The HOM (House of Matahati) is holding the second edition of the SAGER show. Increasing the level of exchange between artists around the Southeast Asia region is one of the main goals which have been carried out in a series of activities that include the widely popular ARTriangle efforts and such.
The SAGE Residency which means SouthEast Asia Art Group Exchange Residency is a project that involves artists from 3 countries namely Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia and is co-organized by HOM together with Indonesia’s TENGGARA Artland and Project Space Pilipinas of the Philippines.
The artists involved are those who have at least 5 years experience in the art industry of their respective countries where Wong Chee Mang, Azam Aris are the representatives from Malaysia. From Indonesia are Andi Ramdani and Iqro’ Ahmad Laili Subkhi from Yogyakarta while Amer Abdullatif O. Mira and Carlo A Gernale represent the Philippines.
Generally, one will find that the artists involved in this programme have all been involved in the art scene of their countries while some of their works have also travelled to other continents that include Canada, Hungary and others.
This residency programme requires the artists to spend 30 days in the 3 respective cities which are in Kuala Lumpur, Yogyakarta and Manila where they will be involved in a series of activities that include studio and gallery visits, dialogues with renowned artists and exchange of ideas among the art circles.
On top of that, they will be introduced to collectors and significant people in the art scene
The Kuala Lumpur edition is currently happening and will conclude on April 30 where their works are being exhibited at HOM gallery from April 21 to May 5.
This is where the gallery houses the paintings and artworks of the artists involved in the SAGER programme that offers a variety of media used. This includes the likes of acrylic, plastic film, digital print and even installations.
According to Bayu Utomo Radjikin, the director of HOM, this programme allowed the artists to share a studio space and allows them to expand their knowledge about the contemporary art of Southeast Asia where through SAGER, they are able to enjoy more exposure for their art in the respective countries. After Kuala Lumpur, the artists will be heading to Yogyakarta in July where they will be spending 30 days in a similar programme before heading out to Manila in September.
The Artists
Amer hodls a Bachelors degree in Fine Arts (Advertising) from the Philippine Women’s University where he has been involved in numerous exhibitions and activities that include the ‘NASAAN? II’ held at We Are-We Are Art space in Quezon City (2011) as well as in the Project Space Pilipinas in Mandaluyong City where he was the artist-in-residence. Meanwhile, Carlo Gernale, who majors in painting at the Philippine Women’s University is a finalist at the Metro Bank Foundation National Painting Competition where he was also a former artist-in-residence at the Project Space Pilipinas
Andi Ramdani comes from Tasikmalaya in West Jawa where his education was at the Yogyakarta’s Modern School of Design and the Indonesian Institute of Art. His first solo exhibition ‘BAMBOO is ME’ was held in 2010 in Yogyakarta while he has also been involved in shows like the Biennale Jogja XI and the 14th Jakarta Biennale. His colleague Iqro’ Ahmad meanwhile is born and bred in Yogyakarta where he has been actively involved in the local art scene that includes being a nominee in the Indonesian Art Award 2010.
Azam Aris is one of the 2 Malaysian artists participating in the SAGER together with Wong Chee Meng. Both the artists are from Taiping Perak. Azam studied at the Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Sri Iskandar, and had 2 previous solo exhibitions, one at HOM and the other at the R.A Gallery. He is the recipient of the Juror’s Award at the Malaysian National Art Gallery’s Young Contemporaries Competition 2010 and is currently involved in the Rimbun Dahan Artist Residency programme. Meanwhile, Chee Meng studied at the Malaysian Institute of Art (MIA) and holds a Bachelors degree in Graphic Design from the Curtin University Australia. Chee Meng’s works have received Honourable Mention at the Philip Morris Malaysia Art Award while he was also involved in the ABN AMRO-Malihom Artist-in-Residence programme in Balik Pulau, Penang.
PRESS RELEASE
A meeting of Southeast Asian artists
HOM’s regional residency programme, SAGER, is back for the second time
Kuala Lumpur, April 2012 – One of HOM’s (House of MATAHATI) main goals is to increase the level of exchange between Southeast Asian artists. It does so through its ARTriangle exhibition and fringe activities, but the art space also boasts a unique residency programme that enables Southeast Asian artists to meet and collaborate for a total of three months.
Titled SAGE Residency or SAGER for short, this regional residency programme is co-organized with TENGGARA Artland (Indonesia) and Project Space Pilipinas (Philippines).
SAGER takes in artists with at least five years of experience and the Southeast Asian group exchange enables Malaysian, Indonesian, and Filipino artists to foster and strengthen regional ties, as well as to network and establish a better understanding of their neighbours’ art scenes and environment.
The three-month residency began last year, and its inaugural batch of artists spent 30 days each in Kuala Lumpur, Jogjakarta, and Manila. During this time, the artists took part in studio and gallery visits, and were also introduced to significant art collectors and individuals in the three art communities.
This year’s SAGER has just begun, and its participating artists are Amer Abdullatif O. Mira and Carlo A. Gernale (Philippines), Andi Ramdani and Iqro’ Ahmad Laili Subkhi (Yogyakarta), and Azam Aris and Wong Chee Meng (Malaysia).
The six artists will remain in Kuala Lumpur until April 30, and the results of their time in HOM’s studios will be shown in an exhibition from April 21 – May 5, which is open to members of the public. SAGER doesn’t just encourage physical dialogues, but also fosters visual exchange, as artists from these three countries are encouraged to engage in cross-cultural meditations and to broach new visual languages in their works.
‘The artists essentially share a studio space, and it’s a great way to inject some excitement and tension into their normally solitary studio practice. This way, they not only have the opportunity to widen their knowledge of contemporary Southeast Asian art, but find inspiration from each other to add new vocabularies into their work’ explains HOM’s director, Bayu Utomo Radjikin. SAGER is thus the perfect vehicle for artists to learn more about their Southeast Asian neighbours and to fuse fresh cultural elements into their respective practices.
‘A residency can really make a difference to an artist’s career. It’s a chance to work without any disruptions for a specific period of time, and as they’re taking in so many different things around them, you can almost always expect exciting changes in their works,’ adds Bayu, an artist himself.
After Kuala Lumpur, SAGER will move on to Jogjakarta and Manila, and the artists will participate in exhibitions there in July and November respectively.
For more details about SAGER and the gallery’s other residency programmes, visit houseofmatahati.blogspot.com.
For media inquires contact:
Mimie Baharuddin
+6012 373 6004 (Mobile)/ +603 9285 6004 (Fax)
SAGER Artist Profiles
Amer Mira
Amer Abdullatif O. Mira (b.1985) hails from the Philippines. He holds a Bachelors degree in Fine Arts (Advertising) from Philippine Women’s University, and has participated in a number of group exhibitions since 2003.
His most recent exhibition was ‘NASAAN? II’ at We Are-We Are Art space in Quezon City (2011), and the previous year, his works were shown at the Manila Art Fair in Pasay City. The same year, the artist was artist-in-residence at Project Space Pilipinas in Mandaluyong City. Beside SAGE Residency, Amer is preparing for a group exhibition that is set to happen in Manila this May.
Andi Ramdani
Andi Ramdani (b.1979) was born in Tasikmalaya, West Jawa. He studied at the Modern School of Design in Yogyakarta, as well as the Indonesian Institute of Art. Ramdani’s artworks can be seen in various public venues in Indonesia, and the artist’s first solo exhibition titled BAMBOO is ME was held at Taman Budaya Yogyakarta in 2010. The following year, the same exhibition travelled to SEVEN CONTINENS in Toronto, Canada.
The artist has been an active presence in his local art scene since 2001, and his exhibition list includes notable shows, such as Biennale Jogja XI and 14th Jakarta Biennale, both in 2011.
Carlo Gernale
Carlo A. Gernale (b.1979) hails from the capital of the Philippines. He majored in painting at the Philippine Women’s University, and boasts an extensive exhibition list that dates back to 2003. That same year, the artist was a finalist in the Metro Bank Foundation National Painting Competition, and in 2011, he was artist-in-residence at Project Space Pilipinas in Mandaluyong City, Philippines.
Aside from participating in exhibitions, the artist has co-organised art-related events and facilitated workshops for youth. Carlo is also a member of UGALathi Art Collective, an artist-run collective that was formed in 1992 as an informal response to the Philippine student movement’s theoretical inquiries into the role of culture and the visual arts in nation-building. The group has since evolved into a cultural organisation of cause-oriented and national democratic youth formations, and they remain an active presence in the Filipino art scene
Azam Aris
Azam Aris (b.1983) was born in Taiping, Perak. He began his art education at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Sri Iskandar, then furthered his studies at the university’s Shah Alam campus. He has held two solo exhibitions in Kuala Lumpur to date – FLOAT at House of MATAHATI in 2008 and PARANOIA at R.A. Gallery in 2010 – and his participation in group exhibitions extends back to 2002.
Awards that Azam has received include the Juror’s Award at the Malaysian National Art Gallery’s Young Contemporaries Competition (Bakat Muda Sezaman) of 2010. He is currently on a year-long residency at Rimbun Dahan, Kuang.
Iqro’ Ahmad
Iqro’ Ahmad Ibrahim Laila Subkhi (b.1983) has been a practicing artist since 2004. A true blue Yogyakartan, he has exhibited actively in his home city, as well as in Indonesia’s other artistic hubs, Bali and Bandung.
The artist has received various accolades for his work, including a nomination for the Indonesian Art Award of 2010. His exhibition list goes back to 2005, and includes group shows at the National Gallery of Indonesia in Jakarta and National Museum of Jogja. In 2010, the artist’s works were shown in Budapest, Hungary.
Wong Chee Meng
Wong Chee Meng (b.1975) hails from Taiping, Perak. His art education began at the Malaysian Institute of Art (MIA) in the mid-nineties, and he later went on to Curtin University Australia, where he gained a Bachelors degree in graphic design. Recently, the artist completed an MA in Contemporary Art and Design from Lim Kok Wing University, Malaysia.
Wong’s exhibition experience dates back to the nineties and includes two solo exhibitions. His achievements include an Honourable Mention at the Philip Morris Malaysia Art Award, and in 2007, he was artist-in-residence at the ABN AMRO-Malihom Artist-in-Residence programme in Balik Pulau, Penang.
