ARTISTIC Licence

From practitioners of high tech to slow craft, this young and talented Malaysian cohort explores themes about identity and community, memories of the past and imaginations of the future, reality and virtuality. Their diverse visual languages shine a creative light on a fast-morphing zeitgeist.

- TAN SIOK HOON

CHONG YAN CHUAH

BACKGROUND AND WORK … My background in architecture and my artistic work intersect in a unique exploration of the boundary between the tangible and the intangible, the real and the imagined. My art is an embodiment of this interplay, primarily expressed through digital imagery, game art and installation art. It’s a voyage into the realms of virtual reality and simulated spaces, where fictive narratives and imagined bodies converge in a mise-en-scène that challenges our conventional understanding of reality and experience.

MEDIA, TECHNIQUES AND MATERIALS … What I employ is rooted in the digital realm. I use 3D modelling, computer-generated imagery and game design software to construct the intricate landscapes and scenarios that populate my work. My artistic process is deeply quantitative where numbers, dimensions and values are not mere technical tools but essential elements in the creation of my art. They inform the dynamic gestures, such as zooming, scaling and multiplying, which breathe life into my digital worlds.

THEMES AND ISSUES … My work is driven by a profound fascination with the concept of escape. Each of my constructed universes serves as an extension of our lived reality, an allegory for my emotional state, rather than the invention of an entirely new existence. This thematic thread is interwoven with a series of elements and symbols, from enigmatic circles to a cryptic script I’ve devised, serving as gateways to new beginnings and hidden narratives. The corporeal and the imaginary coexist in my art, challenging the very essence of both.