Art

Kok Yew Puah: A legacy of the past takes presence

Twenty-over years since his passing, what knowledge can we build around his life and the time he lived

Updated 2 years ago · Published on 23 Jan 2022 12:00PM

Kok Yew Puah: A legacy of the past takes presence
‘Temple Figure’. During the late 80s, Puah’s art practice shifted towards a more figurative approach. He would paint his family and friends in front of landmark locations in Klang. This painting features five teenagers, including his daughter (bottom left), centred in front of the backdrop of one of the oldest temples in Malaysia. The temple is known as the Sri Sundaraja Perumal Temple and is located in Kok Yew Puah’s hometown of Klang. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery, January 23, 2022

by Amalina Kamal

AN artist in which many, both peers and supporters, regard as having gone too soon, Kok Yew Puah’s belief in the potential and importance of the huge variety of art and artmaking is one that should be celebrated.

Currently exhibiting at Ilham Gallery until April, ‘Kok Yew Puah: Portrait of a Malaysian Artist’ brings together over 60 artworks that the artist produced over nearly three decades.

Urban Playground, 1994. Acrylic on canvas, 139 × 185 cm. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery
Urban Playground, 1994. Acrylic on canvas, 139 × 185 cm. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery

A revered artist

Puah’s paintings invite us to examine our ways of seeing each other, and to create our own meanings and stories around the Malaysian subject.

At the start of his artistic expressions, Puah was among the many artists in the early 70s to explore the fray of competing ‘isms’ in search of an identity. 

He was known as a bold hard-edge printmaker using silk screen – after returning from the Victorian College of the Arts, Melbourne, Australia (1966 to 1972) – before being avowed as a figurative painter. 

Puah mostly chose to use himself, his wife and two children, and their friends as models for his human portraits. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery
Puah mostly chose to use himself, his wife and two children, and their friends as models for his human portraits. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery

In between the transition of styles, he ran his family's business, but could not suppress his passion. Eventually, Puah returned to his creative calling that seemed like a gift that documented the social and cultural development of his country.

The works he produced between the late 80s and throughout the 90s highlighted some of the most honest, human, and subjective representations of the country’s visual landscape of the time. 

Puah was acutely aware of developments in global, regional, and local ideas about art and culture throughout his life. He had actively sought community and conversations with other artists through running his own space, local art associations, and lecturing/mentoring students. 

Untitled (Driving Past), 1998. Acrylic on canvas, 127 x 127 cm. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery
Untitled (Driving Past), 1998. Acrylic on canvas, 127 x 127 cm. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery

The Malaysian artist eventually passed away in 1999, at the age of 51.

‘Kok Yew Puah: Portrait of a Malaysian Artist’

The exhibition attempts a portrait of the artist, tracing the development of his practice and ideas through his works, essays, interviews, articles, and conversations with those who knew him, about his personal history, character, and interests. 

Portrait of an Insurance Salesman in Pulau Ketam, 1993. Acrylic on canvas, 164 x 162.5 cm. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery
Portrait of an Insurance Salesman in Pulau Ketam, 1993. Acrylic on canvas, 164 x 162.5 cm. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery

Puah’s own self-portraits, often humorous and made in different ‘postures’, present some interesting ideas of what his ‘artist identity’ might look like. Through the perspectives of others, he is seen in turn as a visionary, an artist, a husband, a father, a friend, and a teacher.

The exhibition also presents a portrait of Malaysians. In his paintings, Puah mostly chose to use himself, his wife and two children, and their friends, as models for his human portraits. 

Sisters, 1994. Acrylic on canvas, 143 x 143 cm. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery
Sisters, 1994. Acrylic on canvas, 143 x 143 cm. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery

They are identified as Malaysians using familiar visual cues in the landscape, architecture, dress and ‘props’ they appear with. Indeed, they are part of a larger, personal portrait of Malaysia, captured through the immediate experience of the artist’s life in his hometown Klang as it transformed into an industrial hub.

The portraits speak of anxieties over environmental damage, and the impact of rapid development particularly on younger generations, and their growing disconnect from history and culture. – The Vibes, January 23, 2022

*Follow the discourse on artist Kok Yew Puah and his art further as discussed among those who have enjoyed or closely influenced by his work.

‘Kok Yew Puah: Portrait of a Malaysian Artist’ is curated by Beverly Yong and Rahel Joseph. Artworks are displayed at the modern and contemporary public art gallery, Ilham Gallery, until April 3, 2022. Visitors can witness a myriad of the artist’s works, from self-portraits to paintings of his family and friends. Visit the exhibition virtually here.

Masks and the Modern Man, 1995. Acrylic on canvas, 162 x 223 cm. Puah’s artworks encourage us to ask ourselves what picture do we see of Malaysia, Malaysians, and the Malaysian artist himself. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery
Masks and the Modern Man, 1995. Acrylic on canvas, 162 x 223 cm. Puah’s artworks encourage us to ask ourselves what picture do we see of Malaysia, Malaysians, and the Malaysian artist himself. – Pic courtesy of Ilham Gallery

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