THE livelihoods of many visual artists were impacted due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
They were impacted differently with some even having faced life-changing experiences. These artists chose to express them in their artworks, now exhibited at the Penang Hin Bus Depot.
The ‘PAUSE Visual Arts Exhibition’ is showcasing introspective artworks by several Penang-based artists from 11am to 7pm, until May 2. The exhibition was launched on April 3.
The exhibition features various artists such as bibichun, Esther Geh, Fahmi Mustafa, Forrest Wong, Ho Su San, Ivan Gabriel, Kangblabla, Teh Yew Keong, Teoh Kooi Pei and Yap Ley Min.
Curator Kenny Ng said visitors would be able to experience a wholesome soul-stirring visual treat.
“The exhibition is supported by The Cultural Economy Development Agency (CENDANA) through its Visual Arts Showcase Funding Programme.
“The main purpose of the exhibition is to narrate the struggles encountered by the visual artists in our country during the pandemic period,” Ng said in an interview.
Ng said most of the participants were upcoming talented young artists who needed a good platform to showcase their talents.
“We have an artist, Fahmi Mustafa, who is showcasing his artwork for the first time. He is actually a renown writer who has now taken the role of a visual artist ,” Ng said.
Buletin Mutiara managed to interview one of the artists, Ivan Gabriel, who expressed his feeling using a bed.
Ivan said he was drawn by the sorrow which surrounds an unmade bed thus, wanted to potray the depth,mysteries and perhaps the darker side of it.
“I suddenly started gravitating towards the idea of unmade bed. How that evokes a sense of loss and grief within its space.
“Because my own bedroom became the place where I grieved the most.I wanted to have the essence of my pain in a slightly less tragic way,“ he said.
For more details on the exhibition, visit the Art Kepoh Facebook page.
Alternatively, visit https://hinbusdepot.com/pause-store.html or follow instagram.com/pause202x
Below are the collections displayed at the exhibition :
Story by Tanushalini Moroter
Pix by Alissala Thian