Tell us a little bit about yourself?

I was born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In 2003, I received her Bachelor of Architecture from University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. My desire to become an artist is heavily influenced by my ancestral ritualistic cultural ceremonies in my hometown. My awareness in My grandmother’s lost skill pushed me to realise the importance of cultural practices and the authenticity of ancestral skills as a preservation of my identity. I am drawn to the concept of ethnomathematics - the cultural activity and memories of home, country and its relationship. My significant concern is correlating experiences and mapping the esoteric relationship between the art of making and attaining something sublime.  I amalgamate both contemporary architectonic and visual language using papers and fibres as the predominant mediums in my art through bas-relief sculptures and installation to allow each piece its rightful story. Aphorisms such as ‘God is in the details’ are practiced religiously when exploring the idea of ‘two extremities of the same continuum’ – simplicity in complexity.  My award winning works are featured and collected in Australia and internationally. 

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Tell us a little bit about your interpretation of Paper Passion?

I have always wondered about who would I be had I not pursued my passion for the creative industry. Nothing came close to this intense desire of me being an artist. Everyone has a story and I am so grateful that my story began with my late grandmother with purposeful making and doing. Since then, I yearned and travelled around the world to collaborate, make, create, explore and gather 'quiet places' -to just be. 

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Tell us a little about your piece?

I was impressed by Arctic Papers' environmental ethos and their responsibility towards community, sustainability and innovative goals. I wanted to commemorate Arctic Paper's longstanding history in the paper manufacturing industry and values by responding to the concept of growth, nurture and respect. This ephemeral installation art piece is titled 'Returning to Numen' - returning to the spiritual place. 

 

When I read the brief, I instantly knew I needed to be in Haukijarvi, Finland to install this site specific piece. I was inspired and moved by Swedish artist Agnese Denes' 'Tree Mountain' land art at Pinsiö, Finland. I have twice been a resident artist at Arteles Creative Centre and I knew the exact spot I wanted to explore. When I arrived at Arteles, I stood at my proposed site and the familiar feeling of 'content' engulfed me. The silence and stillness is so precious as nature is an incredible force.  The Arctic Volume paper is incredibly durable and beautiful to cut as the paper installation withstood rain, wind and sun for one week! 

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What was the most challenging part of the brief?

My closest art confidant thought I was mad to install the work in Finland when I live in Australia. I had a grandiose idea and it had to be in a place where I felt is apropos and responds well to the brief 'Passion'. And so, off I went to Finland! Then exchanging my hand held pen knife to a larger blade (lawn mower) to sculpt the installation. 

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What part of the brief did you enjoy the most?

1) I enjoyed reading about the history of Arctic Paper and the surrounding community that built the industry since 1740. To me, that is the real essence of why we continue to use papers till this day and the importance of the industry and how it has served a pletora of industries that uses paper. 

 

2) When I was asked the question about 'passion' and decided that I had to be in Finland to install the work. I love commiting to an idea and realising it. 

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How did you enjoy working with Munken and Arctic Volume?

I've worked with both papers. 

a)    Arctic Volume 

I was delighted with the durability of this paper especially when used in an open environment for my installation. 

 

b)    Munken

I wanted to explore this uncoated smooth paper in a 360 degree book format inspired by the original designer Yusuke Oono. Based on the installation design, I created a smaller version of  ‘Returning to Numen’ as a visual analysis of my installation prior to working in a larger scale.