MIMC Art Auction Dec 2012

Gary Thanasan and his magazine going about business as usual - some quality and value-for-money works on the block, but my main gripe is that there are too many new works from 2011-2012 (14/108, 13%), making it look like a stock clearance sale disguised as an auction.  Complaints aside, there are some admirable works, like Wong Perng Fey's 'New Village VII'.  It is amazing how the outline of a roof, sketchy lines to represent fences, and a dirty yellow palette, can visually channel the environments of many a Malaysian-Chinese diaspora - the New Village 新村.

Wong Perng Fey - New Village VII (2007)

Malaysian art pioneer Abdullah Ariff's watercolour mastery is displayed in its full glory in 'Misty'.  The dark, deep hues had me confused initially for an oil/acrylic painting, but Abdullah's ability to smudge colours successfully illustrates this mysterious atmosphere.  Going under the hammer also are a number of established artists and their signature styles - Lye Yau Fatt's realist depictions of Chinese objects, Tay Mo Leong's double-resist batik technique, and Yusof Ghani's mystic faces in the"Topeng" series.

Tay Mo Leong - Stone Flower Series (1975)