Reading Between The Lines

Japanese-born, Thailand-based artist Kentaro Hiroki explores South-East Asian culture and identity through national artefects, and turns to Malaysia for his latest exhibition.

- Neda Al-Asedi

The façade of A+ Works of Art gallery in Sentul gives nothing away of what lies inside, except for a small sign on the glass that spells out the name and dates of the current exhibition. All you can see beyond the glass is what greets visitors as they step into the gallery: pristine white walls save for small stripes of red, blue and yellow that are only visible after you take that first step into the gallery. On the far wall ahead, one singular frame, set dead centre, beckons at visitors to take a closer look.

That single frame contained the cover spread of Malaysian Citizenship, a law book written by the late Tun Mohamed Suffian, former Chief of Justice of Malaya and former Lord President of the Malaysian Federal Court. More accurately, the frame held a reproduction of the front and back covers of Malaysian Citizenship, though it isn’t immediately obvious until you look closer. Every detail, from the exact shade of the time-yellowed pages to each tiny tiger stripe on the national coat of arms, is recreated almost exactly, and only the pencil strokes on the front cover reveal that it is, in fact, a work of art.