last stop at the Christian Lacroix exhibition at the National Museum, and this is where we really thought – “Oh why can’t we have this in KL?” A show which would be at home in the V&A, exploring that fabulous fashion icon’s work with opera, ballet and theatre, complete with flying tutus, in a pretty grand museum space. If you’re heading down to Singapore, this is a must-see, especially if you have young dancing daughters, or sons with creative flair.

Costumes for Carmen

Exhibition View

As begrudging neighbours we like to think that Singapore pours all this money into the arts, but they can’t force creativity out of their nation (just look at all the Malaysian content, patriots will say). I now beg to disagree – the children of Singapore get to grow up enjoying weird and wonderful modern and contemporary art from Southeast Asia, and even China and India, and the wild influential creations of someone like Christian Lacroix first hand, presented as spectacle but with all sorts of educational collaterals. They get culture on tap (and it’s mostly free, and undersubscribed) and they will grow up enriched. We can’t boast that now, can we? We can only cross the causeway for that occasional fix.

(BY)

Cadangan-Cadangan Untuk Negaraku

New Works by Liew Kung Yu

Galeri PETRONAS at Level 3 Suria KLCC Mall
Exhibition runs from April 17 to  June 14, 2009

I really haven’t the words to express my excitement for this show. Liew Kung Yu is one of Malaysia’s most sought-after and elusive contemporary artists. Talk about once in a blue moon and the blue moon has finally risen in the form of ‘Cadangan-cadangan Untuk Negaraku’ (or its English translation, ‘A Few Suggestions to My Country’), an incredible solo presentation by this multi-tasking genius who occasionally moonlights as a ‘flower seller’ at the night markets. We think it has been at least 10 years since Kung Yu’s last solo.

The exhibition comprises 4 epic, elaborately and insanely layered photo-collages that measure 20 x 7 feet each. It is high kitsch, awe-inspiring and overwhelming. My eyes were impatiently devouring the visual feast as there are far too many details to focus on! This show warrants more than 2 visits and may I suggest spending at least 15 minutes with each work, allowing your eye to wonder slowly through the dense terrain, layers and details.

I  am still processing the works in my mind but it is definitely going down as one of the brightest 2009 highlights in RogueArt’s list of favourites. All I can manage now is a very inarticulate WOW. (AO)

A long desire from this corner, 2008-2009, polyester resin, cotton and kapok, 80 x 440 x 25 cm

Yes, we know. We have been a little “Indonesian heavy” with our recent posts. Apologies if this seems a little one-sided as it is impossible to ignore the inspiring bursts of creative energies coming from our neighbouring country. Here are pictures from Indonesian sculptor Yuli Prayitno’s latest solo exhibition at Nadi Gallery in Jakarta. Titled ” I Love…”, this show has been delayed for nearly 2 years as Yuli, who is somewhat of an obsessive compulsive/perfectionist, launched into control freak mode and decided to make everything on his own. Nevertheless, the quality speaks for itself; the time taken to make each object contributes to the value of the work. Fine finishing, beautiful treatment of material and form, a witty imagination and sardonic humour are some of the reasons why this exhibition should not be missed.

I can't get now satisfaction, 2007-2009, wood, 47 x 260 x 42 cm

Love in Blue, 2007-2009, Polyurethane resin and silver, 100 x 100 x 20 cm

Yuli Prayitno’s “I Love…” opens from April 1-13, 2009 at Nadi Gallery, Jl. Kembang Indah III, Blok G3 No. 4-5, Puri Indah, Jakarta 11610.  We’ll try to keep our next post non-Indonesia related. Promise. (AO)