TO THE EAST AND BACK

Led by esteemed artist Yee I-Lann and her collaborators, Borneo Heart in Kuala Lumpur reaches a crescendo with the release of two new books by the exhibition's headliner, titled The Sun Will Rise in the East and At the Table, respectively. The artist lets Augustman in on the story behind her epic undertakings.

-  KC YAP 

TO THE MAJORITY, a mat is just a mat, but to the intellectual artist Yee I-Lann, renowned for her profound examination of power, colonialism and the impact of historical memories on contemporary culture and society in Southeast Asia through her work, the hand-woven mat, along with the market, is a source of inspiration that spawned her latest tour de force Borneo Heart, an epic cross-country art fest co-organised by Beverly Yong of RogueArt that debuted in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, in 2021, and has since travelled to Kuala Lumpur, presenting works made in collaboration with weavers, film-makers, dancers, other fellow creative producers and friends.

It all started back in 2017, when I-Lann moved back to Kota Kinabalu after 25 years in Kuala Lumpur. Following a trip to the countryside market, what was meant to be a short break quickly became an eye-opening, three-year-long journey of exploring the mat, working with two communities of weavers – Dusun and Murut weavers in the inland district of Keningau and Bajau Laut weavers in Pulau Omadal, Semporna, peoples of “tanah” (land) and “air” (water) respectively, with very different traditions employing different materials (bamboo pus and pandanus), motifs and styles. A conversation has since ensued between I-Lann’s stories and ideas, artistic vision and process and the skills, knowledge, stories and experiences of her collaborators, leading to innovations in weaving, local creative economy, and the artist’s own practice.