The Star Online: Lifestyle: Arts & Fashion
The Star Online: Lifestyle: Arts & Fashion |
| Posted: Dewan Filharmonik Petronas unveils new season packed with diverse flavour. NEW season, new delights! It's that time of the year again when you thumb through Dewan Filharmonik Petronas' brochure for the upcoming season's highlights. Outside the classical repertoire, the 2013/2014 season of performances at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas (DFP) in KLCC, Kuala Lumpur will offer audiences a contemporary cultural snapshot of music and beyond. Together with resident orchestra the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO); discerning music fans can look forward to everything from songbirds, accomplished jazz artistes, an acclaimed dance legend, indie rock straight through whimsical tunes from Pixar. Kicking things off the new season is a performance by teen prodigy and piano virtuoso Tengku Ahmad Irfan on Aug 17. The showcase will see Irfan premiering his original composition titled Sahibul Hikayat Fantasy Overture alongside pieces by R. Strauss, Sergei Prokofiev and Jongen. MPO specifically chose Aug 17 because it was on this day – 15 years ago – that the orchestra performed its first concert at DFP. In September, the celebration continues with the fourth instalment of DFP Seni Festival. Look out for Malam Melayu Klasik; a nostalgic showcase featuring veteran singer Datuk Andre Goh and Badan Kesenian Yayasan Warisan Johor on Sept 16. There will also be an MPO & All That Jazz showcase on Sept 22, featuring the likes of singers Atilia Haron, Elvira Arul and Dina Nadzir. It's an opportunity to catch these songbirds on the big stage as they run through favourites from the jazz songbook and beyond. Then on Oct 8, Kelab Sukan & Rekreasi Petronas and DFP will present a one-night only charity concert featuring the undisputed jazz queen Datuk Sheila Majid and Indonesian pop crooner Harvey Malaiholo. Expect to hear hits like Sinaran, Lagenda and Ku Mohon by Sheila Majid as well as Dia, Aku Begini Kau Begitu and Jerat by Harvey Malaiholo. Music lovers can also look forward to rousing performances by the Vienna Boys Choir (Oct 30), Grammy-nominated German guitarist Ottmar Liebert (Nov 18) and Icelandic jazz-funk fusion band Mezzoforte (Nov 25). Vienna Boys Choir, is one of the oldest boys' choirs in the world. For nearly 500 years it has been an enduring symbol of Austria. Its first-class training has produced numerous highly qualified vocalists, violinists and pianists. Liebert, 54, is no stranger to jazz guitarists. Despite being European, he is best known for his Latin-influenced music and brings contemporary flamenco to the forefront. His new album Dune, is a slight detour from the man's signature sound as it embraces a more intimate and reflective tone. All said, Liebert's guitar style will be the focus on stage at DFP. Mezzoforte, meanwhile, is considered to be Europe's most important jazz funk fusion band since it emerged as a teenage jazz outfit in 1977. In 2012, the band celebrated its 35th anniversary. Its latest album Islands documents the band's process of maturing musically and adds another gem to its discography. In 1996, the three founding members Eythor Gunnarsson, Johann Asmundsson and Gulli Briem expanded the band with the saxophonist Oskar Gudjonsson, in 2006 with the guitarist Bruno Müller and trumpet player Sebastian Studnitzky, adding new colour. On Nov 25, you can bet Mezzoforte will be a hot concert ticket. Watch the fans go crazy as the band plays its summer hit Garden Party. Homegrown indie outfit Hujan will end the year with an acoustic set on Dec 2 under the DFP Spotlight Series. The band's catalogue of hits will be significantly rewired but you can count on Hujan frontman Noh and bandmates to deliver an enjoyable performance. The New Year brings in more joy as MPO presents a series of Valentine's Day concerts next February. Prepare to be serenaded by the smooth vocals of English singer Stephen Rahman-Hughes (Feb 8-9), husband-wife piano duo Robert Levin and Ya-Fei Chuang as well as violinists Liza Ferschtman and James Ehnes. It's Beatlemania all over again as MPO Plays The Beatles next March. Movie buffs are also in for a treat. Next June, MPO presents Disney's Pixar in Concert. For the first time ever, the orchestra will perform memorable tunes from feature films like Toy Story and Finding Nemo. The musical arrangement will be accompanied by visually stunning film clips. For a dance spectacle, legendary dancer Datuk Ramli Ibrahim will also hold down a two-night engagement with the MPO next June. For enquiries and subscription (03-2051 7007) or email dfp_boxoffice@petronas.com.my. Visit the Box Office to get your copy of the new brochure or download it at www.mpo.com.my. |
| Posted: The latest exhibition at Pace Gallery showcases different elements of Malaysia. PINOCCHIO sits comfortably, perched atop a very tall chair. Around him are countless terracotta warriors, their grim faces ready to send shudders down your spine. Across them, a stone's throw away, is a child, wearing a helmet and grasping his favourite toy, an Angry Bird plush. The many leaders of the world, past and present, good and evil, surround him. Directly opposite them is a familiar looking building in Kuala Lumpur, blocked by barbed wires and a fence, and somewhere behind this edifice is an old man and a young boy, looking forlorn, surrounded by moths, butterflies and flowers. This could very well be a psychedelic dream or the opening sequence of Tim Burton's latest movie, with a Malaysian twist. But very likely, it is the latest exhibition at Pace Gallery in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, featuring works by four young and up and coming local artists, Azrin Mohd, Hafidz Shabri, Khairul Arshad and Nasir Che Din. Named NEU 4, alluding to the four men relatively new to the arts scene, the exhibition boasts a remarkable collection, five artworks from each of them, all unique to their personal style and genre. One thing becomes apparent upon stepping into the gallery: there is no unifying theme that connects the artworks. When the gallery, run by Yusof Majid, approached Azrin, Hafidz, Khairul and Nasir nearly three months ago, it was decided, from the very beginning, not to bind them to a particular theme. All four artists went with their own direction and themes. Thus, the only element that bound them together and eventually gave birth to the exhibition is the fact that the four men are new and rising artists in the country. "The four of us come in with a different work genres. Nasir, Khairul and Hafidz are more into paintings and I'm more into assemblage," said Azrin in a recent interview, referring to the artistic process of putting objects together to form a two or three-dimensionalpiece of art. "Each individual will have their own direction of what they want to do." Interestingly, however, Malaysia became very much the focus of the four artists, that is, the many aspects and facets of the country, from politics to the nation's children. Azrin, who works in the advertising industry, noted that the recently concluded general elections became his muse. With the deluge of politicking, scandals, brickbats and charismatic personalities, Azrin was definitely spoilt for choice. Clarifying that his artworks for this exhibition in no way reflects his political leaning, Azrin said he drew inspiration from what he read in the papers or watched on the television. Referring to one of his assemblage works on display, ironically named The Chair, Azrin explained that it is simply about the fight to be the ultimate leader. "The Pinocchio puppet is simply a representation of power and people fighting to get that power and in the end, sit on that high chair. As you would have realised, the chair's proportion was intentionally exaggerated to make it very high. Moreover, politics, in general, always has shadow parties controlling the politicians. This is why I decided to use Pinocchio, complete with the strings, indicating that the puppet can be controlled. "On top of that, people would get the symbolism behind Pinocchio, which is the elongation of his nose upon telling a lie," said Azrin, 44, chuckling. As for the terracotta warriors, Azrin said they represented different aspects of politics, from greed to power and what not. The artist took three weeks just to complete the process of making the terracotta figurines. He also shared that most of the miniature furniture in his works were made by him and only some items, like the white oriental vase, was bought. To drive the point further, all of Azrin's assemblages had a custom-made wallpaper background, as he believes wallpapers represent something internal, like "Our house. Our house is our home and likewise, the country is our home. So, with the wallpaper, it's as if we are looking into or at someone's home when in actual fact, we are looking into the state of affairs in our country." While politics became Azrin's starting point, children and dreams and memories were Khairul's. A central character, bright colours and a crowded canvass are the 26-year-old's marked signature, permeating all his five paintings. "For the piece The Apprentice, I first chose the central character of a child. Then I looked into the emotions of a child and tried to understand that. Then, I surrounded him with the leaders of the world, good and bad. What I'm trying to say is that you will never know how a child will turn up once he grows up. He can be a good leader or an evil one, depending who he is influenced by. "It all depends how he is guided. And a child is like a clean slate. He can follow any direction and be influenced by the things around him and this is why I included the element of the helmet. The child is wearing the helmet to shield himself from the bad influences of the world," explained Khairul, a fulltime artist. Paintings by Hafidz Shabri are replete with barded wires, fences and lines. They deal with edifices in the country, which are becoming lost and forgotten as a victim of progress. On the other hand, Nasir Che Din's paintings can serve as social commentary. They show how the evolving political landscape affects our lives and often feature forlorn figures and flowers and moths and butterflies, possibly inferring deceit, change and beauty. How will the experience be for the visitors? "For this exhibition, it will be a mixed experience for them. They will get to see traditional paintings on canvass, like Khairul's or something slightly different, like the assemblages. On top of that, they will get to experience the different issues undertaken by each artist," reasoned Azrin. Picasso famously said, "Art is the lie that enables us to realise the truth." And that is exactly what one would get from the exhibition. The paintings and assemblages may be varied, four different artists may have produced them and they may be dealing with different issues, but at the end of it all, all of them, if we would only look closely, show us the truth, the ugly truth and the beautiful truth about our beloved country. NEU 4 is on at Pace Gallery, 64, Jalan Kemajuan 12/18, Section 12 in Petaling Jaya, Selangor till July 13. Viewing hours: 11am to 6.30pm. More info at http://goo.gl/eeXYj. |
| Posted: Pelita Hati offers its take on what futuristic inventions might have looked like in a past different from what history books tell us. IMAGINE a mad inventor from the past gone wild, and you'll have an idea what Pelita Hati Gallery of Art currently looks like. There are cogs, gears, pressure gauges and metal parts everywhere you look, whether you are admiring a bizarre contraption on display, a fantastical creature immortalised, an article of clothing on a mannequin, or the toilet door – which has been made over to look like one in a steam engine room. In fact, the entire art gallery has been transformed into something resembling a steam engine room filled with an assortment of strange-looking mechanical objects, unusual anachronistic sculptures and wall reliefs. The seventh instalment of the annual Ilham exhibition has a name that says it all: In the words of Pelita Hati managing director Raja Annuar, Ilham VII – Steampunk marries the design aesthetic of the 1800s with the functionality of modern technology. "This is what I imagine it would look like if someone took all the what ifs from the industrial revolution era and brought it into the future," he says. "It is like the Wild West meets Alice in Wonderland, it is science fiction and fantasy…plus a whole lot of imagination." Focusing on sculptures and installation works, this Steampunk-inspired project presents a mishmash of the old and new. Seemingly random bits and bobs – a bolt here, a screw there, a series of gears to round it off – are combined to create unique and expressive pieces. If one were to take any of these objects on display apart, it would probably be difficult to visualise that the individual parts could come together so elegantly. "I have been thinking about having a Steampunk themed exhibition ever since I read a book on Steampunk sculptures two years ago," says Raja, who, in the spirit of the Steampunk theme, wore a black top hat fitted with a pair of modified goggles to the exhibition's opening night. During a tour of the gallery with this writer, he flips a switch and a robotic-looking figure comes to life with a screech and a clang. "I like many of the works in this exhibition and I love the ambiance it lends to the gallery. I personally find the functional art pieces the most interesting – works that have moving bits, and have some use. And of all these works, Omong-Omong Kosong by Ali Bebit is probably my favourite," he says, gesturing towards the robot-figure-creature that is now mechanically opening and shutting its mouth. Not far from this invention, Ayisha Rahman's Triggers & Thoughts' cogs and twisted wire surround an old clock positioned beneath a yellowed wedding photograph illuminated by a single lightbulb. Suhaidi Razi's Mutant sees a hen with a face composed of nuts and bolts roosting in the corner opposite – worthy of a second look if only because it looks like it has been given three beaks. The list goes on: An archaic-looking miniature flying contraption looks ready to take (shaky) flight, an oversized scorpion created from old camera casings freezes in mid-strike, and glorious red and white roses burst from the barrel of a gun. "This flying vehicle is not made to fly, but doesn't it look like it can? You can see and feel the science behind it even though it can't fly, and I think that is really intriguing," he says of the flying contraption by Azzuan Osman. Of the roses, he relates, "The artist is showing that there is a soft spot even in violence. Such an art piece by Abu Zaki Hadri is not something you see every day, but this is exactly what we want to encourage with an exhibition such as this. The objective is to encourage new ideas, new inspiration, to make sense of things that are in need of repair, that are broken, or that are old." If you are looking for gritty yet aesthetically pleasing pieces, then look no further than Nizam Abdullah's Food For Thought and Shaarim Sahat's Recycle Man – one is vaguely reminiscent of someone - or something - donning a gas mask, while the other almost looks like it just emerged from the world of Wall-E, an animated sci-fi comedy film set far in the future where robots roam the waste-covered land. Raja lingers in front of Suhaidi Razi's Spiral Machine which shows an arm stretching out from what looks like a snail's shell. "This reminds me of the Addams family," he says, making a reference to the fictional family well-known for their eccentricity and love of all things morbid. "They are both a little bit creepy," he laughs. Looking at the art pieces at this exhibition, there is indeed plenty of whimsical in the imperfect, and charm in the reworked. "It is creative, it is fun, and there's no limit to where our imagination can lead us," he says. Ilham VII – Steampunk is on at Pelita Hati Gallery of Art, 1st Floor, No. 8, Jalan Abdullah, off Jalan Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur till July 20. Tel: 03-20923380; 03-22829206. More details at: www.pelitahati.com.my. Viewing hours: Monday to Saturday (10am-6pm). |
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