At the AEM opening (from left): AEM organising chairman Vincent Sim, Deputy Tourism Minister Datuk Dr James Dawos Mamit (representing the Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen), and National Art Gallery Director-General Ambassador Dato’ Mohd Yusof Ahmad
A latter-day batch of Andy Warhol Campbell Soup silkscreen’s put up by Singapore’s Collectors Contemporary
China’s contemporary art superstars such as Yue Min-jun and Zhang Xiao-gang, with their stratospheric prices, have yet to hit the AEM but Taiwan’s William Contemporary Art Space was also testing the waters by bringing in their prints (editions of 130).
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ONE would have batted an eyelid if it were in the majors, but the trickle of Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Joan Miro and Zao Wouki was a big thumb’s up to the still fledgling Art Expo Malaysia (AEM), only in its fourth year.
South Korea, through the International Artists Cooperative Organisation vehicle, never failed to impress with works such as those by IACO president Alvin Lee Bung Lyol, Shin Dal Ho, Kang Sung Uck, Kim In Sook, Kim Jong Wong and Suh Yoon Jae.
Indeed, a set of Andy Warhol got sold to a Malaysian collector, who preferred anonymity, for RM2 million, while a small work by German Expressionist Ewald Platte (1894-1945), a lesser known contemporary of Emil Nolde and Karl-Schmidt Rotluff, was snapped up for a cool RM120,000.
While the art from Thailand and Vietnam were conspicuously absent, the debut of Pakistan with their strong figurative art was a revelation. Works by Saeed Akhtar , Ahmad Khan (calligraphy), R.M. Naeem and Ali Azmat certainly impressed.
On the last day of the AEM at the Matrade Exhibition and Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, bargain hunters kept up a frenzied last-minute shopping spree, pushing the overall sales from the five-day event (excluding the gala VIP Night graced by the Raja Muda and Raja Puan Muda of Perlis, the patron) to RM11 million – nearly twice the amount from the previous two years’ sales. While there was encouraging sales of Malaysian works, the ravenous appetite of Malaysian collectors for foreign artists’ works – India, Myanmar, the Philippines, Indonesia, South Korea and China – was an eyeopener, if a little perplexing. The Warhols were sold by Singapore’s Collectors Contemporary, which also boasted of Lichtenstein (1923-1997) and young hotshots Chris Levine and Russell Young. Don’t the collector wished he had also picked up the Lichtenstein, for only scarcely two weeks later, at the Christie’s New York auction, Lichtenstein’s 1964 painting, Ohhh… Alright, set a sales record for the artist at a US$42.6 million (RM133.4 million) premium!
Also making their debut was the Art For All Macaunese co-operative, while Japan, which had the Grandmother of Pop, Yayoi Kusama, last year, had a bigger representation with the Asian Artists Network group. For the second year, the National Art Gallery came in as co-organisers and chose a selection of its sculpture collection in its Transmetalsi showcase, with works from aboriginal woodcarvings such as those of the Hampatung guardians and Borneon masks to contemporary works by Tengku Sabri Tengku Ibrahim (wood-carved totems), Raja Shahriman Aziddin (spiky Gerak Tempur) and Mad Anuar Ismail (keris-hilt standee). The main ‘entertainment’ attraction was the 3D animation work, RESTART, the latest by Miao Xiao Chun, whose Microcosm proved to be a bit hit last year. This time, the maestro himself was present, and gave a talk offering insights into his work.
The influx of the best of Singapore galleries with their cosmopolitan outreach was noteworthy. If nothing else, the art buying at the AEM proves there are big spenders in art among Malaysians. Some have been known to have stashed their largesse of Impressionist and modern masters in their London homes. The art sale was not the only thing that raised eyebrows at the AEM. The visitorship also surged and doubled to 12,000, and this in a country never known to be big gallery goers. The interest spike could have been triggered by the hyped-up 1MCAT (1Malaysia Contemporary Art Tourism) Festival and the RM1.737million turnover at the 1st Henry Butcher Art Auction Malaysia on Aug 8. That the Art To Rent gallery of Spain managed to sell several limited edition maquette sculptures of Jesus Curia besides the Miro prints vindicated their gamble in sticking to the AEM since its inception.
Transmetalsi Li Chi Mao giving a painting demonstration The AEM attracted artists not only from all over the country, but Eng Tay (right) flew out from his New York home base specially for the even.
Also garnering great attention was China’s newly emerging Chinese brush icon Wang XiJing (heading the Shaanxi Artists Association) and Taiwan’s 85-year-old national art treasure Li Chi Mao. Both gave painting demonstrations which astonished the spectators of their innate skills.
Wang Xi-jing was also represented in Hong Kong’s reputable Chit Fung, which also boasted of works by Wang Ming Ming, Pan Gongkai and Li Xiaoke (son of Li Keran). Other attractions were the Cuiheng Culture and Art Village (China) and Peter Liew’s Archi-Heritage. The AEM also provided booths for embassies of Argentina, Cuba and Ecuador to showcase their Latin flavoured art, for the enjoyment of aficionados locally and also to forge links with the far-away lands. The AEM, to further promote art in the country, was still free, and also provided free shuttle bus services to convenient locations in the city centre. For the first time, the AEM was fortunate to have found a major sponsor, Secret Recipe, the Made-In-Malaysia restaurant franchise that has spread to Australia, Brunei, China, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. The AEM also received very strong support from the Tourism Ministry, which heavily promoted it overseas. The AEM seemed to have leaned more towards contemporary art if the 4th edition was anything to go by. But where participation is based on the lottery of willing-paying clients, after vetting of their credentials of course, much will depend on the players of the day. The AEM attracted 49 galleries/art spaces from Spain, China, Indonesia, Germany, Hungary, India, Myanmar, Taiwan, the Philippines, South Korea, Ecuador, Cuba, India, Japan, Argentina, Pakistan, Macau, Hong Kong and Malaysia.
EXHIBITON
l Ooi Kok Chuen
ARTIST IN RESIDENCE
AEM 2010 REVIEW
REVIEW
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