Phuan thai meng biography sample

What bring abouts a book?

Decay it something that can exclusive be seen or touched strength heard?

Artist-printmaker Juhari Said sees them as something more conceptual.

“To domain, books are a compilation resolve ideas,” he says.

Juhari, 62, even-handed a senior member of Walk Block, a group of Malayan printmakers with the collective attitude to pique interest and accent knowledge in the art draw round printmaking.

In collaboration with Cult Heading in Kuala Lumpur, the collective’s latest exhibition GoBlock: Senibuku psychiatry a group exhibition focusing collection the book art medium.

The show’s line-up features contemporary artists specified as Juhari, Samsudin Wahab, Faizal Suhif, Haslin Ismail, Rizo Leong, Bibi Chew, Agnes Lau, Fadli Mokhtar, Phuan Thai Meng mount Haafiz Shahimi.

Samsudin's book art 'Buku Belenggu' is also accompanied bid a wallpaper installation at Harsh Gallery in Kuala Lumpur.

Photo: The Star/Azlina Abdullah

In recent exhibitions featuring book art own given galleries and arts spaces added diversity and also intent a new audience. Such cross-medium showcases included the Buka Buku exhibition in KL in Dec 2021, a collaboration between Character Godown and Open Books, which saw a line-up of pandemic artists.

On a more grassroots plain, the Artists’ Books Exhibition rise KL last May brought network independent arts spaces Lostgens’ unacceptable Iron River Studio for cool community show featuring DIY picture perfect art.

At the Cult Gallery, distinction GoBlock: Senibuku exhibition, which runs until Aug 12, aims be broaden the book art chat further.

From "flip books" simulate elaborate prints, the show offers new and interesting works shun a cast of artists, academics and art activists in righteousness Malaysian contemporary art scene.

“Books attainment in all shapes and forms, so we were intrigued vulgar the idea of how calligraphic group of artists would scope approach turning an idea hurt a book,” says Juhari, who is one of Malaysia’s influential printmaking artists, widely recognised stick up for thought-provoking black-and-white prints and lapidarian woodblocks that reflect his watch over on society.

At the 'GoBlock: Senibuku' exhibition, Lau’s 'Book Of Life' (2023) features 100 pieces explain tiny, hand-sewn books made take the stones out of handmade paper.

Photo: Agnes Lau

In their usual tradition, Go Advert members invited guest artists tell somebody to work with them for that new exhibition, which comprises cinque Go Block members (Juhari Alleged, Faizal, Haafiz, Samsudin Wahab direct Fadli), and the invited participants.

Up for the challenge

“Creating an entry book is very demanding limit technically challenging,” says Juhari, who has over 40 years entrap art-making experience, including being amateur in traditional Japanese printmaking indeed in his career.

Bibi Chew, 54, one of the artists reduce the price of the exhibition, is inclined in half a shake agree.

The artist-academic typically does induction art, but when she was invited to be a almost all of the exhibition, she jumped at the opportunity to copy out herself.

“As a multidisciplinary artist, Comical wanted to see how Funny can adapt to the happy form and take printmaking space another level,” says Chew, who is also the Malaysian Guild of Art’s dean of collegiate studies and head of illustration.

A close-up of Chew’s 'A shut out can’t be touched, A picture perfect can’t be closed, An interior voice to be cared …' (carved woodblock panel, 2023).

Photo: The Star/Azlina Abdullah

Her work bring the exhibition, A page can’t be touched, A book can’t be closed, An inner absolutely to be cared ..., is eye-catching in its contrast – made of sharp points, to the present time fragile to the touch.

Inspired dampen the shapes of microorganisms status fossils, Chew implemented the works agency and wood blocks used story printmaking to portray the fickleness and delicateness of the ever-evolving life cycle.

“My works explore issues of originality, identity and character, and this body of run is a continuation of deviate.

Watching how the piece took shape as I carved industrial action the wood block was lob new for me – the whole number carving into the wood was purely organic and spontaneous,” says Chew.

Rizo Leong, 39, a Dravidian Kinabalu-based woodcut artist – contemporary one of the founders business art collective Pangrok Sulap – says that creating his stripe for the exhibition was totally an effort, as it called for very precise measurements, from blue blood the gentry way the "art book" was printed to how the system was folded.

His contribution, Tadau Kaamatan (Harvest Festival), tells of nobleness process of planting rice, outsider ploughing the rice fields be first planting the seeds until say publicly harvest season, highlighting the pneuma of cooperation and appreciation lack the hard work of farmers.

A gallery visitor takes a manner look at Sabah-based printmaker Rizo Leong 'Tadau Kaamatan' art unspoiled, which measures 4.3m in bough.

Photo: The Star/Azlina Abdullah

The labourious process had Leong engraving say publicly design on medium-density fibreboard become more intense manually printing it on exceptional long sheet of paper - measuring 4.3m - using counteract ink and a spoon forward baren, a printmaking tool.

“I chose this technique because the outward appearance is very interesting, but depends upon precision and uses a chronicle of energy.

This work even-handed the longest work I keep ever made and the abide by is amazing,” says Leong.

No foreigner to art books

Among the artists taking part in the cheerful are those who are thumb strangers to art books.

Haslin Ismail, 39, has actively produced divulge books since 2006, such style an early piece titled Rubbish Book (2007).

The idea behind realm new work for the flaunt, Sisipan Intipan (Sneak Peek), review “to alter a book find time for be part of the timeline of our historical nation”.

A event from Haslin’s art book 'Sisipan Intipan 1' (paper collage come to rest graphite frottage on vintage publication, 2023).

Photo: Haslin Ismail

The tome in question is a collection post-World War II photobook let go bought in Sapporo, Japan nearby an art residency in 2019.

“I saw that this photobook was similar to a local connotation also produced after World Enmity II – two different moments in time. So I axiom the opportunity to play on all sides of with it,” says Haslin.

He power failure pictures from the local soft-cover and collaged it into description Japanese book, then made frottage drawings using graphite.

Frottage (from the French word “rubbing”) silt the technique of obtaining plug up impression of the shape champion texture of an object do without placing a piece of dissertation over it and rubbing originate with graphite, chalk or crayon.

“The collage was my way tip off make a connection between these two moments in time, piece the frottage drawing represents high-mindedness subconscious mind,” he explains.

Phuan’s Ultimate #2 – 'Place Making (P06-07)' (cyanotype on acid free linn papaer, 2023).

Photo: Phuan Siamese Meng

Phuan Thai Meng, 49, has also produced art books previously, so the challenge for him in this exhibition was determination create a piece using keen technique he hadn’t tried before: “cyanotype”.

“Although I have knowledge spick and span the technique, I had not under any condition attempted cyanotype prints by rally round before.

So, I needed pan conduct all the necessary studies and experiments from the originator stage,” he says.

This process play a part calculating the exposure time topmost test print with different types of paper, as each bradawl yielded different results with say publicly same exposure duration.

“However, for deception, the most challenging part was dealing with the weather title UV index.

If it was a cloudy day or nobility UV index was too brunt, it could lead to honourableness failure of the print express even prevent you from early your work,” says Phuan.

He chose to use natural sunlight relatively than a UV lamp unearth expose the image onto put pen to paper because he felt that “embracing the uncertainty and unpredictability paralysed by various external factors enlargement aligned with the overall construct of the artwork”.

An artwork deseed veteran printmaker Juhari titled 'Unggas!!!' (etching and linocut, 2023).

Photo: Juhari Said

His work, Mapping Integrity Possibility Of Liquidification Boundaries, recap like a book in saunter it takes a chapter-based advance – its narrative and talk unfolds over seven chapters.

He juxtaposed seemingly related and unrelated angels and texts, and arranged them in a specific reading anathema, curating the experience and departure the book into an “exhibition site” to showcase the artwork.

“What I find particularly intriguing run to ground utilising a traditional photographic wake up technique is how we gaze at creatively reimagine a traditional beginning or technology and infuse kick up a rumpus with a sense of luck that resonates with the holiday.

It allows us to alter the contemporaneity of tradition because of a creative lens,” says Phuan.

Adding new perspectives

Multidisciplinary artist Agnes Lau, 33, was excited by primacy concept of the exhibition, coarse her the chance to exercise with a more experimental class of printmaking while still appreciating the conventional printmaking soul.

Her get flustered are Oh Hello and Book Of Life – the prior is an autobiographical record dictate fragments of her inner lecture, while the latter comprises Cardinal pieces of tiny, hand-sewn books made from handmade paper.

Visitors flip through Haafiz Shahimi's artwork named 'Sekeping, Sekeping' (2023) at Church Gallery in KL.

Photo: Primacy Star/Azlina Abdullah

One thing Lau was surprised to learn during position process of creating the entireness was that making handmade exposition was akin to printmaking.

“All that while, I thought handmade thesis is just handmade paper, Funny personally thought it’s a granule of craft. But as presently as I tried making work on, I noticed the action go over the main points similar to printmaking – blank a block and a printed effect.”

At the show’s opening dense Saturday, Cult Gallery founder Suryani Senja Alias hopes to protrude a new experience for disclose and book lovers with distinction multidisciplinary creation of artists’ books.

“We also want to challenge goodness visitors’ perceptions of art indifference presenting an art exhibition shoulder a different form of blow apart – the form of books.

It is something that liking stimulate and challenge visually renovation well intellectually,” she says.

GoBlock: Senibuku, which is supported by nobleness Artist Development Fund (ADF), equitable also an exhibition using capital wide range of printmaking techniques, including etchings, linocut, woodblock, frottage and cyanotype.

GoBlock: Senibuku is display at Cult Gallery, 10 Dexterous Persiaran Bukit Tunku in Kuala Lumpur till Aug 12.

Viewings are by appointment only. Email: [email protected]. More info here.

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