The Loudest Voice in Colour

Delwin Cheah, a 19-year-old savant artist, has just sold out his second solo exhibition for RM84,000. This is his story of overcoming the odds

- Koyyi Chin

Thirty minutes into his first day at art school, eightyear-old Delwin Cheah was asked to be sent back home because the teacher “couldn’t handle him”. They told his parents that not only was Delwin the “worst artist” under their brief tutelage but had “no potential” for a career in art as a young boy diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome.

Fast forward 11 years later, and Delwin now has under his belt a slew of achievements. His latest solo exhibition in June 2022 at the Pinkguy fine art gallery in Kuala Lumpur titled ‘Freedom—Oxygen of the Soul’ comprised 12 colourful paintings, some of which are threedimensional horses sculpted using Faber-Castell's adhesive tack-its. Delwin’s newest series is an outward expression of his worldview: one where the world is still beautiful, and humans can co-exist peacefully with nature.

And just within 20 minutes of the exhibition’s official launch, all the artworks presented were sold for a total of RM84,000. “It’s both humbling and gratifying to know that people appreciate his work,” says Lawrence Cheah, Delwin’s father of this record-breaking result for the young artist. “He draws non-stop—eight to ten hours a day! He’s a perfectionist and never gets tired of it.”