Untitled - Shireen Naziree

presented by
Shireen Naziree
“Art Expresses and reflects the spirit and personality
of the people who make a nation.”
Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj, August 27, 1958
Ahmad Fuad Osman • Recollecting of Long Lost Memories • Video/Slides Projection • Variable sizes • 2007
Jolly Koh • Afternoon Reflection •
Oil on canvas • 107 x 101 cm • 1999
The establishment of GALERI PETRONAS in 1993 at the Dayabumi Complex, Kuala Lumpur became an acknowledgement of the value of
Malaysian Visual Art as an integral part of Malaysia’s socio-economic development. The entrepreneurial spirit of the 1990s and the
economic growth that followed showcased Malaysia not only for its economic stability but also as a nation that is culturally astute.
Juhari Said • Okir Series • Oil on wood •
209 x 66 cm • 2007
From it’s humble beginnings in the 1970s as a purely decorative art collection for its offices, PETRONAS through the newly formed
GALERI PETRONAS and with a collection of 147 artworks enabled contemporary art to be appreciated by a broader audience.
Today the collection consists of 1,300 artworks and artifacts.
Chuah Thean Teng • Combing Her Hair • Batik • 86.5 x 84 cm • 1968
Syed Ahmad Jamal • Calligraphic Forms: Homage to “The Bait” & “Writing” •
Watercolour on paper • 23 x 33 cm • 1963
Today with an international art market where art yields healthy returns and retain their value over the long term – Malaysian
Contemporary Art represents a new asset class that benefits our collective heritage. PETRONAS through it’s valuable support and
nurturing of the arts, have inadvertently assumed a role as a custodian of Malaysia’s cultural heritage and thus preserving priceless social
values inside as well as outside of its corporate environment.
Sharifah Fatimah Syed Zubir • Nursiyah’ 93 • Acrylic on canvas •
Tay Mo Leong • Rubber Tapper • Batik
120 x 120 cm • 1993
And through the establishment of GALERI PETRONAS in 1993, the corporation poured considerable investment into researching
artworks that would aptly reflect the philosophies of PETRONAS. Together with expert curatorial practices, documentation and art
management, the PETRONAS Art Collection and the exhibitions at GALERI PETRONAS has allowed the art community and art collectors
to keep track of trends as well as identifying established as well as emerging artists.
Abdul Latiff Mohidin • Daun Agave dan Pago-Pago • Oil on canvas • 99 x 99.5 cm • 1964
Abdul Latiff Mohidin • Voyage I & II • Oil on canvas • 106 x 137 cm • 2005
When Galeri PETRONAS moved to its current premises at the Kuala Lumpur City Centre in 1998, it opened with a landmark exhibition,
Rimba by senior artist –Latiff Mohidin. The significance of this much-awaited exhibition at Galeri PETRONAS not only displayed the new
developments of the artist’s oeuvre, but the spacious. Multi-functional space would become an important art venue. While it’s specifically
designed contemporary layout appealed to artists, more importantly it’s location would be public friendly allowing visitors to view art and
other disciplines of visual culture in an open environment, thus promoting a broad and non exclusive awareness of the variety of artistic
disciplines.
A key step forward was to develop the PETRONAS Art Collection through an active acquisition program.
Abdul Latiff Mohidin • Kinetik I • Keluli tahan karat • 4198mm & 2730kg • 1998
Abdul Latiff Mohidin • Kinetik II • Keluli tahan karat • 4198mm & 2730kg • 1998
By the end of the last millennium, Malaysian Contemporary Art had
developed to include very diverse aesthetics with a very rich artistic
vocabulary. While the custodians of the PETRONAS Art Collection
assessed the intrinsic value of contemporary art, they also recognized the
importance of historical artifacts and crafts, within a framework that
would best reflect the human, social and cultural ethics of PETRONAS.
With the understanding that art reflects the development and evolution
of community within a socio-political and economic environment,
contemporary artworks as well as artifacts that offered significant insight
into Malaysia’s rich social, economic and cultural background were
systematically sourced. These included artworks that date back to the
1940s as well as textiles, which through its specific genres are relative to
Malaysia’s rich cultural history.
left: Choong Kam Kaw • Image & Identity • Mixed media on canvas • 138 x 122 cm • 1995
right: Raphael Scott Ahbeng • Peak of Mount Kinabalu • Mixed Media on canvas • 150 x 241 cm • 2005
Artworks from the 1960s and 1970s not only reflect the artistic temperament of the time, but importantly it relates to Malaysia’s changing
identity from its once colonial background. Typically, the western trained artists of the time experimented with traditional media and
expressionisms for a variety of reasons. This transactional nature that imbued the art of the time was certainly drawing parallels with the
country’s economic growth, its sustenance and the development of national corporations such as PETRONAS.
Ahmad Zakii Anwar • Kerbau • Oil on jute • 122 x 244 cm • 2008
The 1990s were significant years as the economies of Southeast Asia flourished and Malaysia became a model for other developing
economies. Technology became an important facet of this development process and as such the articulations of artists assumed a different
tone to that of earlier generations and their portrayals of a pastoral and an heroic past: artists were relating their art to social concerns. In
a manner this was synonymous with the international and sophisticated atmosphere that was being adopted by corporate Malaysia.
And this development is portrayed through numerous significant artworks in the PETRONAS Art Collection.
Bayu Utomo Radjikin • Qiblat • Acrylic on canvas • 231 x 411 (3 panels) • 2006
The 1990s were significant years as the economies of Southeast Asia flourished and Malaysia became a model for other developing
economies. Technology became an important facet of this development process and as such the articulations of artists assumed a different
tone to that of earlier generations and their portrayals of a pastoral and an heroic past: artists were relating their art to social concerns. In
a manner this was synonymous with the international and sophisticated atmosphere that was being adopted by corporate Malaysia.
And this development is portrayed through numerous significant artworks in the PETRONAS Art Collection.
Zulkifli Yusoff • Tempoyak And whisky- Amok di Pasir Salak • Mixed media on canvas • 150 x 200 cm • 2006
This new economic model and the increased the awareness of the value of art in building vibrant communities. Consequently as the
collection grew and through regular exhibitions at Galeri PETRONAS, the collection was no longer confined to the workplace. It became
and remains an avenue for the public as well as other institutions to have access to significant pieces of Malaysia’s visual art.
Convergence, 2013
Much more than the economic value of the collection, are the initiatives relating to the social values that have evolved from the
PETRONAS Art Collection. Every exhibition at GALERI PETRONAS is supported by curatorial programs together with comprehensive
educational programs for children and students conducted by known art practitioners. Such emphasis on the necessity of appreciating,
understanding and enjoying art, not only fosters creativity- but also emphasizes the philosophy of PETRONAS that art and culture can
manifest itself as a catalyst between the organization and the community at large.
Changing Phases Hanoi, 2008
The PETRONAS Art Collection is continuously reviewed so as to keep in line with the corporate developments and social understandings
of PETRONAS as a universally recognized corporation. The collection has expanded to include works from the ASEAN region and thus
allowing a further expansion of social capital for artists in the region. To further enhance its commitment to promote the cultural values
of Malaysia, contemporary and folk art are displayed in PETRONAS offices worldwide, allowing visitors a glimpse of Malaysia’s cultural
fabric through art. In addition, works from the collection have been exhibited in Vietnam, India, and Japan and in Singapore.
Prince Court Medical Centre
It is also the philosophy of PETRONAS to not only confine the PETRONAS Art Collection to the gallery space. It has instead become an
alternative “art gallery” particularly with the comprehensive display of art at the Prince Court Medical Centre.
Permata Training Centre
Currently the PETRONAS Art Collection numbers at 1,300 while a large majority of the artworks are two dimensional, important
sculptural and new media art has been systematically acquired. The professional storage, cataloguing and conservation of artworks reflect
the commitment of PETRONAS in building an artistic legacy that highlights the union of tradition and change. And within that same vein
these artistic achievements reflect a culture of openness to new ideas.
Thank You