Ota Fine Arts Singapore is delighted to present “Invisible Border”, a duo exhibition by Zai Kuning and Azizan Paiman. This exhibition celebrates the friendship between the two artists based in Singapore and Malaysia respectively. Separated geographically by just a border and sharing many similarities in regional cultures and histories, Zai and Paiman both explore socio-political issues around them and in the region.
For nearly 2 decades, Zai Kuning (b. 1964, Singapore) has been working with indigenous groups of people, namely the Orang Laut and Orang Asli, and has created bodies of works inspired by his research and interactions with them. Of late, the artist has been reflecting on the lamentation of the Orang Laut – "sea gypsies" or nomadic indigenous fishermen living in the Riau Archipelago, whose lives are inextricably intertwined with the sea. Societal developments have created external circumstances beyond their control, causing them to lose their homes. From his interactions with the Orang Laut, he vividly remembers a line that they said to him: "What we have are rivers, mud, stones, sand, earth and trees, but what they see is gold." This inspired the installation piece presented in this exhibition. Hundreds of pieces of hand-made clay bowls coated with gold paint and gold leaf are placed atop black surfaces, appearing as though they are floating, and accompanied by a single channel video projecting words from the voices of the Orang Laut.
Azizan Paiman (b. 1970, Malaysia) considers himself a ‘back dated reporter’ and a ‘memory keeper’ – his practice plays with social mores, politics, and current events with a focus on Malaysian contemporary life. Paiman presents his most recent series of drawings, Souvenir (2022), in this show. Conceptually, the word ‘souvenir’ refers to something that is kept in reminder of a person, place, or event -- Paiman’s Souvenir consists of drawings filled with caricature, humour and important stories on socio-political events as described by him.
In his installation and performance piece The Collapse of an Orchestra (2021), the parliament houses of various countries are painted on welding masks that are hung against a wire grid. Just like how an orchestra is built upon various groups of instruments, the ensemble of masks signifies how the contemporary world is being driven and shaped by countries all over the world. However, the persistence in spreading one’s own ideologies and agendas to the global world has created conflicts that ultimately results in the “fall” of the orchestra. This is shown during Paiman’s performance, as he walks around the installation, knocking on glass bottles and breaking them with a hammer.
Ota Fine Arts Singapore invites all to experience the unique views of Zai Kuning and Azizan Paiman through their works presented in this exhibition.
