PETALING JAYA, June 16 — In an upscale suburb of Kuala Lumpur, a group of artists and enthusiasts have gathered for the opening night of the group show Making at Shalini Ganendra Fine Art.

Until a few years ago, the emerging Malaysian art scene — comprised of a heady mix of traditional influences and cutting-edge contemporary installations — flew mostly under the radar, with few artists and works sparking international interest.

But in recent years, say local curators and artists, that’s glacially but steadily begun to change. Lately, the contemporary art scene is starting to take off, especially in cosmopolitan and history-rich Kuala Lumpur, where sleek skyscrapers rub shoulders with old colonial buildings and bustling street markets.

'Life's a circus 2', stoneware with under glaze, by Lileng Wong.
'Life's a circus 2', stoneware with under glaze, by Lileng Wong.

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SGFA, a combination exhibition space and art residence, has embraced that shift. The gallery hosts both local and international talent, and has a distinctly outward-facing vibe — curating, says its eponymous director and founder, works that aim for the international museum scene.

“It has been a time for survivors to reflect and re-grow,” Ganendra says of the evolving Malaysian scene. “With Malaysia’s desire to place itself in the international sphere, our art participants have had to reflect on international capacity.”

As in KL, a sense of peaceful collision is something of a theme here. The eco-friendly building (it was designed by renowned eco-architect Ken Yeang) is grey and angular, but its sharp features are offset by gently swaying plumeria trees outside, and the curve of a large bamboo structure from the gallery’s 2015 “Pavilion” architecture competition. Interior exhibitions frequently address Malaysian cultural themes with both traditional and new media.

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'Terkerai', wood and steel, light, by Anniketyni Madian.
'Terkerai', wood and steel, light, by Anniketyni Madian.

Making transforms the upstairs area of the gallery into a life-size collage of works from three established Malaysian artists. Sarawak-born Anniketyni Madian brings eight new sculptures to the exhibition, hefty yet intricate wood pieces that dominate the exhibition space with geometric forms and rich tones.  Rounding out the sculpture offerings on display, there’s a pair of colourful stoneware and underglaze ceramic candle holders from Kota Kinabalu ceramicist Lileng Wong.

'Terkerai 2', wood and steel, light by Anniketyni Madian.
'Terkerai 2', wood and steel, light by Anniketyni Madian.

Zelin Seah’s work is perhaps the most conceptual. Inspired by his work in art education — a field that Seah says is shifting away from the classical in favour of throwing art students into the conceptual deep end and leaving them to flail towards newer, bolder shores — Seah takes traditional forms and rewires them for the nascent Malaysian art scene.

In that vein, his contribution to the exhibition consists of a row of smashed-up anatomy studies in plaster running from the main gallery space to an earthen ramp outside the building. The installation is accompanied by a triptych of oil-on-aluminium paintings that blend classical with abstract: the most literal of these, Belvedere Torso, depicts a classically muscular chest bisected by gleaming geometric spears of gold leaf.

Alone, the works of the three artists are intriguing; in concert, new themes emerge. There’s a serendipity to be found in examining Wong’s fine clay pieces next to Seah’s plaster fragments, or the geometric patterns of Madian’s woodworking set into the corners of the angular concrete display space.

This microcosm of the Malaysian art scene is far from immune to the blending of tradition and innovation that seems to run through KL. Threads of a Malaysian identity are woven throughout: the leafy fronds sprouting from Seah’s sculpture are native, edible plants, and Madian’s richly patterned carved surfaces are inspired by traditional Malaysian textile weaving of the sort seen in the meticulously patterned pua kumbu fabrics of her native Sarawak.

“In Malaysia, we don’t have so many women sculptors, so I’m bringing it to a different level,” Madian says. “I’m bringing pua kumbu from traditional into contemporary.”

'Venus de Milo', oil on aluminium, by Zelin Seah.
'Venus de Milo', oil on aluminium, by Zelin Seah.

Madian’s heritage-inspired works — wrought of dark wood and steel, illuminated from within by hidden sources of light — have an immediacy and physicality which belies their complexity. On closer look, the works are complicated and delicate. Terkerai, a large lighted piece with a simple geometric outline, bristles with finely carved stalactites of wood within. The pieces, created over the last year or so, are a departure for the artist, whose popular wall hangings have found an audience in the US and the UK. But they breathe with a complicated past as well, reflecting an art heritage which continues to fly under the international radar.

Madian has just been selected by curator Stephanie Hollingworth for Kohler International’s BOLD ART exhibition that will tour SE Asia.

Opening night drew an eclectic group — local students and art enthusiasts, expats from the art scenes in Berlin and Australia. If the make-up of the crowd is any indication, then Malaysian art has indeed transcended national borders as Ganendra and other local opinion leaders hope it will continue to do.

The night ends with a light show, set to eerie electronic music, wired through the bamboo structure outside. Like Making and many aspects of this gallery, the display, called Bamboo2 is a collaboration: a team of local architects designed the structure, while a group of international artists designed the sound and light show over a series of Skype sessions.

And a member of the Orang Asli, the collective term for Malaysia’s indigenous peoples, served as bamboo consultant for construction of the structure, now illuminated with arcs of electric blue light zipping faster than the taxi cabs in downtown KL. Like everything here, it hovers on the edge of rich tradition and uncertain future.

Exhibition continues through August 12.

Gallery Hours, Tues – Sat 11am – 7pm. Entrance is Free.

Fb: SGFA

www. shaliniganendra.com.