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The Star
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
Malaysian artist Binti maps heritage, home, and self in her debut show
There's something – or rather, sesuatu – about Binti's art – and trying to pin it down might just miss the point. As one of Kuala Lumpur's emerging names in the art scene, Binti has explored performance art, poetry, photography, and visual art in her practice. She also prefers to leave out her real name in biographies, choosing instead to go by Binti. Her debut solo exhibition – titled Sesuatu Yang Something – at Cult Gallery in KL gives art enthusiasts a sense of her range, creative restlessness, and distinct visual voice. It opens with Kebenaran ( Truth & Permission ) – four lines of embossed poetry that blend Bahasa Malaysia and English, technically making no grammatical sense in either language. Unless, of course, you are fluent in bahasa rojak. 'This is the ethos of the exhibition – a punchline-less joke. This way of speaking is familiar to Malaysians, rolls off the tongue in a fun way, yet can leave a different impression depending on who you ask,' says Binti, 27, in a recent interview at the gallery. Neatly laid out at Cult Gallery, the exhibition – running through July 14 – feels like walking through a living journal, with each series guiding visitors through Binti's origins, family tree, career, and personal relationships. Visitors pause at the staircase to view Binti's 'Entah Apa' series at Cult Gallery. Photo: The Star/Glenn Guan 'During the planning phase, I had about 15 ideas for the exhibition, because I'm indecisive and there was just so much that I could express. At the end, I just wanted people to know that this sesuatu, in this case my debut solo show, means something to me,' she says. The exhibition is divided into six series: Main-Main, Entah Apa, Employee Of the Month: Funemployed, Cow & Aku, Finally Portrait, and Adult Lovesong. From memories to motif Wordplay and juxtaposition feature heavily in Binti's work, but what's likely to draw visitors in for a closer look is the sheer variety and richness of materials she uses. Her collages are pieced together from fragments of her own life – magazines, school exercise books, stickers, photographs – anything she feels an instinctive pull toward. Add acrylics, layered textures, and punchy typography into the mix, and you start to glimpse the Johor-born artist's maximalist personality. Her works brim with detail, leaving little room for negative space – reflecting her ever-evolving creative process. Her Entah Apa ( Nonsense ) series – six sets of playful linguistic duets – is a prime example of this approach. In 'Finally Portrait', Binti builds a literal 'house of cards' using images of her parents and siblings - MJ, Jane, Adam, Sarby, and Kimmy G - turning family into fragile architecture. Photo: The Star/M. Irsyad 'That phrase was said to me by my aunt many years ago when I first started doing fine art. She took one look at what I made and said 'entah apa apa entah', which really buckled my confidence at the time. But thinking about it now, I realised she was right in a way – what it is can be interpreted in so many ways,' she says. Modern Bahasa Malaysia with its flexible structure and layered meanings, opens the door to playful reinterpretation – where tone and rhythm often matter more than strict grammar. Some materials in the series are recycled from her work shown at the Titik Garis Bentuk exhibition at Ilham Gallery in 2022. 'Collaging lets me repurpose old scraps. My work might look chaotic, but I'm very particular about how it's presented, so I always end up with leftovers. Sometimes I revisit an unused drawing and ask myself, 'Why didn't it work then? Could it work now?',' she says, pointing to each motif as if flipping through a memory archive. In the main gallery area, a family portrait is constructed as a literal house of cards. Titled Finally Portrait, the piece frames Binti's parents as the King and Queen, her siblings (an older brother, a younger sister and a younger brother) as Ace, 10 and Jack respectively. The artist herself is portrayed as the Joker. Visitors view four works from Binti's 'Cow Dan Aku' series at the 'Sesuatu Yang Something' opening. Photo: The Star/Glenn Guan 'Every family has got their own oddities and quirks, so I linked them to cards in a deck. They're also arranged like a winning poker hand – same suit, all hearts – to emphasise how much I value them. This piece is my way of celebrating them for always supporting my passion,' she says. By interrupting their daily routines to photograph them, Binti offers a rare glimpse into their unfiltered selves – like her mother, captured just after prayer, still in her telekung – a deeply relatable scene in many Malay households. All things in between For many young artists like Binti, pursuing a career in art often means juggling odd jobs while taking part in group shows and slowly building a portfolio. Her Funemployed series offers a playful yet pointed take on that reality – 12 photographs, one for each month of the year, all set against the same background but layered with visual cues from the various roles she once held. 'I was inspired by those 'Employee of the Month' walls where the backdrop stays the same,' says Binti. 'For me, the photos were all taken at home, but the context kept changing – I was always doing something new, taking on different gigs. It became a way to document my growth and shifting moods throughout the year.' The exhibition's largest work, 'Adult Lovesong', features 135 Instagram-sourced portraits - friends, acquaintances, and strangers - cropped just above the nose for anonymity and layered with Binti's real lipstick kisses. Photo: The Star/Glenn Guan With a background in film, cinematography, and music journalism, Binti's creative practice is naturally interdisciplinary – each field informing the next. 'Even if you're not freelancing, there are things you do every day – cooking, caring for someone, mediating a conflict – that shape your identity. All of that makes up the 'self', and I think that's something that you unconsciously take up as a job or role,' she adds. Social media has also played a role in shaping this exhibition. The most expansive piece in the exhibition is Adult Lovesong, a series of 135 photographs featuring friends, acquaintances, and strangers sourced from Instagram. Each image is printed and framed just above the nose to preserve anonymity, then layered with real lipstick kisses by Binti. 'I really am a romantic person. I find myself pondering intimacy a lot, especially in conversations with my partner. This piece is about the butterfly effect – how if I hadn't met him, I might have been saying beautiful things to someone else. The whole trajectory of my life could have been different,' she says. The partner she refers to is Amat, a musician and filmmaker who, together with Binti, forms the art duo 'MATI' – a mash-up of their names. They've also exhibited work collaboratively as a duo. 'It's hard to put into words – this was something I could only express visually. Accepting love means rejecting other versions of it. This project showed me every face I will never call a lover, every person I won't share my deepest desires or vulnerabilities with. A mix of friends and strangers with whom I'll never experience that kind of romance,' she concludes. Binti's Sesuatu Yang Something is on view at Cult Gallery in KL until July 14. The gallery is open to the public, however, appointments are recommended for visits. This weekend (July 5 and 6), Binti is presenting 'Teman Buat Something', a new interactive sofa installation where visitors can be part of the work.
The Star
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
Sabahan artist's epic Kaamatan-inspired folio transformed into children's book
A close-up view of Leong's 'Pesta Menuai' children's book, featuring text in Bahasa Malaysia, English, and Dusun. Photo: Rizo Leong In August 2023, Sabahan woodcut artist Rizo Leong exhibited an epic "art book" installation titled Tadau Kaamatan (harvest festival), which was showcased at the GoBlock: Senibuku group show in Kuala Lumpur. Printed on a long sheet of paper, Tadau Kaamatan, measuring 4.3m in length, celebrates the rice-growing journey – from ploughing and planting to harvest – honouring farmers' labour and the spirit of cooperation. In an art gallery space, it remains Leong's longest woodcut artwork. The 14-page book 'Pesta Menuai' covers the process of planting and harvesting paddy that is traditionally carried out by the entire community among the farming villages in Sabah. Photo: Rizo Leong Nearly two years later, the art folio has been reimagined as Pesta Menuai, Leong's first children's book – bringing Sabahan harvest festival art and celebrations to young readers through illustrations and storytelling. 'I turned it into a children's book because as a proud Sabahan, I want to keep our culture and traditions alive. What better way to preserve them than by teaching younger generations through stories?" says Leong. The book was released to coincide with this year's Kaamatan, the annual Kadazandusun harvest festival, and is available at the Arcane Literature and Kinderstories Hub booth at the 2025 Kuala Lumpur International Book Fair, held at World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur. Sabahan printmaker Rizo Leong (right) alongside Memeto Jeck, a fellow artist. Both of them are part of the Pangrok Sulap collective. Photo: Rizo Leong Leong, a founding member of the Pangrok Sulap art collective formed in Ranau, Sabah, hopes the book will reach both local and international audiences. Written in Bahasa Malaysia, English, and Dusun, the 14-page book also highlights the strong community spirit of Sabah's farming villages. 'I also wanted to write the book (in three languages) because as a culturally-diverse country, I feel it is very important to use as many languages as possible if we want to spread knowledge of our traditions for educational and illustrative purposes, especially in Sabah,' he adds. Pesta Menuai might be Leong's first children's book as a writer and illustrator, but he's no stranger to the genre, having illustrated the Alak series with writer Salhan K. Ahmad. Leong's 'Tadau Kaamatan' art book installation, measuring 4.3m long, was showcased at the 'GoBlock: Senibuku' exhibition at Cult Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, in August 2023. It has since been adapted into a children's book titled 'Pesta Menuai'. Photo: The Star/Filepic Leong sees Pesta Menuai as a book for all ages – a Sabahan story meant for everyone. 'I think readers of all ages can learn and appreciate the book's main message, which is the importance of retaining our customs and culture,' he concludes. Pesta Menuai, priced at RM15, is also available by mail (postal charges apply). In Kota Kinabalu, you can find it at the Kadazandusun Cultural Association (KDCA) and Ruang Tamu Ekosistem at Alamesra. More info here.
