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Modern MalaysiaArt AnIntroduction

The modern Malaysian nationstate is a multi-ethnic and multi-

cultural entity. It is also a post-colonial nation where traditionalreligious beliefs and valuesconstantly overlap with modern,secularistic influences. Malaysia isa complex nation made up ofmultiple, overlapping culturalrealities. Malaysias heterogenouspopulation of about twenty onemillions inhabitants includes the

Malays, the Dayas, the!ada"ans, the #hinese, theIndians, the $a%aus, the Murut, the&rang 'sli, the (urasians, andother minority ethnic groups. Theofficial religion of the country isIslam but freedom of religiousworship is guaranteed by thenations constitution. The arrivalof the non-indigenous peoples,namely, the #hinese and the

Indians, in large numbers, tooplace during the )*th and +th

centuries. The story of a modernMalaysia art tradition has, assuch, been characteri"ed by multi-ethnic artistic engagements andendeavours. Its origins are

traceable to the early decades ofthe +th century. It may be rightlyclaimed that the excitement ofmodern Malaysian art lies in thefact that this relatively youngartistic tradition has continued tomirror aspects of the diversecultural realities and also theinevitable societal tensions thatmight be expected from thisprogressive, dynamic outheast'sian nation.

The #hinese Mills#apt. /obert mith)0)0It will be useful to loo at thehistorical origins of the modernMalaysian nation state. Thepresence of non-indigenouspeoples in this country today can

be attributed to the )*th century$ritish effort to bring in largenumbers of immigrants into thecountry to help develop it. The#hinese and Indians, arrivinginitially as indentured labourersand later, as tradesmen andartisans, brought with them theirown languages, customs andcultural forms. They therebyadded a new, complex social

dimension to the hithertoindigenous Malay-Islamic

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ambience of the place. It wasduring the )*th century that the$ritish had also introduced a new1estern-oriented educationalmodel through the newly-started

(nglish language schools. Theconse2uence of this developmentwas the introduction of newmodes of cultural perception thathad slowly but systematicallychanged the country and itspeople. The new 1estern-derivededucational model, founded onpragmatic, scientific andindividualistic underpinnings,resulted in the introduction ofmoderni"ing influences. $y theearly +th century, the place hadbeen transformed by the growthof the new, urban town centres.3ew inds of importedarchitecture had emerged,heralding a new way of life and anew modern era in the nationshistory. There was a new urbanenvironment and culture, 2uite

distinct from that of the earlier,unhurried, rural settings of theMalays and other indigenouspeoples. 'nd in this newurbani"ed environment, a newcosmopolitan cultural atmosphereemerged. Initially, thesetransformative developments tooplace in the so-called traitsettlements which were the newcentres of trade, education and

social change. It was in the traitsettlements of 4enang, ingaporeand Malacca therefore that thenew modern art activity initiallytoo root.

elf 4ortrait

5ong Mun en)*6)7or those who wanted to findemployment within the colonialgovernment service, the masteryof the (nglish language becamean essential 2ualification,achieved via attending the (nglishlanguage schools. 3ot everyone,however, went to these schools.The $ritish colonialists, in theirattempts to ensure their politicaldominance over the pluralisticpopulace, had also introduced a

complex divide-and-ruleeducational population policy,whereby different languageschools were systematicallyestablished for the different ethnicgroups as well. ' linguisticallyfragmented populace, separatedby deliberate colonial politicaldesign, was the result. The overall$ritish thrust was, nevertheless,towards modernising the country,

in order to mae it a viablecontributor to $ritishs industrialambitions. These moderni"ingprocesses introduced new modesof cultural perception. Ideas aboutthe physical world changedradically. 7rom the moretraditional, religious and symbolicmodes of perceiving andinterpreting reality, a more

scientific and rational appreciationof nature and reality emerged. '

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conse2uence of thesemoderni"ing developments wasthe emergence of a new ind ofcreative visual artist in thiscountry. This new artists, initially

imbibing the tenets of 3aturalism,new ideas of artistic individualismas an experimental mode of self-expression, derived from the1est, differed from the moretraditional craftsmen of the placewho functioned within strictlyreligious, symbolic and culturally-restricted systems and contexts.This new ind of secularistic,modern artistic activity was notrestricted by religious or ethnicdemarcations.

4ortrait of My 1ife in 1edding Dress& Don 4eris)*88'lthough the beginnings of ourmodern art tradition is dateable)*+s, the actual introduction of1estern-type art forms into thiscountry must have taen placemuch earlier. The 4ortuguese had

initially introduced #hristian-typeimagery into the #atholic

churches in Malacca. The Dutchwho replaced the 4ortuguese inMalacca must have also broughtinto that historic town someexamples of naturalistic

landscape and portrait paintingsfor which they had becomefamous in (urope. 1hat weactually have with us today, in ourart museums, are the )*thcentury scenic topographicalviews produced by the $ritishtraveler-artists, employing anapproach founded on thenaturalistic 9pictures2ue:treatment. #ompared to theIndians, the Indonesians, the7ilipinos and the Thais, who hadbegan their modern artmovements during the mid-)*thcentury, Malaysians were latestarters. 1hy was this so; ' fewreasons may be ventured. The$ritish colonialists had notenvisaged a political role for arthere and they had not

encouraged it. The local ethnicgroups were initially alsodisinclined towards 1estern-typeartistic expression. The religiousMalay-Muslims were initiallysuspicious of 1estern educationand cultural influences and didnot readily tae to 1esterneducational influences andcultural forms during the )*thcentury. The #hinese and the

Indians, having come here as poorimmigrants, were more interestedin their economic upliftment andcertainly not in imbibing 1esterncultural forms. They were initiallybusy establishing their owncultural edifices and forms. It wasonly in the early decades of the+th century that the conditionswere right for 1estern-type artcommitments. The emergence ofsmall amateur art groups, by the)*+s, within the traits

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ettlements, mared the humblebeginnings of our modernist artcommitments.

The /ich

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from mainland Malaya as well asarawa and $ritish 3orth $orneo,went to study there in largenumbers, after the econd 1orld1ar. It was in the years after the

econd 1orld 1ar that thesignificant contributions of the3anyang art movement would bemade. During the )*Cs, the3anyang art movement witnessedthe rise of many significant artistssuch as #heong oo-4ieng,eorgette #hen, #hen 1en @si,#hung #hen un,

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gradual rise of !uala

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when local anti-colonialintellectuals and universitystudents at the university ofMalaya in ingapore, during thepre-independence period, had

ased the vital 2uestionsF 1hat isMalayan culture; and 1hat isMalayan identity; These wereindeed complex 2uestions butnevertheless very relevantconsidering the countryspluralistic cultural realities. Theartistic assumption during the)*=s had therefore been thatartists should arrive at adistinctive Malaysian style ofpainting, immediatelyrecogni"able as our own artform. 7ormal experiments and theuse of past cultural references,Malaysian, regional and even pan-'sian, had featured prominentlyin the artistic experiments.

7ishing Eillage#huah Thean Teng)*C=

pirits of the (arth, 1ater and 'ir4atric 3g !ah &nn)*C0

ome interesting attempts were

indeed made by the multi-racialartists at that time. $ati painting,

initially introduced by #huahThean Teng, was deemed a movein the right direction and washailed as a significant formalbreathrough. It spawned a

number of technical exponentswho included Tay Mo amals initial introduction ofabstract expressionist influencesinto local art scene in )*C*, was

mared by interesting syncreticattempts to fuse #hinese and1estern influences as isnoticeable in his highlycalligraphic wor, The $ait. 'bdul

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The $aityed 'hmad >amal)*C*

1hat was discernible from theseart wors was the new degree oftechnical and ideaticsophistication that had emerged

within the art scene. There wasalso, in many instances, the newemployment of internationalartistic frames of reference in thewors of some of the new abstractartists. 'bstract (xpressionistpursuits had begun to featurewithin the local art scene. The artscene had become moresophisticated with the emergence

of properly-trained artistsreturning from 1estern artcolleges in (urope and the nitedtates. The emergence of the 3ewcene artists in )*=*, advocatinga non-personalised, neo-#onstructivist art orientationmared another aspect of the newinternational abstractionistcommitments. These varied,amorphous artistic approaches

clearly mared individualisticpreferences and personali"eddefinitions of artistic priorities.'nd the spirit of modernist artexperimentation had allowed forthese varied individualisticapproaches.

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movement as a whole, at thattime. (thnic tensions were alreadyemerging in the young post-independent nation during thelate )*=s. @ence, when )8 May,

)*=* racial riots too place, ourvisual artists had actually beencaught by surprise. 1hat finallybecame clear to the more seriousartists now was that the youngMalaysian nation had indeed beenbuilt on very fragile foundationsJ

1hy 're 5ou

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'fter much deliberation anddebate at the #ongress, it wasdecided that the nation had toofficially lay down the basis of anofficial national culture. It should

be founded on Malay core values,Malay cultural forms and theMalay language as official nationallanguage. This must be theunifying basis for the constructionof a common official nationalcultural identity. The othercultures could exist but on anunofficial basis. The resolutionswere passed at the #ongress andthey were presented to thegovernment to be implemented assoon as possible. The implicationsof this historic decision was that italtered the cultural contextswithin which the nation hasoperated in ever since. Thegovernment had introduced apolitically-defined cultural visionand more importantly, it nowreinforced the hegemony of the

Malay nationalistic forces. Themass narrative would henceforthbe founded on a Malay-centereddiscourse and dominance. Theimplementation of the Malaylanguage in the universities andschools was thus speeded up andthere was now an officiallyprescribed and politici"eddefinition of national culture thatwould be given priority and

adhered to at all official nationalfunctions. 'nd this policy has

been use ever since then.

May )8/ed"a 4iyadasa)*=*

@ow did this new policy affect thevisual artists and the art scene inthe post May )8 era; 4erhaps, theone group of artists that as mostdirectly encouraged by the newofficial, politici"ed vision ofnational culture and identity werethe Malay artists connected to theITM chool of 'rt and Design, The

art school had been started onlyin )*=? as part of the effort toupgrade educational opportunitiesfor the Malays and the otherindigenous peoples. The MaraInstitute of technology ApresentlyiTMB, was an integral part of thenations new experiments in socialengineering. The ITM art schoolwas filled with Malay staff and

students for the most part and itwas here that the new Malay-centred artistic vision found itsstrongest adherents and itsmanifestation. It was here thatsome of the more interestingMalay-Muslim experiments beganto happen. 1e may be remindedthat for the Malay intellectualsand creative artists, the newofficially-sanctioned cultural policy

was, understandably, a realemotional need now for the Malay

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intellectuals, including artists, torediscover their cultural roots andhighlight their notions of 9Malay-ness:. 1e may also notice herethe shift from an earlier artistic

search for a broad-based multi-cultural Malaysian-ness to a newnotion of Malay-ness, as the newdefining cultural paradigm. Thisnew shift in emphasis inevitablycaused the emergence of a newMalay-dominated force within theMalaysian art scene. This newMalay-centred artistic energyfound its initial impetus from animportant exhibition curated bythe painter Datu yed 'hmad>amal at the niversity of Malayacalled /upa dan >iwa, which wasstaged in )*?6. In this exhibition,for the first time ever, all mannerof Malay artifacts and visual arts,were brought together from allover the country, analysed andpresented authoritatively as acoherent, distinctive cultural

manifestation of the Malays. 'boo on the exhibition waspublished as well. The richnessand complexity of Malay art anddesign was impressive andundeniable. It was certainly aneye-opener. It was, especially forthe Malay artists, a revelation andit set off the beginnings of astrong, Malay-Islamic revivalist artmovement within the local art

scene. These Malay-centredproclivities had began initially inthe late )*?s and lasted well intothe early )**s, before itsmotivating impulses began todiminish.

/ebab 4layerMad 'nnuar Ismail)**)

The Malay-Islamic art movementaffected not only the artistsconnected to the ITM art schoolbut other non-ITM Malay artists aswell. Their growing sense of theirMalay-ness was further re-inforced when the government, inintroducing and implementing the3ew (conomic 4olicyHs affirmativeaction policy, had demarcated thepeoples of this nation into twodistinctive groups, namely, theindigenous natives, now to be

called the $umiputeras and thenon-indigenous immigrants, nowto be called the 3on-$umiputeras.This was the new scenariofollowing in the wae of the May)8 event and a new sense of acultural schism had inevitablybegun to creep into the art scene.These new developments mareda more difficult phase indeed,signalling also the beginnings of

ethnic tensions and ethnic self-consciousness within the society-at-large.

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unung

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essay published in the boo Eisionand Idea L /elooing ModernMalaysian 'rt, that this newIslamic dimension had been partlyinspired by the successful Islamic

revolution in Iran of )*?0 and theemergence of the Islamic statethere. The MalaysiangovernmentHs Islamisationprocesses, begun in the early)*0s, had also given an addedimpetus th the Islamic dimensionthat appeared within the Malay-centred artistic movement. Thepro%ection of Islamic culture andcivili"ation now became therallying cry within the largerIslamic world as well as and manyMalay-Muslim artists lined to theITM art school respondedemotionally to new impulses,which saw the introduction ofradical new ideas about an Islamicreligious world-view beingintroduces. ' larger philosophicaldebate ensued. hould Muslims

re%ect the 1estern materialisticphilosophy and 1estern idea ofmodernism; 7or the Muslimsintellectuals, 1estern modernismwas now viewed as essentiallyhedonistic, not moralistic butdecadent and had thus to bere%ected. It was seculistic andindividualistic in orientations andnot religio-centred. In short, the1estern-derived modern artistic

and literary movements, foundedon humanistic individualism andself-expression, therefore alsoneeded to be re%ected. 'rtHs realfunction was to highlight theworship of 'llah and his divinelaws. &nly religiously inspired artforms were valid for Muslims. 7orthe local Malay writers the newrallying call had now become thesearch for a astera Islam AIslamicliteratureB and for the Malayartists it was eni Islam AIslamic

artB. The idea of an Islamicrenaissance gad became thenew catch phrase. It was clearlylined to a new, globalised Islamicresurgence. The first calls for an

Islamic state by certain extremist2uarters, began to appear in thiscountry around the early )*0s.

&ppositions'hmad !halid 5usoff)**8'nd this was the case with someof the ITM artists who embracedthe new Islamic consciousness.There was now a re%ection of the

underpinnings of the modernistmovement in art and the 1estern-derived idea of modernity andsecularism itself. 't the ITM artschool, figurative art was nowdiscouraged and a newprescriptive, abstract approach toart maing, founded on Islamicreligious and design principles,began to be encouraged, inearnest. The ubi2uitous Islamic

>awi script inevitably featured.'nd this Islamic consciousness

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was reflected in the wors ofulaiman (sa, 'hmad !halid5usof, /a%a Gahabuddin 5aacob,@amd"un @aron, and others. Inretrospect, it may be stated that

the Malay-Islamic approachadopted by the Malay-Islamicvisual artists toward creativity,had been founded on thefabrication of cultural forms thatowed their sudden appearance tothe new ideological and politicisedconsiderations rather than to anynatural, historical, evolutionaryprocesses that had taen placehere. It was, in essence, a self-conscious revivalist art movementattempting to evoe the pastglories of the 'rab-Islamic past.That these abstract Islamic worshad emerged within thesecularistic confines of the ITM artcollege, and exhibited within thesecularistic contexts of the artmuseum and the art galleries,rather than in the contexts of

everyday-life religious contexts, isa moot point that is worthconsidering, in hindsight. Themovement, nevertheless, hadreflected the new politici"edsentiments that have emergedwithin sections of the Malay-Islamic community in this countrysince the )*0s. The on-going,strident calls for the formation ofa theocratic Islamic state by the

Islamic 4as political party andother local Muslimfundamentalists, mars the mostextreme manifestation of thesenew Malay-Islamic politicalimpulses within the country. It isposing serious political problemsthat the present, more liberalisedM3&-led, multi-ethnic $arisan3asional ruling coalition is havingto downplay.

Tomb tone@am"un @arun)**+

The present day Malaysia that has%ust entered the new millennium is

indeed a far cry from the Malaysiaof the pre-May )8 era. The nationhas been successfullyindustrialising since the )*?sand Eision ++, an idea inspiredby the 4rime Minister, Datu eriDr. Mahathir Mohamad, mars thetarget date for possible arrival atfully industrialised nation status.Malaysia is today the eighteenthlargest trading partner of the

nited tates of 'merica and isbeing held up as a rare modelIslamic country that is fast maingthe transition into the post-modern globalised economicculture, There has arisen asubstantial multi-ethnic middleclass population. Malaysia is aninternational success story whichis the envy of the other Islamic

nations. There is intra-racialharmony and a tolerance of the

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nations multi-cultural religions,values and forms. @ow have theseradical socio-economicdevelopments affected the localart scene and our other more

serious artists in recent years;1hat are some of the moreserious issues that artists aretacling these days; It may beuseful to dwell a little longer withthe Malay creative artists. #learlythe rise of the new urbanised,consumerist, supermaret culturehere in recent years, has affectedthe older, traditional way of life.These new cultural developmentshave affected everyone,irrespective of race or religion. Ithas signaled a new ind of alteredcultural environment and hasintroduced a notion of a newurban identity that has largelyovertaen the earlier, laid-bacMalay rural contexts and itsconcomitant sentimentalisedvisions of a monolithic Malay

cultural identity.

My 7ather 'nd The 'stronautIbrahim @ussein)*=*

$etween Two ervingsDin &mar)**+

7or the new Malays of today, ithas been mared by an especiallydrastic shift environmentally. 'nd,interestingly enough, not all Malayartists have tended to turn bacthe cloc and return to a religiousworld of the idealised MaIay-lslamic past or the 'rab-Muslimcultural past. The new Malayconfrontation with thetechnological age has indeedbeen a complex transformative

process, as it is for everyone elsein this country. The inevitableimplications of this larger, newglobal cultural reality was, in fact,initially hinted at by the artistIbrahim @ussein in his prescientpainting My 7ather and the'stronaut, )*?. The old, shirtlessMalay peasant Ahis fatherB is%uxtaposed standing against theultimate symbol of the modern

machine culture, an 'mericanlunar astronaut. imilarly, IsmailGain in )*08 had hinted at thisnew Malay dilemma in his aptly-titled The De-tribalisation of Tambinte #he

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that she now co-habits withuncomfortably. It is a world of newdislocating realities for the olderMalay generation. The notedphotographer Ismail @ashim has

also often commented on thechanges happening within thelocal Malay rural environment. @is4ema%uan, )*0= is a statement onthe disappearance of theauthentic rural ampungs, as aresult of new developmental andmodern housing pro%ects. Theimage of this particular ampung,stripped bare, has to do,ironically, with the creation of anew golf course in 4enang. Thesocial dislocations have also beencommented on by the youngerMalay artists as well, often withhumour and sometimes withacute pain. &mar Dins $etweenTwo ervings, )**+ alludes to twoculinary habits in the new Malayworld nowadays, namely, that ofthe nasi lema stalls and older

habit of eating with hands and thecontrasting for and spoons andslee wine glasses of the newcoffee house culture of the new,posh hotels and the new middle-class Malay life style. The impactof the global popular mass-cultureand pop culture on the Malaypsyche has been commentedupon by the late Ismail Gain in hiscomputerised print showing the

(rwings of the TE eries Dallas,posing before a traditionalMalaccan Malay house. /a%aharimanHs depictions of theMalay ilat warrior, as portrayedin his metal sculptures, aredepersonalised, dehumanisedentities, nearer to the cyborgworld of the science fiction moviesthan to the older, flesh and blood,feudal world of the legendaryMalay warriors @ang Tuah and@ang >ebat. The new urbani"ed

realities of unmarried mothers,abandoned babies, abusedchildren, drug addiction, and theproblems of young disaffectedMalay urban youth, in more recent

times, has been commented uponrealistically and powerfully by$ayu tomo /ad%iin and otherMalay artists. These wors pro%ectanother view of the contemporaryMalay socio-cultural dilemma.Malay cultural identity is oviouslynot monolithic.

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and sophisticated scene, whencompared to that of theimmediate post-3ational #ultural#ongress period of the )*?s.There are many local art colleges

today, so many trained fineartists, many serious art boosand art critical publications, manycommercial art galleries andmany art patrons and artcollectors. The wors of our artistsare also being collected by foreignmuseums and people outside thecountry. &ur more serious artistsare now also winning internationalawards. 1hat seems interesting isthe emergence, since the early)**s, of a new generation ofyounger Malaysian fine artists.These younger artists have beenexposed to the new, more radicalmethods of art teaching that havebeen introduced in the artcolleges. Their perceptions clearlydiffer from that of the oldergeneration of artists, educated

during the ixties and eventies.These new artists reflect newcreative approaches. 4ost-modernist ideas have permeatedart colleges everywhere in theworld and altered the very idea ofthe artist. yllabuses have beendramatically overhauled in artcolleges and a multi-disciplinary,comparative approach of culturaland liberal studies has been

substituted. 'nd, the very notionof artistic activity has taen onnew meaning, as a conse2uence.3ot the least of these is theconsideration of historical,societal and linguistic influencesas vital ingredients of the artmaing process. The earliermythification of the artist as auni2uely inspired self-centredgenius, has been debuned today.'ll historical and cultural mythsare sub%ect to re-2uestioning

today. The new artist must nowunderstand the nature of culturaldiscourses and the way culturalsigns and mythic values aremanipulated by hegemonic power

groups. Discourse rather thanstyle has become the big definingword in artistic activity today.'rtists must intervene in thevalue-maing process and in there-defining of socio-culturalcontexts. 'nd, if necessary, thecreative artist should attempt todeconstruct entrenched culturalsystems in order to liberatethining processes. ' moreconceptual approach has, as aresult, emerged within the localart scene today, challengingprevious definitions of what artand artists should be about. 'more socially committed artist hasclearly emerged in this countrysince the early l**s, employingprovocative, confrontational andre-2uestioning approaches in his

creativity. imilarly, the newinterest in multi-dimensionalartistic installations and electronicvideo presentations signal new,significant areas of artisticexploration and expression.

ing ' ong 7or 'h !ong 'nd 'h Ma

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new, healthy, regenerative returnto figurative art concerns andrealism. 'bstract art impulses,which had dominated the artscene for so long, are now on the

decline. 5ounger artists arelooing at the real world, dealingwith it realistically and also re-2uestioning it. iven the nature ofthe multi-ethnic reality of thecontemporary Malaysian situation,it is only to be expected thatalternative artistic perceptionsand re-definitions of the issue ofnational cultural identity willemerge. 'nd these perceptionsmay not be in tandem withpolitically dominant officially-sponsored Malay-Islamicperceptions. They may bereactionary and in &pposition tothe officially prescribed idea ofcultural identity and an officiallypoliticised version of Malaysianhistory even. Marginalisation willand does encourage reactions on

the part of those artists who feelethnically marginalised. 'nd thishas happened in recent years withthe emergence of a significantnumber of younger non-Malayartists who have consciouslypro%ected non-Malay themes andissues in their art wors.

!de, !de, &ng@asnul >amal aidon)**6

The beginnings of this impulse istraceable to the early )**C andafter. It was initially connected tothe Malaysian Institute of 'rt, AorMI'B a private art school set up by

the #hinese community. The MI'art college is filled with a #hinesestaff and #hinese students for themost part. The presence of thenewly-returned .. trained artist,1ong @oy #heong, at the MI',during the early )**s, as ateacher, proved conse2uential tothe search for a more assertive#hinese-ness. This search for a3on-Malay point of view may beviewed as a counterpoint to theMalay-Islamic impulses. 1ongsinitial ma%or wor, a videoinstallation produced in )**untitled Sook Chingdealt with theatrocities of the >apaneseoccupation, suffered by allMalaysians. The artists attemptto construct a more composite,multi-ethnic history was very

obvious. 'll the races werefeatured in his video installation.&ld men and women, of all races,recounted their painfulexperiences. It pro%ected ahistorical narrative that was multi-ethnic in its orientations. 'llMalaysians had suffered. 'llMalaysians are the real heroes ofmodern Malaysian historyJ

oo #hing1ong @oy #heong)**

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1ong @oy #heongHs Migranteries produced during the mid-)**s was a tour de force,consisting of more than fifteen

large blac and white paintingsdocumenting the rich history ofthe #hinese community in thiscountry. It was clearly theyounger #hinese generationHs callfor a reconsideration of modernMalaysian history itself. TheMigrant eries had highlighted thedrama of the #hinese diasporaand the indelible #hinesecontributions to the building ofthis modern nation. It highlightedthe contributions of the &thers.&ther younger #hinese artistsbelonging to his generation havealso reacted to the overt Malay-Islamic tendencies and the senseof being marginalised by the newpoliticised processes. They havemade attempts to pro%ect the#hinese point of view. (xamples

include !ung 5u .'nurendra had produced starimages about the Indiancondition. @e has producedimages of Indian festivals and also

of a more star picture of thepoverty and social ills that havebeset the marginalised woringclass Tamil community me of themost powerful figurative art worsin the story of modern Malaysianart, to date. 'nd they also includepowerful images of that otherusually forgotten half of ournation, namely, the (astMalaysians. These new images

celebrating the rich culture of theDayas especially, have comefrom Malaysian artists who havecome to !uala

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ImmunityGulifli 5usoff)**8

The earlier strident Malay-Islamic

artistic impulses generated by theITM artists, in the wae of the3ational #ultural #ongress period,are clearly already on the decline.(ven the earlier strident calls for aastera Islam, by our Malaywriters have become less heardtoday. Interestingly enough, anumber of Malay Muslim artists,ex-students of the ITM art college,have turned to tribal, non-Islamicregional influences for theirartistic sources and visual effects.1ors by artists such as D"ulifli5usof, 7atimah #hi, >ailaini 'bu@assan and Mohd. '"har Mananemploy influences that are clearlyrooted in the authentic,indigenous outheast 'siancultural milieu. 'n artist who haspersistently involved herself with

the region and its politicaldevelopments is 3irmalahanmugahlingam. This is an areathat needs to be investigatedmore closely by Malaysian artistsas indeed the peoples of theoutheast 'sian region have acommonly shared prehistory andhave partaen of the various on-going civili"ational exposures andcultural transformations that have

shaped the complex, regionalhistory of outheast 'sia. 1ith the

growing decline of the nationstate as a self-contained, self-defining entity and the emergenceof new ideas pertaining toalternative regional centres as

the new "ones of economic andcultural influence Ai.e. the Thenited tates, the (uropeannion, /ussia, the 'sia- 4acific,'sean etc.,B such a propositionmay not seem so far-fetchedeven, given the new realities ofthe shrining, borderless lobalEillage.

Eietnam3irmala hanmughalingam)*0)

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Malaysian 'rtistF

5ong Mun en.Tsai @orng #hung.'bdullah 'riff. ehan #han

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