Jo Kukathas (left) and Kuah Jenhan prepping up for 'Instant Cafe Night Live! Edisi X' where Kukathas's infamous character "YBeeee" will be interviewed by Kuah. Photo: The Star/Glenn Guan
COMEDY: INSTANT CAFE NIGHT LIVE! EDISI X
Venue: Plenary Hall, KL Convention Centre
Date: March 18
'Instant Cafe Night Live! Edisi X' is set to take on the Plenary Hall Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre this Saturday.
Watch Jo Kukathas rollout her iconic characters YBeeee, the MP of Ulu Katak and the Deputy Minister of Kickbacks and Comebacks in the new coalition government; and also Curry Spice the bold, beautiful, bada** from Sentul, star of the Netflix show, "Keeping Up With The Coomarasamys" and her upcoming biopic "Ini Kari Lah".
The show is hosted by jazz pop singer Sean Ghazi and comedian Kuah Jenhan. Two guests, two hosts, twice the fun! Catch them as they talk about everything from AI, flood, famine, quinoa, kelp, help, unity, new hopes, old dreams, Malaysia for Malaysians, everything, everywhere, anyhow ... and whether ChatGPT wrote this show.
Also joining the line-up is guest performer Tria Aziz. 'Instant Cafe Night Live! Edisi X' was created by Jo Kukathas and Zalfian Fuzi with Kam Raslan and Na’a Murad.
More info here.
Paul Celan's 'Luka Kenangan' offers 50 poems translated into Bahasa Malaysia from the original German language. Photo: Handout
BOOK LAUNCH: 'PAUL CELAN: LUKA KENANGAN 50 SAJAK'
Venue: Lokl Coffee x Riwayat, KL
Date: March 18, 3pm
Paul Celan (1920-1970), a Romanian German-language poet, is set to have a wider following in Malaysia with arts and literary activist Pauline Fan’s Bahasa Malaysia translations of selected poems by Celan.
The book Luka Kenangan has been 10 years in the making. It offers 50 poems translated into Bahasa Malaysia from the original German language. Indonesian poet Goenawan Mohamad has written the foreword for the book, and Dr Markus Litz, director of Goethe-Institut Malaysia, contributed the introductory essay.
Tomorrow's launch at Lokl Coffee x Riwayat in downtown KL will see a short book discussion followed by a poetry reading. National laureate Prof Muhammad Haji Salleh is the guest of honour.
Lokl Coffee x Riwayat is located at 30, Jalan Tun HS Lee in Kuala Lumpur. Free admission event.
More info here.
Saxophonist Adil Johan will lead his quartet out at Merdekarya in Petaling Jaya this Saturday night. Photo: Handout
MUSIC: ADIL JOHAN QUARTET FEATURING SNITCH AND FITCH
Venue: Merdekarya, Petaling Jaya
Date: March 18, 8pm
The Adil Johan Quartet (AJQ) will be featuring wife-husband rap duo Snitch & Fitch at Merdekarya on March 18 March.
Adil is no stranger to the indie rock and jazz scene in Kuala Lumpur, as saxophonist of ethno-fusion group Nadir and Azmyl Yunor Orkes Padu (AYOP). As a self proclaimed "singer-jazzwriter", he offers soulful renditions of his original tunes in English and Bahasa Malaysia, interspersed with funky saxophone riffs.
MC Snitch (Adah Kahir) and producer-guitarist Fitch (Farique Nadzir) will be debuting their original hip-hop songs in apt collaboration with AJQ. MC Snitch's petite stature belies her lyrical prowess and cynical rhymes about music industry hypocrisy and stories about social justice and the personal struggles of being an freelance artist and mother. This show will prove to be an invigorating evening of original, homegrown indie soul and hip hop that speaks to a discerning urban crowd.
More info here.
A view of Yee I-Lann's 'lift the tikar!' exhibition at Ilham Gallery in KL. Photo: Ilham Gallery
ART: LIFT THE TIKAR!
Venue: Ilham Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
Date: ends June 18
Ilham Gallery's new exhibition entitled lift the tikar! features video works, woven sculpture and tikar mats by Sabah-born and based artist Yee I-Lann made in collaboration with weavers, film-makers, dancers, other fellow creative producers and friends. The exhibition is being held on Level 3 of Ilham Gallery.
The exhibition hopes to draw out ways in which the "tikar" in form and concept can act as a medium for thinking about art, power, language and how we shape a society.
Yee's practice as an artist has included work in photomedia, textiles, installation and video. With a particular focus on the South-East Asian region, her works draw on the aesthetics of colonialism, power, gender and shared memory.
More info here.
Joanne Loo's 'It Takes Two Hands' (paper mache clay, gouache and fibre, 2023). Photo: Balai Seni Maybank
ART: 'THE LABYRINTHS OF TOUCH'
Venue: Balai Seni Maybank, Kuala Lumpur
Date: ends March 24
Maybank’s annual "Emerging Women Artist" showcase this year explores the intimacy of touch as a perceptual experience.
Titled The Labyrinths Of Touch, the show features the work of 12 women artists, including Ain Rahman, Cheong See Min, Hana Zamri, Joanne Loo, Kimberley Boudville, Alexdrina Chong and Sarah Radzi.
Exploring themes such as touch and communication, memory, and identity, they offer a glimpse into what women artists bring to the table and offer new perspectives on the world around us.
At least half the works in this exhibition have been made with the intention for visitors to interact with them.
Additionally, with the help of the show's collaborator In Transit, the artists have had the chance to create audio descriptions that accompany each of their works (these can be accessed through QR codes).
This Saturday (March 18), there will be an artist talk (11am to 1pm) featuring Trina Teoh, Kimberley Boudville, Joanne Loo and Sarah Radzi, moderated by independent curator Sharmin Parameswaran. They will share their experiences in making tactile works and discuss topics such as multisensorial art and how it can bridge certain gaps that concern accessibility.
The show is on at Balai Seni Maybank (Menara Maybank, Jalan Tun Perak in KL) till March 24. Opening hours: 10am to 5pm from Monday to Friday and Saturday (11am to 4pm). Free admission.
An artwork by Haris Rashid titled 'Transit II' (acrylic on paper, 2017). Photo: Zhan Art Space
ART: HARIS RASHID'S 'FLUID'
Venue: Zhan Art Space, Petaling Jaya
Date: ends April 7
In Petaling Jaya, Zhan Art Space is shining the light on Haris Rashid's first decade as a contemporary artist with his latest exhibition titled fluid.
The show fluid is curated by fellow artist/curator Mona KV and showcases a wide range of artworks from Haris, reflecting the growth and evolution of the artist's visual language, notably his signature motifs of local tropical plants and Malaysian wildlife.
The exhibition features 45 unique artworks curated throughout the last decade with a recurring theme of water, a symbolic metaphor chosen to represent the ups and down of Haris’ journey as an artist and a human being.
More info here.
Alexdrina Chong's 'Darkside Of The Moon' (ceramic sculpture, 2022) seen at the 'In Her Eyes' exhibition. Photo: The Star/Ong Soon Hin
ART: 'IN HER EYES' GROUP SHOW
Venue: KL East And Melawati Sales Gallery, KL
Date: ends April 3
To coincide with International Women's Day celebrations this month, the In Her Eyes exhibition at KL East And Melawati Sales Gallery, at Sime Darby Property at KL East, is showing works from 17 female artists from diverse backgrounds.
It is presented by A.P Art Gallery in partnership with Manggis Group. The participating artists, women who are in different stages of their lives, have responded positively to the curatorial brief to share their stories through art, on life, their fears and dreams, and everything in between.The artist line-up includes Anniketyni Madian, Kam Woei Yann, Alexdrina Chong (aka Alexoid Luce), Kimberley Boudville, Elly Nor Suria, Miriam Omar and others.
Curated by Nazura Rahime (who is also the director of A.P Art Gallery) and Nurul Fathma, they embraced a more inclusive approach in their search for artists, including younger individuals and those who pursue art-making on the side.
In Her Eyes is showing at KL East And Melawati Sales Gallery in Taman Melawati, Kuala Lumpur, till April 3. Opening hours: 10am to 5pm daily.
More info here.
A view of the installation 'Once Upon A Longtang' by artist Red Hong Yi at the National Art Gallery in Kuala Lumpur. The show ends on March 22. Photo: The Star/Faihan Ghani
ART: RED HONG YI’S ‘ONCE UPON A LONGTANG’
Venue: National Art Gallery, KL
Date: ends March 22
The National Art Gallery has gone all old world Shanghai with multi-disciplinary artist Red Hong Yi’s latest site-specific exhibition Once Upon A Longtang, which has been attracting quite a buzz since it opened in January.
It is the last few days to catch it, so be quick. The installation features a series of artworks “painted” with burnt Chinese calligraphy paper, and features scenes inspired by old alleyway houses – or “Longtang” houses in Shanghai.
“These houses are dear to me because my father and grandparents lived there, and I got to live there and reconnect with my roots in 2011-2013. These old houses are also quickly disappearing to make way for urban development,” says Red Hong Yi about the new installation.
The artist and her studio team will be at the National Art Gallery this Sunday at 10am for an hour-long Q&A session.
Free admission.
More info here.
