By Thian Yi-Ming (Sr1ScD)
National Visual Art Gallery
It was definitely a day to remember for all of us in the Comics Club of Kuen Cheng High School. On 23 March 2019, we organized a day trip to National Visual Arts Gallery and the Central Market Art Gallery in the city center.
The existing establishment of National Visual Arts Gallery was transformed from the original National Arts Gallery. We took the spiral stairs right up to the third floor of the building to begin our visit at the exhibition of International Master Print. It was the eye-catching Eight Silhouettes by Pablo Picasso that drew the most crowd. Some Club Members gathered around our Teacher-Advisor and listened attentively to the technique used by the renowned artist. Next, we came to the showcase of Mr Liao Shiou-ping, 84, who is fondly known as Taiwan’s Father of Modern Printmaking. His works are filled with geometric shapes and by using mixed-media. His recent art series under Knots, Life Symbols and Dreams are trying to interpret the complexity of modern life.
We continued our tour in the Gallery on the other floors that display Digital Arts, 3D Instalment and the Street Art. From a quote on the wall which John Lasseter, the famous American animator, once said, “The art challenges the technology, and the technology inspires the art”, we came to realize the importance of the application of technology in this digital age. We appreciate the effort of the Gallery to promote the understanding of arts and its practices in Malaysia and abroad. We continued with our visit of the day to a new location.
Central Market Art Gallery (Pasar Seni Central Market)
Art House Gallery Museum of Ethnic Arts, an annex building to the Central Market is a fascinating mini museum of folk and ethnic art. It houses plenty of genuine indigenous artworks, be it tribal mask, ornamental sword or even carved animal skulls.
The gallery caretaker was a middle-aged man with a fiery passion for ethnic art and artifacts of the tribes, mainly from East Malaysia. He took some thirty years traveling in the deep mountains. He began to understand more about their life and culture. Back then, the indigenous people were superstitious and afraid of the spirits. So, they would make fearsome masks and intricate carvings on skulls after a religious sacrifice. Today he finally came out and was ready to share with the public his precious collection of unique objects.
Looking upon these ethnic artwork, the club members learnt that art can come in many different forms. Their purpose varies from making statements, religious purposes, or just for pleasure. Art also affects and reflects a modern society, impacting many lives as well. Members of the Comics Club were inspired by the day trip which was full of creativity and fun.
