Where He Is Suppose To Be: A Decade Of Azam Aris (Dec 2018)
Published by HOM Art Trans​
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Born in Taiping, Perak, Helmi Azam B. Tajul Aris (b. 1983) or Azam Aris as he is known in the local art scene, grew up in the district of Matang, which together with Larut and Selama are some of the most historically significant places of 19th century Malaya. It came to prominence during colonial times mainly with the discovery of tin. This led to the infamous royal disputes and wars between secret societies over mining turfs. Formerly known as Klian Pauh, Taiping was the capital of Perak before it was replaced by Ipoh in 1937. Taiping was the site of the country’s first railway station, the oldest museum (Muzium Perak) and the country’s first public garden (Taiping Lake Garden) that was established by the British. Since Taiping received a substantial amount of rainfall all year round, it was ideal for many rare species of plants collected from around the world to flourish. Matang on the other hand is a fishing village known for its sea produce (fishes, prawns, crabs etc) which it exports to Singapore and its Kayu Arang Bakau (mangrove wood charcoal) which it ships to Japan. The people here are hard working, entrepreneurial and mostly self-employed.
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The 4th child among 7 siblings, Azam’s late father ran the family farm while his mother ran the family household. Azam’s recollection of his life as a young boy in the outskirts of Taiping was full of fun and adventure where much time was spent outdoors with friends. There was also the public screening of movies called ‘Wayang Pacak’ where a selection of foreign and local films was projected onto a large white screen erected in the middle of a field. Interestingly, the wayang pacak screenings began as part of the Malaysian government’s psi warfare against communist propaganda. It was organized by the Information ministry between the 1960s and 70s in west Malaysia. Before each screening, which usually starts at 8pm, guest speakers would remind those present of the dangers of the communist ideology which was also anti religion. Azam remembers looking forward to those screenings and enjoyed most the action and period films, especially about samurais and ninjas that were shown with subtitles. The power struggles and manoeuvrings leading to the subsequent battles intrigued him. Another form of entertainment came from his elder brother Iwan’s collection of local comic magazines such as Gila Gila, Humor, Ujang etc as well as locally printed and translated series of Japanese manga. These fed his imagination while extending his appreciation for the narrative aspects and different approaches in terms of visual styles and genres. Even though Azam was exposed to much popular visual culture at a young age, it never crossed his mind to consider art as a serious subject. However, it was a final year project in art class during his 4th year in high school that made him realize that art, in this case design, could be a viable career option. It was an assignment on designing packaging for traditional products. Azam recalled that his art teacher, a graduate from Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) was capable and passionate in imparting her knowledge and skills to her students. With his sister’s encouragement, Azam later applied for a diploma course in Graphic Design at UiTM’s branch in Sri Iskandar, Manjung, Perak after completing his form 5. However, only three courses were available at that time namely Ceramics, Fine Art and Fashion Design.
It was by the end of his foundation year that Azam was encouraged to take up fine art as a major on the strength of his portfolio. Azam had up to that point, no inkling of what fine art as a discipline was about but decided to follow through anyway. Here he met fellow artist Fadly Sabran. After obtaining his diploma in 2004, Azam signed up for a 7-month training course on videography and post production at the Multimedia University (MMU) in Cyber Jaya. The training course was organized by the state government to prepare selected students for the working world, especially in the areas of multimedia.​
SO SOUND
As Azam was still keen to further his education in the visual arts, he pursued his undergraduate studies at UiTM’s main campus in Shah Alam, Selangor. Student life became exciting as he met more like-minded individuals with similar interests. Among his course mates were Samsuddin Wahab@ Buden, Haslin Ismail, Ruzzeki Haris and Heri Zain just to name a few. These later became part of the experimental theatre and performance group called SO Sound. Inspired by STOMP, some of their public performances would involve live jamming using found objects to produce sound together with installations and poetry recitals. They were interesting enough to get repeated invitations to perform for gallery openings and other art related events. According to Azam, they wanted to explore and highlight the shifts and changes of the surrounding environment, from their rural background to life now in the city. Through the production of variety of sounds, they wanted to convey the experiences of such shifts in fun and energetic ways.
SEBIJI PADI
Azam graduated with a bachelor’s in fine art majoring in painting with a minor in sculpture making in 2007. Like the rest of his fellow artists, Azam was inspired by Matahati, possibly the country’s most well-known and successful art collective. There were also Indonesia’s legendary Taring Padi and their own immediate seniors who foundered the short lived Dikala Jingga which served as models to be emulated. The basic idea was to form a group to support each other in terms of sharing space, work, organizing exhibitions and art related events. Originally located at Alam Megah in Shah Alam, Sebiji Padi studio was founded by Hazmi Shoroin, Suhaimi Ahmad and Razif Rathi. The studio space was later taken over by Azam, Ruzzeki Haris, Buden and Zul Husni. It later evolved to become a community where young artists from different art collectives such as Kersani, Ruang Ruang Kosong, Pepak Tak Lumat and Warna Art Group came together and work based on common interests in the arts or to collectively share their concerns about issues relating to the community and society. Unlike other groups that were usually politically motivated and used art to voice their anger and frustration, Sebiji Padi was guided by compassion for the downtrodden and the unfortunate in society. They wanted to use art as a bridge to connect and help others. In the past, they’ve organized projects and exhibitions to collect funds to help victims of natural disasters. For community work, they’ve also provided art materials and basic training in mural painting. One of the ways to encourage potential donors to part with their hard earned for a good cause was to reward them with an original print by each member of the collective. The core members of Sebji Padi held out for a few years, working on murals and set designs for theatre and film to make ends meet while organizing art events for charity. When it came to their own personal work, sales and exposure were not encouraging as expected as they were considered still young and inexperienced. They later passed that studio space to another collective called Ground Zero.
On the meaning of Sebiji Padi (A Grain of Paddy), its English equivalent is ‘To miss by a hair’s breath’. It is self-deprecating in nature as the members at that time felt that no matter what they do or how hard they try, success and recognition will elude their grasps as their works and their attitudes were at odds with the expectations of society, especially the local art scene. This was perhaps due to the fact that they were not primarily motivated by financial rewards or chasing after accolades. Though most of its members have each found success and recognition in one form or another, the unconventional attitude and outlook that sets them apart from other art practitioners remained strong as can be seen by their outputs even to this day. By 2011, the activities of Sebiji Padi have slown down somewhat as its members became more focused on their own careers with some settling down to start a family. Recently, some of the members came together for a group exhibition at a private gallery in Kuala Lumpur 2015. It was the first time that they formulated a 12-point manifesto or guiding principles which they believed shape or represented their outlook as a group. The 12 points are as follows-
1) An Artist must be technically proficient.
2) An Artist is his/her own authority.
3) An Artist is never one to follow trends.
4) An Artist is responsible for his/her artistic direction and work.
5) Art making should be a pleasurable but also a serious undertaking.
6) An Artist should not shy away from embracing a multi-disciplinary
approach to art making.
7) An Artist must be intelligent and knowledgeable.
8) An Artist must also realize their limitations and short comings.
9) An artwork should express one’s emotions.
10) An Artwork should represent one’s self, thoughts and principles.
11) When all else being equal, the artist should always follow his/her heart.
12) Art is the vehicle; the artist is the driver.
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​COMPETITION AWARDS
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One of the ways for an artist to gain some sort of recognition early in their career is to participate in art competitions, though not any competition. It has to be the ones that are well regarded and presided by a panel of judges who are experts in their respective fields. Azam had won a number of competitions but only the few significant ones will be mentioned here. In 2010, Azam entered the Bakat Muda Sezaman or Young Contemporaries Award competition and won the Juror’s Award. It was his first participation in this national level art competition that began in 1974. Organized by the National Art Gallery, this important competition saw many of our significant contemporary artists of today among its young eager and hopeful contestants earlier, was originally inspired from a visit to the Young Contemporaries Exhibition in London in the 1960s by a group of prominent figures of the local arts scene that included Redza Piyadasa (1939-2007), Joseph Tan (1941-2001), Ismail Zain (1930-1991) and modern Malaysian art historian T.K Sabapahty (b.1938).
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Today, the Young Contemporary Art competition continues to be a highly anticipated competition for young and emerging artists with very lucrative prizes. For Azam, it was indeed an honour for his entry entitled ‘Terang Lagi Bersuluh’ which is roughly translated to mean ‘As clear as daylight’, to be specially selected for the Juror’s Award. Inspired by a traditional Wayang Kulit (Shadow Puppet) performance that Azam had the pleasure to be a part of, this work serves as a commentary on the geopolitical and economic games which also affects the country especially through the media and popular culture aimed at the young. ‘Terang Lagi Bersuluh’ sarcastically refers to those who already knew the answers but kept on asking questions as though in denial of what was ‘clear as day’. The most challenging part of putting the work together was painting the images in the dark using fluorescent colours. The idea came from how bank notes are checked for its authenticity by placing it under UV lighting to detect.
Among the more important art competitions to be organized by the private sector is the annual art competition called UOB Painting of the Year, now in its 36th year. An annual regional level competition organized by the United Overseas Bank of Singapore, it is held simultaneously in Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia where major award winners from each country will then compete against each other to win the major prize which includes a month-long residency program at the Fukuoka Art Museum in Japan. Azam won the silver category in 2013 and the gold category a year later. However, he did not win the major prize award. His winning piece for the gold category is entitled ‘Marathon’, a work inspired by the song from the American Avant Garde band called Kayo Dot. Parts of the lyrics from the song was submitted together with a very short rationale for his painting where he wrote ‘Love, peace and happiness is infinite’, that these qualities should continue to grow.
In 2013, Azam was selected together with 13 other young artists to receive the Young Guns Award, an independent initiative by HOM Art Trans as a form of recognition given to young art practitioners who are driven and consistent in producing quality works. It is a triennial event that hopes to encourage these artists to push and develop further their potential in the local art scene and beyond. Azam’s submission for the exhibition is entitled ‘Hit the Lights’, a digital image of two life size figures in astronaut suits on fire while fighting against each other in a wasteland. Azam made the figures and record the whole process which he later printed the image and painted on parts of its surface. It was a dig at the wastage of taxpayers’ money on the Angkasawan Program (2007) which sent a Malaysian astronaut to space with the help of the Russian government. It was claimed to be a way to inspire Malaysians to be interested in the subject of science and the space industry. However, the program ran out of funds and the other finalists in the program did not get to fly into outer space as expected. At that time this expensive program was seen more as an extravagant but futile PR exercise for the then government which were facing numerous challenges rather than a genuine pursuit of science and technology. ​​
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SOLO EXHIBITIONS
FLOAT
Apart from the activities with Sebiji Padi, Azam too was working towards becoming an artist in his own right. To be regarded as a serious practitioner, an artist should have a series of solo exhibitions to his or her name. As an active participant in group shows since 2002, Azam looked for opportunities where he could both develop his art and explore ideas and materials that were of interest to him. Fortunately, House of Matahati (now HOM Art Trans), established by Bayu Utomo Radjkin and members of Matahati in 2007 were keen to provide a platform and program to groom young artists in preparation for the local art industry. Understanding the numerous challenges facing most fresh graduates in their initial struggles to build a career as an art practitioner, with many giving up after a few years in the ‘real world’, Bayu wanted to provide some form of encouragement, guidance and exposure to ensure that those who aspire to become professional artists would not give up their dreams prematurely. Since HOM is an artist run initiative and not a commercial gallery, it was one of the very few places in town at that time willing to take chances by exhibiting young artists and emerging talents. HOM also took a chance by establishing its own modest artist residency program for young artists, a sparsely equipped studio space, with basic art materials provided to the artists free of charge. In fact, Azam and his fellow collective member Ruzzeki Harris were the first two artists to be accepted into HOM’s inaugural residency program. Within 6 months, the artists in residence would have to produce enough works to be shown by the end of the residency at HOM’s gallery space. Though the residency program was not as well structured as today, there were critique sessions especially with members of Matahati that proved invaluable and also days where visitors could come by and chat with the artists. Azam would usually spend a few days in a week sloughing at the residency while supporting himself with part time work. By October of 2008, Azam finally held his first solo entitled ‘Float’. The title came from the idea of how oil floats on the surface of water as both elements do not and could never mix. Azam, who cites the works of Egon Schiele (1890-1918), Francis Bacon (1909-1992) and Gerald Scarfe (b.1936) as influences at that time produced a series of mixed media paintings where the human figures were mutilated, diseased or mangled with their innards exposed in strange dreamlike settings. It was a cynical response to the issue of exposing one’s aurat (genitalia or other parts of the anatomy which may be considered arousing) that were being played up by the more conservative quarters of society regarding how young men and women dressed in public. Azam thought it would be interesting to present the opposite of what is deemed beautiful or desirable in the human form in general by showing us the opposite, a hideous pile of meat susceptible to pain, sickness, decay and death. Ironically, the subjects in his paintings are very much alive, engaged in youthful activities, unaware of their mortality, the fragility of life and impending demise. They go about in vain ignorant bliss, lost in the pleasures of being young and driven by a naive sense of their perceived invincibility.
PARANOIA
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If ‘Float’ was seen to be morbid and macabre, Azam’s second solo was refined, though no less disturbing in terms of the subject matter which it explored. While ‘Float’ focused on the physical terror, ‘Paranoia’ highlights the psychological. Done almost entirely in ink, the exhibition which was held at R.A Fine Art in Ampang from 1st- 15th June 2010, featured more than 20 drawings on paper of various sizes with some mounted inside clocks, enhancing the already ill sense of foreboding surrounding the characters in his works. As defined in psychiatry, paranoia is a state of intense anxiety or fear to the point of irrationality and delusion. Azam had observed that Malaysians in general, though sociable and quick to smile, easily becomes anxious, suspicious and defensive when reacting to certain issues, especially played up by politicians including those from the establishment through their media mouth pieces for political expediency or to score brownie points among its supporters. Of course, such expected sentiments from sections of society did not develop overnight. It took years to plant the seeds of suspicion, doubt and fear into generations of Malaysians through education, national policies and the media especially regarding areas deemed sensitive or off limits for discussion. To ensure that the status quo remain unchallenged, that certain discourses continue to be under the control of those with vested interests, an artificial climate of fear is created and maintained so that the general population is kept constantly at a heightened state of distress and disquietude. Being ill at ease and on guard all the time from imaginary threats, supplied by a steady stream of fake news and false testimonies, one becomes easy prey for manipulation and coercion, acting or responding to a situation that benefits the puppet masters. Such efforts at mind control on a mass scale over the years have the negative effects of turning individuals in society into passive aggressive narcissists. Under a façade of normalcy, these neurotics would go through the motions with imaginary chips on their shoulders yet strangely, they are unable to put a finger on the root causes of their dis-ease or frustrations other than pointing fingers at others. This psychological defence mechanism, which is a form of denial, leads to a persecution complex, even when presented with evidences to the contrary. They begin to project onto others their irrational fears with the most toxic being feelings of envy and resentment masquerading as righteous indignation at perceived injustices on a social and personal level.
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YEAH
In Azam’s third solo exhibition entitled ‘Yeah’ (2015), the artist shifts his focus from the individual to the masses. Inspired by his time at the Asia Art Studio Residency in Gwangju, South Korea, Azam saw for the first time the vast differences in terms of culture and behaviour between a predominantly homogeneous South Korean society and his country of origin. Growing up in a largely multiracial society, most Malaysians were exposed to the practices and outlooks of their neighbours at a very young age who differs from us in some ways but who are also connected to us in many others. The most visible and delightful cross-cultural influences are to be found in our cuisine. Certain customs and values too are held in common by Malaysians regardless of ethnicity and beliefs for exp etiquette, courtesy and respect for one another, the less fortunate and the elderly. Though Malaysia has its share of race hustlers, hate mongers and peddlers of prejudice trying their best to inflame a situation or cause unrest for racial, political or religious reasons, Malaysians generally are not prone to acts of violence or extremism, in fact our ‘Tak Apa’ attitude sees us being highly tolerant of each other’s perceived shortcomings, even vices. Our diversity is our strength, so much so that even though a National Cultural Policy has been in place for decades, it was not actively forced upon the general population, especially those not from the dominant culture, unlike the situation in other countries in south east Asia. When compared to a society that is largely made up of a single racial group which shares a common language and cultural practices, the challenges faced by that society are not so much on issues of ethnicity, rather in areas which are ideological in nature. Caught in the middle of a geopolitical game between two competing superpowers namely the People’s Republic of Chine and the United States of America, the Korean peninsula was split into two ‘countries. The north and the south which were founded on opposing ideologies, is technically still at war with ‘itself’ since 1948. Issues such as Cold War authoritarianism, neo-liberalism, egalitarianism and post materialistic values are they’re some of their main concerns. Though the residency program, arranged by Penang’s Malihom lasted only three months, Azam came away impressed with his host country. He saw the South Koreans as a united people who are expressive and determined in fighting for their rights in a democratic country. Barring the language barrier, Azam appreciates their independent and hard-working spirit as well as their warm-hearted generosity.
However, the works in ‘Yeah’ do not seem to reflect positively his time there. In fact, the 9 paintings of various dimensions and an installation of framed photos and found objects seemed to gave the impression that Azam had just returned from a 3-month long residency in communist North Korea! Our mental image of the South Korean people after years of being exposed to their romantic dramas and action movies, K POP music especially the phenomenal ‘Gangnam Style’ and Korean food do not seem to correlate with what was presented on Azam’s canvases. When asked about the ideas and inspiration behind this particular series of paintings, Azam talked about the connections between peoples and the world as one big family that expands like a prayer (zikir). Fortunately, Azam is open to different readings of his works as it encourages discussion on a particular topic from various perspectives which expands the meanings and ideas he originally had of his works. The mostly acrylic and ink on canvases showed masses of people who looked and are dressed identically as to render them indistinguishable. One may see it as a comment on the racial homogeneity or forced uniformity usually imposed by traditional and totalitarian societies, like the ones in George Orwell (1903-1950)’s novel ‘1984’ where all forms of individuality are suppressed while thoughts are regulated to focus on the preservation of the collective and the ruling establishment. Like identical cut out paper figures, each of the hundreds of faces in his paintings, donning dark shades and expressionless, looked as though they were in a concert or sitting in a great hall, hypnotized into a trance like state by some great performance, speech or event. The only signs of life detected are where in some pieces, the crowd have their hands raised or waving as though trying to attract attention or calling for help over a single ray of light shone above them. The images in ‘Yeah’ are reminiscent of the cover on the 1983 edition of ‘The Society of the Spectacle’ by Guy Debord (1931-1994). One of the many thought-provoking lines from this seminal work originally written in 1968 is that the ‘Spectacle is the sun that never sets over the empire of modern passivity’. Interestingly, according to Azam, the design on the cover of that exhibition catalogue is a stylized sun over the horizon “that neither rises nor sets”. Between the last few pages of the catalogue is a picture of the artist wearing a pair of Ray Ban sunglasses shot in dark blue and green tone looking like one of the masses in his paintings. Could Azam be actually referring to the state of our nation instead? In our case, perhaps Aldous Huxley (1894-1963)’s tour de force ‘Brave New World’ could be a more apt reference to describe our contemporary condition. There was a survey carried out a few years back which found that many of the younger generation of Malaysians to be the least driven, lacking curiosity and unmotivated with no clear direction or purpose in life when compared to other youths in south east Asia. Is our general passivity or pessimism the results of well-intentioned policies made decades ago meant to achieve an ideal that is today no longer tenable? Instead of reflecting the challenges of a fast-changing world, were the ‘spectacles’ manufactured by those with vested interests with its banal, political and fantasy driven content made with the intent to placate, distract and blind side us from seeing and addressing real time problems of alienation and discontent? Never has there been so many so eager to surrender their autonomy to those ever ready to exploit and profit from our ignorance and irresponsibility while we waste our precious time oscillating between vanity and vacuity or feelings of self-loathing and entitlement. Pleasure seeking and hungry for attention with a very short attention span, we’ve become a generation obsessed with popular, consumerist and celebrity culture instead of a way of life that is grounded in the ‘Reality Principle’. Dismissing the past while discounting the future, we who are stuck perpetually in the present while looking stylish and bored like billboard models or boutique shop mannequins, are perfectly contented to put back on our shades and continuese to stare at an artificial representation of the sun that never rises or sets.
‘Yeah’, well, whatever…
HIDDEN BEYOND YESTERDAY
Azam’s current 4th solo exhibition was inspired by a number of artists, among them M.C. Escher (1898-1972), the Dutch graphic artist known for his meticulous print works blending geometric patterns, decorative motifs, realistic images with elements of optical illusion. He also cites the works of composer Benedict Drew (b.1977) and installation artist Ilya Kabakov (b.1933) as important influences for some of these works. Entitled ‘Hidden Beyond Yesterday’, this exhibition sees Azam in a reflective mood as he recollects, by selecting random memories or thoughts while focusing on the intensity of those experiences from his past, to channel into his latest output. Showcasing a series of 11 paintings, mixed media works and installation pieces, ‘Hidden Beyond Yesterday’ also marks one decade of Azam’s career as an art practitioner. It is indeed no coincidence that Azam chose to have this exhibition at HOM Art Trans where he was given his very first solo ten years ago.
In this latest outing, which includes previously unfinished works, now completed in the form that is agreeable to the artist and at a time that is fitting to his current state of mind, Azam sees many of the pieces here as bridges between the past and the future in terms of possible artistic directions, especially his post residency works. As a contemporary artist, Azam has at his disposal a wide array of styles and approaches, limited only by his imagination or those set by his subject matter. One important aspect underlying almost all of Azam’s past and present works is the element of humour. No matter what or how serious the issues tackled by the artist, humour, couched in the absurd actions or situation of the characters in his works reveal the utter idiocy or self-inflicted wounds that are due to ignorance, arrogance or greed. Besides the issues affecting the individual or society and his reactions, Azam also found interesting aspects to his personality from his journey inward to his past which surprised and delighted him. The ideas and views which he held or took for granted, when looked again from different perspectives or approach from another angle sheds new light which becomes refreshing. There are the colourful pieces where empty spaces or rooms of walls tessellated with cubic or polygonal shapes play host to ghostly hands and feet, floating in and out of walls. There is an emphasis on contrasts, where geometric forms, perhaps representing cold, impenetrable logic or precision are paired with the ghostly or the grotesque, something mysterious, part of the natural world, perhaps irrational even, like human behaviour. It is as though Azam has found the yin to his yang and vice versa. There is also a beautiful tribute to our National Art Laureate, Datuk Syed Ahmad Jamal (1929-2011) entitled ‘Lunar Peaks escapes to Valhalla’, referring to the late artist’s Modernist sculpture ‘Lunar Peaks’ that was hastily demolished by the previous government, claiming it was an ‘eye sore’ that was in the way of a massive gentrification program taking place in the heart of the city.
An eclectic amalgamation of past works reworked and new ones, this exhibition reflects the growing maturity of an innovative artist who is not afraid to experiment and explore different approaches. The invigorating discovery of something new in something ‘old’ also contributes to his enjoyment of the creative process and art making. In fact, the words enjoyment and pleasure are stressed by the artist who feels like a jazz musician improvising on his instruments to a familiar tune or inventing totally new ones while at it. What was hidden beyond yesterday, has revealed itself after a decade in obscurity. This revelation, though not final, indicates to the artist that he is exactly right where he is supposed to be today.