What to do?

There are always many things to do on everyday of one's life. However starting a specific work is an uphill struggle most of the time. How I wish I could just put pen to paper or fingers to the keyboard and let the floodgate of ideas open. Actually everytime I try this method it works perfectly but my mind refuses to accept this fact and is forever discouraging me from doing it. It is thus that I have many unwritten or uncompleted works.

Fed up with sensual habits

Sense gratification is a disease that is afflicting every human being. Continuing to satiate the senses : tongue, eyes, ears, nose and skin, we fall deeper and deeper into the dark tunnel of affection and anxiety.

What is it that makes my writings exciting and enthralling to me one day and boring and lacking as I read it on another day. The positive days increase my enthusiasm to continue with my writings while the negative phase undermines my self confidence and makes me shun away from my works. On a balanced note, I admit that my works have the potential to turn me into an internationally renowned artist, however this state of mind cannot be sustained for too long. Now I am back on the positive mood and I hope this time around I will manage to get some work done and thus motivate me to change my mind's focus to become geared towards my writing career. If I can keep this momentum for at least a few months then I can climb back into the saddle and continue my ride for a much longer if not permanently.

Service Through Art

What is the service of artists in this world if not to lend their heart and soul to the masses, for is the artist not in direct communion with the Giver of deeds? As I've said in my earlier posting religion or God is actually art and artists' bear the duty of revealing the truth about God and his pastimes.
Man is also confused by reality itself and he needs the service of artists to show him the truth about reality. In short the service of artists is as the messengers of Absolute Truth or God nothing less.

art is religion

The true religion of the world is the pursue of truth and this endeavour we know as the artistic quest of mankind. So is it wrong to say that art is religion?
An artist's endeavour is to show the truth from every perspective for all to see and relish.
Indeed for an artist who seeks to explore the depth of his quest for truth, the destination he arrives at is the sanctity of the Absolute. Even in the case of an artist untrained in the techniques of art but is spiritually inclined, he is able to create fine works of art by virtue of his knowledge of the Absolute Truth. In fact it is the artist who is not learned in the techniques of art that should be accorded premier status as a true artist for his endeavour is borne of his personal search for the Absolute Truth. For it is he/she who will be able to display originality in his works as seen in the excellence of the works by the Naive art movement.
Is it also any wonder that all the great medievel and prehistoric artists chose to depict religious movements, God, angels and apostles as their main subject. Of course with the modernist art movements, secularism is the order of the day. But here too we can recognise that the denial of God or The Absolute Truth is merely a different approach taken by the artistic soul to dissect atheism and find the Absolute within it.
In fact the Vaishnavas of India have used art as an attempt to come as close as possible to describing the beauty and omnipotence of the Absolute Reality. As a Vaishnava guru pointed out, the paintings produced by Vaishnava artists are the window to the spiritual world.

life is art

Living through a life is an art. From the time of our birth, the nurturing we received, the way we responded to those caring for us and thoughts that formed in our minds based on our perception of the world, our reactions to these and subsequent stand we take in deciding what type of character we want to adopt - all these are art because the artist, the soul has deliberately made its mark on one's life.
How do we showcase these artform that is our life? How do we display this art product so that it serves as a reminder to another person?

Iskandar Malaysia Contemporary Art Show (IMCAS)

The three month Iskandar Malaysia Contemporary Art Show (IMCAS) which started in Johor Bahru on March 14, is the biggest exhibition of Malaysian contemporary artists in the country todate.
Visiting the exhibition held on the 4th level of the newly opened Danga City Mall, enlightened me about the true extant of contemporary art in the country. Previously not having seen all the works at one venue, I had been rather confused as to what Malaysian artists were doing these days.
What I saw at IMCAS was an eye-opener for me and my confidence in Malaysian art grew tremendously seeing the exciting way our artists from Yusof Ghani, Hamir Soib, husband and wife artists Choy Chun Wei and Yau Bee Ling, Bayu Utomo and Jeganathan Ramachandram are moving.
Those wishing to become art collectors should check out the special booths set up at the Art Fair for budding Malaysian artists. They can pick out good quality original works for as low as a couple of hundred ringgit.
In conjunction with IMCAS, an open category Art Competition will be held to unearth new talents.
A residency programme for about 12 young artists will be held throughout the duration of the exhibition with a road show to popularise their works.

the wiping out of the majestic Malayan tiger

I am working on a follow-up article on tiger conservation in the country. Yesterday an article appeared on the seizure of tiger carcasses seized the previous day from a lorry in Thailand believed to have come from Malaysia. The article carried a picture showing the Thai wildlife authorities holding up two severed tiger heads while the carcasses of two adult tigers lay in front of them. There also appeared to be a carcass of a young tiger cub. It was a shocking picture seeing the majestic beasts that rule the thick equatorial forests of Malaysia lying dead. The seizure of the tiger carcasses was just one of the many cases of wild animal smuggling in Malaysia that had been reported in the media over the past few weeks. Even today there was an article on the seizure of snake skins from smugglers in Malaysia. The growing trade in wild animal parts in the country is indicative of the Government's lack lustre commitment towards the conservation of its rich environment and biodiversity. The general attitude of the Government including the State Governments is that the country is blessed with plentiful jungle areas and biodiversity, that there will be enough to go around despite poaching and any amount of environmental abuse. Also the lust of present day political leaders to enrich themselves, their families and cronies at whatever cost has caused them to be party to the unscrupulous syndicate of poachers and animal part traders. The Government is even sitting on a much needed revision of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 which allows poachers to get away with a mere RM5,000 fine if caught by the authorities and charged. The move to revise this act began about five years ago and nothing has come of it todate. Fed-up with the Government's attitude, TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, an international NGO set up by animal conservationists to stop the trade in wild animal parts has started a signature petition calling on the Government to act fast in revising the said Act. My article today is to get to the bottom of this disgraceful stand of the Government in not showing a commitment towards wildlife conservation. Hope this article turns out well and delivers the intended impact.

welcoming 2009

The birth of 2009. A new beginning for me, my family and everyone around us. The indications are there. A lot of changes have occured over the past two months and most telling is the impact on me. My mother's death on Nov 16 was the final chapter of my personal development, having thrust me into the world to fend for the needs, of loved ones and progressively of more and more people in my growing circle.
What I do in the remaining years of my life will have to be a day-to-day charting of progressive movement with never a day to be wasted in idleness as my duties keep growing each other day.
For it is the prerogative of an artist to promptly deliver his contributions to society without fail after his material dues are fulfilled.