R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T

R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T ( K u a l a L u m p u r ) , L o t N o . 2 F - 3 , L e v e l 2 , B a n g s a r V i l l a g e I I , J a l a n T e l a w i 1 , B a n g s a r B a r u , 5 9 1 0 0 K u a l a L u m p u r , M a l a y s i a T : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 3 6 7 7 , F : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 4 6 7 7 , w w w . r k f i n e a r t . c o m , i n f o @ r k f i n e a r t . c o m

J u n e 1 7 , 2 0 1 4 P r e s s R e l e a s e Richard Koh Fine Art Kuala Lumpur Lot No. 2F-3, Level 2, Bangsar Village II, Jalan Telawi, Bangsar Baru, 59100 Kuala Lumpur, MALAYSIA T: +60 (03) 2283 3677 F: +60 (03) 2283 4677

S T A R T A t S a a t c h i G a l l e r y E x h i b i t i o n S p a c e 1 . 1 , G r o u n d F l o o r N a t e e U t a r i t , N a d i a h B a m a d h a j a n d C h a n g Y o o n g C h i a J u n e 2 6 – 2 9 , 2 0 1 4 S a a t c h i G a l l e r y , D u k e o f Y o r k H Q , K i n g ’ s R o a d , L o n d o n , S W 3 4 R Y , U K Richard Koh Fine Art (RKFA) is pleased to present Natee Utarit, Nadiah Bamadhaj and Chang Yoong Chia at the inaugural art fair START, at Saatchi gallery in London, UK. START, presented by Prudential will be held from June 26 – 29, 2014. The fair, dedicating to supporting international galleries from both the world’s most exciting emerging markets and established artistic centres, will feature exciting young galleries from all over the world. This would be Richard Koh Fine Art’s first art fair presentation in Europe. The gallery will be exhibiting 6 recent large-scale works by Natee Utarit, Nadiah Bamadhaj and Chang Yoong Chia. N a d i a h B a m a d h a j ’s Cina Wurung, Londa Durung, Jawa Tanggung (No longer Chinese, not yet a Dutchman, a half-baked Javanese) is a large paperwork created through the acts of collaging and drawing and is one of the 2 works she will

R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T

R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T ( K u a l a L u m p u r ) , L o t N o . 2 F - 3 , L e v e l 2 , B a n g s a r V i l l a g e I I , J a l a n T e l a w i 1 , B a n g s a r B a r u , 5 9 1 0 0 K u a l a L u m p u r , M a l a y s i a T : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 3 6 7 7 , F : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 4 6 7 7 , w w w . r k f i n e a r t . c o m , i n f o @ r k f i n e a r t . c o m

be exhibiting at START. The title for this drawing is documented from a 19thcentury Javanese colloquialism to describe Tan Jin Sing, a Kapitan Cina of Yogyakarta, (Indonesia) from 1803 – 1813. From a long-settled Hokkien peranakan family from Central Java, Tan Jin Sing went on to be the first person of Chinese descent to hold the title of regent in the Yogyakarta royal court (Kraton). The building in the image is a traditional shop house, which reflects the existence of hybridity within the Chinese community in Yogyakarta. Treading between the realms of drawing and sculpture, Nadiah’s laboriously crafted paper-works merge the practice of drawing with collage, magnifying architectural structures and characters into gigantic reliefs that appear almost sculptural. C h a n g Y o o n g C h i a will be presenting 3 works at the fair, one of which is The Dollar Sign, a massive and intricate collage constructed fully out of stamps without a material backing and depicts the Petronas Twin Towers guarded by two gigantic serpents, a large snake and the mythical Chinese dragon. The monstrous brown snake created out of hundreds of mundane stamps with the oil palm fruits’ image seems to be cradling the large architectural structure while the green dragon hovers elegantly into the sky. Both snakes in relation to the structure of the twin towers visually echo the dollar sign. The work is a commentary on Malaysia’s dependency on both the petroleum oil and the palm oil, along with its obsessive consumption of both precious resources; which led to the modification of the physical and cultural landscapes in the country. N a t e e U t a r i t ’s When Adam delved and Eve Span, who was then the gentleman? is a large multi-panelled painting which appropriates the format of a Christian altarpiece and depicts a complex symbol laden scene filled with figures drawn from life, ranging from a doll house, two human skeletons, a chimpanzee to a trio of standing ferrets. The title of the work derives from the famous opening lines of a sermon delivered by the renegade priest John Ball who instigated the peasant revolt of 1381. His sermon captured the feelings of the disenfranchised lower classes of England at that time chafing against their subjugation and unpaid exploitation by the ruling orders of society. The work explores the power structure within the international art system along with establishing a specific stance in relation to it.

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R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T ( K u a l a L u m p u r ) , L o t N o . 2 F - 3 , L e v e l 2 , B a n g s a r V i l l a g e I I , J a l a n T e l a w i 1 , B a n g s a r B a r u , 5 9 1 0 0 K u a l a L u m p u r , M a l a y s i a T : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 3 6 7 7 , F : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 4 6 7 7 , w w w . r k f i n e a r t . c o m , i n f o @ r k f i n e a r t . c o m

N a d i a h B a m a d h a j (b. 1968, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia) was initially trained as a sculptor at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand but now produces drawings, sculptures, installations and digital images. In 2000, she began her full-time art- practice and was awarded the Nippon Foundation’s Asian Public Intellectual Fellowship in 2002, electing to spend her fellowship period in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, where she currently lives with her husband and son. Her artwork continues to focus on the social intricacies of Yogyakarta’s society, using myth, architecture, and dwelling to articulate her observations.

C h a n g Y o o n g C h i a (b. 1975, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) graduated from the Malaysian Institute of Art in 1996 with a Diploma of Fine Art in painting. Yoong Chia’s works, ranging from Surrealist inspired paintings, laboriously crafted collages, paper sculptures to painted shells explore a wide-ranging topics such as politics, religion and culture. The repeated gestures and complex methods reflect a commitment with craft in which the labour adds another layer of meaning to the work. Placing an importance on the media, he believes that each medium has its own characteristics, malleability and symbolism thus new interpretations are conjured when found or mundane objects such as postage stamps and seashells are transformed in an almost alchemical fashion into intricate artworks.

N a t e e U t a r i t (b. 1970, Bangkok, Thailand) studied at the College of Fine Art in 1987 and graduated in Graphic Arts at the Painting and Sculpture Faculty at Silpakorn University, both in Bangkok, Thailand in 1991. Initially influenced by German Expressionism and abstract art in his early body of work, Natee has undergone an exploration on the medium of painting connecting it with photography and classical Western art. Light and perspective are some of the elements the artist chose to work with, focusing on painting as a means to explore image making. His complex pictures, juggle wide-ranging metaphors usually in the format of the traditional still life, allude to Thailand’s current social and political landscapes.

R i c h a r d K o h F i n e A r t is an art gallery with spaces in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.

For further information about the exhibition or to schedule an interview with the artist, please do not hesitate to contact the gallery at haffendi@rkfineart.com or at +60 (03) 2283 3677.

All images are subject to copyright.

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R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T ( K u a l a L u m p u r ) , L o t N o . 2 F - 3 , L e v e l 2 , B a n g s a r V i l l a g e I I , J a l a n T e l a w i 1 , B a n g s a r B a r u , 5 9 1 0 0 K u a l a L u m p u r , M a l a y s i a T : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 3 6 7 7 , F : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 4 6 7 7 , w w w . r k f i n e a r t . c o m , i n f o @ r k f i n e a r t . c o m

Nadiah Bamadhaj

Cina Wurung, Londa Durung, Jawa Tanggung (No longer Chinese, not yet a Dutchman, a half-baked Javanese) 2014

Charcoal on paper collage 223 x 170 cm

R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T

R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T ( K u a l a L u m p u r ) , L o t N o . 2 F - 3 , L e v e l 2 , B a n g s a r V i l l a g e I I , J a l a n T e l a w i 1 , B a n g s a r B a r u , 5 9 1 0 0 K u a l a L u m p u r , M a l a y s i a T : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 3 6 7 7 , F : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 4 6 7 7 , w w w . r k f i n e a r t . c o m , i n f o @ r k f i n e a r t . c o m

Chang Yoong Chia

The Dollar Sign 2014

Postage stamps and polyvinyl acetate glue (collage) 211 x 134 cm

R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T

R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T ( K u a l a L u m p u r ) , L o t N o . 2 F - 3 , L e v e l 2 , B a n g s a r V i l l a g e I I , J a l a n T e l a w i 1 , B a n g s a r B a r u , 5 9 1 0 0 K u a l a L u m p u r , M a l a y s i a T : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 3 6 7 7 , F : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 4 6 7 7 , w w w . r k f i n e a r t . c o m , i n f o @ r k f i n e a r t . c o m

Chang Yoong Chia I Dream of Two Birds

2014 Postage stamps and polyvinyl acetate glue (collage)

151 x 147 cm

R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T

R I C H A R D K O H F I N E A R T ( K u a l a L u m p u r ) , L o t N o . 2 F - 3 , L e v e l 2 , B a n g s a r V i l l a g e I I , J a l a n T e l a w i 1 , B a n g s a r B a r u , 5 9 1 0 0 K u a l a L u m p u r , M a l a y s i a T : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 3 6 7 7 , F : + 6 0 ( 0 3 ) 2 2 8 3 4 6 7 7 , w w w . r k f i n e a r t . c o m , i n f o @ r k f i n e a r t . c o m

Natee Utarit When Adam delved and Eve span, who was then the gentleman?

2014 Oil on canvas 230 x 735 cm