Thirty Art Friends

Many weeks ago, Bingley Sim, one of my very first collectors, and now family friend, presented me with a book, "Thirty Art Friends." Published by a group of 30 art collectors in Malaysia and Singapore, it features some of the art works in their collection.

In the book, Bingley had chosen to talk about one of my paintings, "Memories of Pulau Lang" -- in his words, "the first of the many Zainal paintings I have bought."

I remember that first visit by Bingley and his wife, Ima, to my home. It was late morning, and my then-fiance (and now, wife) had shown them the way over to this new housing area where I was renting. At that time, I didnt' receive many visitors over, what more collectors, so this visit was pretty memorable!

Bingley was interested to see my paintings and I brought out my landscapes one by one from my store room. But his curiousity got the beter of him and he peeked into the store room. That was when he saw the "Memories of Pulau Lang" painting which I never intended to show in the first place!

That particular painting was done while I was teaching at an art college, and times were hard. I hadn't been able to travel to paint the landscapes and could only paint from memory. Thus was born "Memories of Pulau Lang" because on that canvas I poured my feelings and memories of that beautiful island in Terengganu.

When he expressed his interest to purchase it, I was hesitant. It was one of very few abstract pieces that I had done at the time and it was of significant importance to me -- I didn't want to "lose" it and never see it again by simply letting it go to any buyer.

However, I was also facing some financial difficulties and needed some extra cash for the impending wedding. In the end, after Bingley assured that I could come over to his place any time I wanted to view the painting, I relented. I guess you could also say that without Bingley and Ima, there wouldn't have been a wedding! Haha!

Well, true enough, Bingley and his family remained close friends to us and we've both visited each other's homes many times. I'm happy and not at all regretful of letting go "Memories of Pulau Lang" to him. He has been very encouraging of my development in art and for him to feature my painting in "Thirty Art Friends" is a great honour for me.

On a related note, nowadays, whenever Bingley comes over to the house, my store room is one of the "must see" places in his agenda (proven in the pic below; Bingley is the guy in white t-shirt with his back to the camera)!

Anyway, to Bingley, Ima and their children, thank you!

The book "Thirty Art Friends" and a related exhibition will be officially launched on Saturday, 26 June, at the National Art Gallery. All are welcome! In the meantime, read more about it here and here.

Open house!

On 14 March, we had a small minum petang with neighbours, friends, family, artists and art collectors at my studio. It was a sort of a studio/gallery warming tea party.

The afternoon started off with a great big storm, but after it cleared, the guests started arriving. The last ones left at 2am!

I'd like to thank everyone for coming and sharing this little space of mine. More pictures here.

Directions to my studio

My studio is about 20 to 30 minutes away from most parts of Klang Valley, i.e. Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya. It may be a little out-of-the-way, but it's along a major highway/road, and with the instructions below, you should be able to find it. If you think you are lost, you can always send an SOS to us on our mobile phones!


No. 10 &12, Jalan PUJ 4/10A
Taman Puncak Jalil
43300 Seri Kembangan
Selangor
Tel: 012 321 9137 (Anis) / 019 617 3706 (Zainal)

NOTE:

If you’re coming from KL, get on the Federal Highway and go towards PJ area. After the Guinness factory on the left, stick to the left lane and go up the flyover that looks like the Jambatan Pulau Pinang, then take left. (The landmarks at this flyover are Freescale factory and the Bali building). Proceed straight all the way to the Sunway Toll, then follow instructions below.

If you’re coming from PJ / Taman Tun Dr. Ismail, get on the LDP, you will drive past Kelana Jaya LRT station, Giant Mall, Kelana Seafood Centre, Yamaha Music School, etc. Soon, you will pass Western Digital on your right and LDP Furniture Mall on your left. Once there, you should get on the flyover and go straight on, heading towards the Sunway Toll Plaza. Then, follow the instructions below:

From Sunway Toll Plaza, basically, you just need to go all the way to Taman Teknologi Malaysia / Technology Park Malaysia (there are appropriate signages). At TTM, you need to do a U-turn which will then take you to Taman Puncak Jalil. However, below are the detailed instructions with some landmarks highlighted for you. Please read these notes carefully before you begin your journey, they will get you safely to my studio.

1.At the Sunway Toll Plaza, choose "Plaza B" and pay the toll (RM1.60 post-hike)

2.Follow signage to “Sungai Besi and Taman Teknologi Malaysia”

3.Go up flyover, stick to the left-most lane

4.Come down flyover, and continue to follow signage “Sungai Besi and Taman Teknologi Malaysia” – just stay on this main road

5.Pass 2 Shell stations – one on your left and another on your right (current MRT construction on-going at the moment, which may just obstruct the view of Shell station on the right)

6.Pass Giant Hypermarket on your right. Quite a long road, a couple of kilometres

7.MAJOR LANDMARK: Road will slope downhill, and you will come to traffic lights. At the traffic lights are Petronas and Shell on your right.

8.Go straight at traffic lights, there will be a flyover to Taman Teknologi Malaysia.

9.GO UP FLYOVER. Traffic lights, turn right. Another traffic light, turn right again. (You are making a big u-turn to come back down to the main road but this time heading towards the way you just came.)

10.Once on the main road, the Petronas and Shell will now be on your left. Drive past.

11.IMPORTANT: Drive slowly and stick to left lane, and take the first left turn. There is a small signboard that says “Taman Puncak Jalil” just before the turning.The left turn is just before a building (this is Sirim building). Once you have made the left turn, the Sirim building will now be on your right.

12.Stick on this road and it will swerve to the left, just follow it.

13.Traffic lights, go straight.

14.You will see a Petron gas station on your left. Proceed on this main road until you see a Pasaraya Khas on your left. IMPORTANT: There will be a junction further up. Stick to the right lane and proceed straight uphill at the junction.

15.Eventually, the road will take you up a slope and you will be facing a small hill. The road will swerve left and here you will see a small Hindu temple. Once you have made this left swerve, take the 3rd right turn (you will see a small TNB substation). If you see a small surau on your right, it means that you’ve just overshot it – backtrack a few paces).

16.You are now on Jalan PUJ 4/10A – it’s a dead end road. Look out for house No. 12 with the big cherry tree in the garden. It faces a hill with a tree-like tower. You are now at my studio!

Apprenticeship at The Art Room

(Me using pastels)

These days, the studio is seeing quite a bit of activity with the arrival of two people who are apprenticing at The Art Room. Yes, things are getting a bit busy and the studio space is feeling a little bit cramped since Awie and Khairunissa joined me here.

But I'm not complaining. They are here to learn and I am rather glad to have their company and assistance. I try to instruct them what I know. It's in no way formal education. Nor is there a particular system employed to ensure their enlightenment.

(Musa observing Awie's observational skills)

Daily, they do drawing exercises -- blind contours, vertical and horizontal lines, etc. They learn about tonal values, observational skills and such.

Besides the instruction of basic skills, I also let them learn about cutting the canvas, stretching it and basic carpentry skills to make the stretcher. In the studio, they assist me with displaying the artworks on walls, and also, occasionally paint the undercoat for my works. This last exercise, I believe, will help them get comfortable with the oil and acrylic mediums -- how each feels on canvas, how the brush works with these different media, etc.

(Me trying to capture the fleeting evening lights at Putrajaya)

Last weekend, we arranged an outing to Putrajaya Botanical Gardens for some outdoor live drawing sessions. The beautiful scenes there made for some really interesting inspirations and I think it was a change of scenery for both Awie and Kharunissa.

(Khairunissa practising her vertical and horizontal lines)

New paintings

I've just updated my Flickr account with photos of some works done in 2009 and 2010. Some are waterlilies, some are sunset landscapes and others are...ermmm...well, see for yourself lah!

These paintings are also currently up at my studio...before I bring them down for the group show of paintings from the Penang Art Marathon.

In the meantime, enjoy...!

Visit to Pakharuddin Sulaiman's gallery

When a whole motley crew of artists and collectors get together, it is usually at an exhibition opening, and it is usually a kind of an awkward affair -- you're there for the sake of the art gallery owner or the artist whose works are being displayed...well, not all the time lah...Other than these two people, you hardly know anybody else there, and pretend to look very interested in the paintings to escape from having to make small talk.

In November last year, such a gathering came together. But it wasn't at any of those commercial art galleries, and it wasn't for any exhibition opening. It was at Pakharuddin and Fatimah's gallery of their collected art works somewhere in Ampang. It wasn't the least bit awkward, thanks to Pakha's unique personality to bring all sorts of people into the conversation.

It felt, rather, like a much-anticipated tour -- the ones my school always arranged for its students to go on some educational field trip -- headed by Pakha himself! The "students" in this case included artists, friends and collectors. Among them were Tengku Sabri, Raja Shahriman, and U-Wei.

Pakha's gallery was really impressive, filled with paintings and sculptures. He knew every piece in his collection, the story behind each work and the reason for collecting them. Another part of his collection that was mind-boggling was his books -- lined up neatly against the walls. Another voracious reader, Tengku Sabri, was similarly impressed with his books, too!

After the gallery tour, Pakha and his wife took us to lunch -- the first choice, to eat assam pedas, had to be cancelled because the restaurant was closed. We finally went to an Indonesian restaurant where we all gathered around a long table like a big artist family gathering!

Pakha, as always, was very lively and had an interesting opinion, or unique perspective, on everything...entertaining us with all the latest news in the art circle...and the gossips! Tak kering gusi langsung to be in his company!

(The last two photos of me are with Raja Shahriman the sculptor whose works were at the time being displayed in a solo at Petronas Gallery, and with one of Pakha's collection which was my favourite, a work by Amron Omar)

Doa Selamat at the Art Room

On 14 January, we had a little doa selamat kenduri for the new studio/gallery. There were about 20 guests, mostly friends, family and neighbours.

I had the help of my friend, Awie, to clean the place up, cook and basically make the entire place more welcoming for the occasion.

The menu was simple food -- mee hoon goreng, roast chicken, roti jala and beef curry, salad and pudding for dessert. I must thank my mother-in-law and sister-in-law for bringing some of the food.

And to those who came to give their blessings, many thanks to you. I hope that this new place will be the beginning of many more inspirations, productive work and gatherings.

More pics, from top to bottom: what's left of the food; the "ustaz section" in deep discussion; the "artist section" headed by Tengku Sabri and Hanafiah; the "family section"; and Chef Awie carving the roast chicken; at the end of the night, my wife and me.

Comment moderation

Recently, I've been getting so much comment spam that I've decided to activate the comment moderation on blogger. Hope that this will help to reduce spam, but not genuine comments from you!

Please keep on reading (I promise to update real soon!) and sharing your thoughts with me.

In the meantime, have a nice work week!

Lautan 3 online gallery

Just to share with you a link to the Lautan 3 online exhibition which was created by Art Village gallery. In it, you will be able to view from the comfort of your home or office the paintings by myself, Suhaimi and Tuan Azhar that were exhibited recently.

The exhibition is over...thank you to everyone who gave their support -- Art Village gallery, especially Kenny and Gary; Mr. Hee, my picture framer and logistics manager; Bingley Sim, who introduced me to many of his friends; the collectors who made time in their busy schedule to view the artworks; my family and friends who gave their support, encouragement and motivation; and not forgetting the media for featuring us on TV, radio and the newspapers (I've updated the section "Zainal in the news" on the right with the latest links to our media interviews).

Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

If you would like to see more of my works, please, you are welcomed to visit my studio gallery...just give me a call before-hand so I can spruce up the place and give you directions to come over.

Launch of Lautan Tiga exhibition at Art Village, Bangsar South

Zainal presents a painting to Bingley for officiating the Lautan 3 exhibition.

Looking on are Suhaimi and Tuan Azhar

Yesterday, Bingley Sim, personal friend and art lover and art collector, officiated the Lautan 3 3-man show at Art Village Bangsar South.

In his speech, he said he was "a small-time art collector," but I beg to differ. His enthusiasm for Malaysian art has made a huge impact in the lives of many Malaysian artists, myself included.

His wife, Fatima, their children, Bella, Iza and Imen (please correct my spelling!), and Bingley himself are avid fans of art. Their support and encouragement has helped many artists to move forward in developing their works and careers in art.

Thank you, Bingley, for giving us your precious time to officiate the Lautan 3 exhibition. And thank you to everyone for sharing your Saturday with us and to enjoy the paintings we have ourselves enjoyed producing!

I also want to record my appreciation to Kenny Teng of Art Village for giving us this opportunity to showcase our works at his premises.

For pictures, go to our Facebook page.

Lautan Tiga Exhibition

(please click for larger image)

Dear friends,

I'm happy to announce my upcoming exhibition "Lautan Tiga" at Art Village, opening on 21 November, 4pm (and continues till 13 Dec). I'd like to personally invite you to the launch and share my latest works with you.

The exhibition is personally something that I've wanted to do with two of my close friends, Suhaimi (Mie Pak Lah in this blog) and Tuan Azhar, my buddies from ITM "those days." I'm glad for this opportunity to exhibit with them finally!

Moreover, the exhibition will be launched by Mr. Bingley, who has been a great supporter of the Malaysian art industry, and who has encouraged me in the development of my work.

I'm also thankful to Mr. Kenny from Art Village for giving us the opportunity and space to exhibit at his chic new gallery in the esteemed neighbourhood of Bangsar South. (View map)

As to why we've named the show "Lautan Tiga," well, you will just have to be there at the show to find out!

Please come by and say "hi" to me...I look forward to seeing my old friends and new acquaintainces there!

Lastly, please spread the word. For Facebook promo, click here.

Work in progress

Funny how the year 2009 started out quite bleakly with the world economic recession hanging over our heads and art business everywhere suffering a slow period. And now, here I am in the last quarter of the year running on 5th gear!

The most recent news is that I've managed to secure the house next door to be turned into my studio/gallery. Right now, I'm busy supervising the contractors to do up the place a bit, i.e. turning the garage into my work area, minor spruce-up works inside so that it will be a presentable art gallery, making my work-bench, etc.

Over the next few weeks/months, I will be installing the lights, getting the curtains, designing and making the storage equipment, and making my own simple furniture and minor storage accessories.

At the same time, I'm juggling my time to finish up some works for my up-coming exhibition in Bangsar which will hopefully happen in November.

And as the maiden exhibition at my studio, which I've simply called "The Art Room," I'm planning a show with some friends of the Penang drawings we made during the marathon. Hopefully that will be ready before the year-end.

It's quite a headache, but I don't mind this little pain knowing that there is an outcome to look forward to.

And so, who says an artist's life is one of leisurely pursuits? Sigh...

The 1st Malaysian International Drawing Marathon 2009

(At Suhaimi's house before we left for Penang)

(My drawing) (Suhaimi's drawing)

(Tengku Sabri's drawing)

(Tengku Sabri preparing to draw)

(Professor Fauzan Umar standing in as model)

(One of the participants of the marathon)

(Deep in discussion)

(Suhaimi and Lennon)

(The Cathay Hotel on Leith Street)

(Plumber on the move)

I am proud to say that I took part in the 1st Malaysian International Drawing Marathon 2009, the inaugural programme hosted by the School of Arts, Universiti Sains Malaysia in Penang from 5 to 7 October 2009.

It was partly a male-bonding session with my friends and I who drove up together in my trusted station wagon. There was me, Lennon, Tengku Sabri and Mie Pak Lah, all excited, partly because of the drawing marathon, to meet my lecturers and artist friends, my art collector, and also because we wanted to make it a "food marathon," too!

It was literally a drawing marathon where some 20-plus artists stayed up the entire duration for 72 hours to draw. Drawing is one of the first things they teach you in art school, and it forms the foundation of your artistic strength in later years. It is so basic that many art students today disregard its importance.

For me, the drawing marathon was a welcome break from my paintings. Besides the invigorating exercises that pushed me to explore my drawing skills, it also rejuvenated my spirit in making art.

Being at the University, meeting Professor Fauzan Umar who first taught me drawing at ITM all those years ago, being in the company of other artists furiously sketching away -- these all combined to create an atmosphere filled with creative energy. Being there was truly an inspiring experience and sparked my ideas and motivation to create and explore the possibilities in my work.

It was a shame that the outdoors of Penang was not utilised much. Instead, the drawing sessions were held indoors (with the exception of the first day when we had a scheduled outdoor sketching session), with settings that immediately brought back memories of art classes from my college days!

I look forward to a yearly installment of this marathon, and hope that next time the organiser will encourage participants to freely explore Penang. After all, the city is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and every street, every corner that you turn, you can feel the vibration and the energy from years of accumulated history, heritage and trade. Now that would make for some interesting output!

And as a little something new (because I always believe in lifelong learning and progress), I compiled the photos above in a little video. Enjoy it!

For the love of art (The Edge, 3 August 2009)

This article appeared in The Edge (Options) 3 August 2009.

Cultural Index: For the love of art

Full Circle

This article appeared in Accountants Today (August 2009), written by Anis Rozaimah Ramli. Please double click on each image to read the story.

Never a dull moment around here

(Raya at Pakharuddin's place)

I feel very bad for neglecting this space for so many months, but truthfully, with so many things going on in my life recently, and the puasa and raya festivities, I find that I hardly have time to update this blog.

My wife has been on a long leave from her job and we have been spending a lot of time at home together with Musa. It is nice to see her spend her time leisurely with me, instead of rushing off for work at the break of dawn and only to see her late at night.

My kids have also returned from their school in Jakarta for their annual holidays, and they, too, have kept me preoccupied. We recently went on a holiday together to Langkawi, all nine of us, and it was a very memorable trip for all.

Despite the demands on my time, I have also been working non-stop the past few months to produce works and to paint based on my trips this year.

In fact, there is an upcoming exhibition I am preparing for -- a three-man show with my good friends and artist comrades, Suhaimi Abdul Wahab (Mie Pak Lah) and Tuan Azhar. It's called Tiga Lautan and will be organised by Art Village in mid November. At least, that's the plan...one that I look forward to very much. It's meaningful to me because Mie and Tuan share the same feelings that I have on art and on the whole matter of "why we paint" and hopefully, the exhibition will materialise to enable us to share our feelings with others.

Finally, I'm taking part in an international drawing marathon organised by Universiti Sains Malaysia's art faculty. I'm also excited about this one because I've managed to rally up the interest of fellow artist friends to take part in this event with me up in Penang. As I understand it, the event will bring in artists from all over the country, and the world, for a gathering to do drawings with fellow artists. It starts this Monday, and Lennon, Tengku Sabri, Mie Pak Lah and myself are driving up for it.

My time is fully occupied these past few months and the next, for sure...I will be in 5th gear, moving things along...there are many things I want to record in this blog, but they can wait for the mean time.

And oh, almost forgot...God willing, I will be occupying the house next door very soon, and make it into my studio and gallery. My wife will be happy to have my paintings, easels, canvas and brushes and paints (which are now lying haphazardly on the floor of our current abode) out of the way, for sure...