FOR decades this building in the middle of KL housed a single-screen movie palace that served as a focal point for the local community. Today, in addition to trendy eateries and cafes, it houses a new outpost of the BookXcess bookstore empire – and hopes to be a vital part of a revitalised neighbourhood.
In keeping with the bookstore chain’s belief that each of their stores should have a unique identity, the RexKL outlet takes advantage of the unique architecture of a former cinema to create a spacious setting in which to peruse a selection of affordable books. There are multiple levels and a lot of open air, with the area where the screen once stood serving as an exhibition space for public art and performances.
It’s all a bit ‘extra’ sometimes – especially the maze-like structure of some parts of the store – if you’re just trying to pick up a book to read, but according to the people behind BookXcess, it wants to be more than just a store.
“KL needs something like this, we are littered with malls everywhere, and tourists don’t want to go to malls. People don’t want to go to malls because all malls are the same. For tourists, if you come from Jakarta or you come from Bangkok, they have malls there, too, so which tourists want to come to malls here, too?” asked Andrew Yap, founder of BookXcess.
“We wanted to bring that adventure back into the people’s lives, especially in Kuala Lumpur where we don’t get this kind of adventure, so this is an all-in-one,” said Shin Chang, co-founder of RexKL.
Part of the appeal of this location is the history that the landmark building brings. Much of the bookstore works around the aesthetics of the building, using those spaces to showcase art that was either already at the location or is part of ARTisFAIR/KL (which is affiliated with BookXcess) – wherein the artwork is for sale to any curious consumer.
In addition to the maze-like design of the bookstore, it is also quite vertical in its design with many stairs, some of which are irregular – probably owing to the old cinema layout. It’s a very modern industrial layout, with a lot of exposed concrete. It is decidedly not sleek and ‘modern’ and at some points looks like a work-in-progress given the juxtaposition of past and present.
Sharing space with the packed shelves of books is a wide-open exhibition space that is currently hosting an art installation by Penang-based Lithuanianian artist Ernest Zacharevic, titled ‘Everything will be OK’.
Known mostly for his street pieces and murals, this exhibition marks his largest art installation. But for him, art is not just about the piece itself – the location and the audience is equally as important. The ambience, the sound, the light, and the history play important roles in the overall experience.
“A big part of the decision to show it here, the place has a history, it has a cultural purpose as a cinema, and then that ended with the fire and now it’s come back as a cultural hub again for a different generation of people in a very different way,” said Zacharevic.
“It plays into the whole title of the exhibition ‘Everyone will be OK’, the very dark end of one era brings an opportunity for the next one.”
This idea of renewal and serving the community at large, be it as a creative space, or simply as an interesting place for tourists to take pictures and videos for social media, is especially important as the country recovers from the pandemic.
“Kuala Lumpur or Malaysia needs a lot of creative spaces, so this is us trying our best to do something different,” Andrew said. – The Vibes, March 12, 2022
