Reach Out to the homeless in KL

There r are a few groups who feed the homeless in KL. One such organisation is REACH OUT.  Each nite (early morning) the volunteers and their leader Pete collect & pack food donated by businesses such a PJ Hilton & Nomad Restaurant and then distribute it to the homeless people around Klang Bus Station, Central Market, Masjid Negara & Dayabumi (to name a few spots).

Their vision & mission:
“A VISION FOR HUMANITY”

“To implement programmes to deliver relief from hunger, pain, or abuse, dealing with not only the symptoms but the causes of such, through physical On Street Programmes, Awareness Campaigns, Educational Programmes, and relationships with other likeminded organizations, to provide nurture and training to the urban and rural poor and those that are in fear or in need, regardless of race, gender, religion, or culture”.

Reach Out is a non religious, non political, Community Action Group, which consists of volunteers working with the homeless, the rural, and the urban poor in Malaysia.

From their experiences of working with charitable organisations in Kuala Lumpur, a group of volunteers initiated the vision of establishing permanent centres in Malaysia to feed, shelter and rehabilitate the homeless and urban/rural poor, and to understand, and raise awareness of the causes of such and in the long term, to reduce the flow of poverty by providing a place of training and assistance and source employment opportunities to help make the poor employable and for them to re-enter society.

The poor do not want charity they need inspiration.

Here's what one volunteer had to say (taken from their FB group post)
"They feed the less fortunate every night at midnight starting at 1130pm to 4/5am the next day (except Thursdays). I joined them for the first time last night .....

What amazed me the most from this experience is that most of the volunteers in the group were young people like me, and half of them have been doing it for years. Reach Out Malaysia has been feeding people for the past 5 years....

Some of the homeless men I met spoke in perfect English and are smart. They are not dumb or crazy as what many people would think....

What made these people go to the street we wonder? AllahuAlam, only God knows."

To join / learn / contribute / follow :

https://www.facebook.com/groups/reachoutmal/
http://reachoutmal.blogspot.com/

Need some motivation to move your day?

Read Nathan S. Collier's blog
http://www.nscblog.com/

and subscribe to his daily post. You'd get lots of interesting human & business relationship stories... A little like 'Chicken Soup'..(i think)

Art in aid of animal welfare

LASSie, the Langkawi Animal Shelter & Sanctuary Foudation is putting together a brand of creative products, in collaboration with designers, artists and supporters.
Each product is attributed to the person eg. LASSie by Carolyn. This way everyone receives recognition for their product and contribution. The objective is to assemble up to 100 products, which can be sold through LASSie boutiques in Penang & Langkawi. These products can also be purchased at cost by all shelters/SPCAs in Malaysia & sold through their own shops.

In July 2011, the aim is to do a weekend market place in KL & Penang, with the profits going to all the animal shelters.

In conjunction with this market place, tie ups with art galleries for curated exhibitions featuring artists impressions of dogs, cats & animal welfare, will be organized.

If you are interested to help in this project or know of anyone who would be interested to help, please email: info@langkawilassie.org.my or narelle2@bontonresort.com.my or carolynjlau@gmail.com.

Please register your interest by January 30th 2011, with product suggestions, sketches & price. A design committee will consider all products and respond by email by 28th February 2011. Orders will be placed by mid March with delivery for June 15th 2011.

Crazee says:  Its a pity that I only came across this while searching for animal sanctuaries (see petcrazee.blogspot.com). As u can see the deadline is over but will try to get a follow-up.

Getting crafty again!

Everytime i meet an artist or crafter , the same questions pop up! Do u paint? What craft do u do?  Simple question, a somewhat complicated answer..  Having experimented with so many aspects of art & craft before, all i can say is "Not anymore", which is a sad revelation for me... What happened???  Over the years, there were many bad moments related to my passions.  Going back to the crafting & painting & sewing brings  feelings of apprehension. It's like a driver in a car accident. Can he go back to driving? But driving just means going from one destination to another. Doing art or craft means opening up yourself, barring my soul, risking failure... Your work may not be up to the mark, initially. It takes TIME, much EFFORTand TENACITY (and conviction that u ARE doing it right).  Can i take the setbacks?  But I must be POSITIVE, i tell myself.  Maybe the time for a comeback is due. After all, I'm coming very close to being a half-centurion. NOT MUCH TIME LEFT (i joke). And most of all, I'm surrounded by creative, energetic people, who are my SUPPORT system!

Having just finished a project interviewing and writing about artists & their journey and viewing their work, seeing their passion and learning of the reality of life as an artist, I am humbled. My pain does not come anywhere close to their life long struggle to be an artist and have it as a career  and being able to support themselves & their family. I call them all BRAVE souls! 

And for those who organise and promote art, trying to put a vision into reality, it oftens feels like being wedged in a crevice (127 hours, the movie). Many things can go awry. But you stick to it, you be realistic and you do what you humanly can. My deepest respect to those who stick it out, have a 'never give up' attitude and never venting your frustration on those around you. A real measure of CHARACTER.   

Visual stimulation & inspiration
Taking a walk through MidValley (a popular shopping mall) yesterday, I noticed a trend for this Spring (although we live in the tropics, our stores still follow the 4 seasons - Summer, Spring, Autumn & Winter - go figure! very kiasu!). This is interspersed with our own 4 seasons - Chinese New Year, Hari Raya, School holiday & Christmas/Year-end Bonus... but i digress,..

What i noticed is the prominent use of patterned fabric instead of the usual plain coloured fabrics normally associated with fashionistas. Patterned fabrics r usually linked with the older generation of matriachs - ie.aunties & makciks. But graphically bold fabrics and abstract looking fabrics with blotches, streaks, spots of paint here and there gives a more arty and sophisticated look. But personally, one has to be careful in your choice of colour, pattern & cut of the apparel or else it does age you.

It got me thinking..Now's the time to start experimenting with fabric dyeing and painting.


A few weeks ago, at Borders (Tropicana City Mall), I found a most inspiring book : The Complete Photo Guide to Textile Art. Unfortunately, the materials used are mostly unknown in this part of the world. (Buying online would be costly in shipping charges). So i need to source some local suppliers.  I have used Setacolor by Pebeo before and it's one of the more available brands but available in limited range.  Ahh.. more walking & scouting.  I hear Craft Haven in Bandar Utama has Pebeo. So does the shop in Amcorp Mall, but I find the owner very (shall i say..) uncooperative.  

Online help & research

Here are some of the resources i found to help in my experimentation (will add on to the list as i find more)
INTRO :   http://fabricdyeing101.blogspot.com/2006/11/1a-introduction.html
IDEA  :    http://fabricdyeing101.blogspot.com/2006/10/14-other-techniques-sky-painting.html
TIPS :      http://www.alleycatscratch.com/lotr/Fabric/FabricDyeing.htm

Looking for paints & equipment :
There's an art shop in The Gardens called Art Friend (right above Robinson's). Wow.. lots of stuff to see & buy. But feeling a little swoozy becos of the 'haze' flu, i just took a short look around and took note of the possible materials & tools..

There's also the very long time art shops in Petaling Street - Venus Art & Nanyang Art Supplies. Will check them out one day soon.

Other tools & equipment, I'd scout around my 'workshop' (ie. house over-flowing with stuff!) and ACE Hardware (Jaya33)

WISH ME LUCK!

Learning about art - what's new?

Ever since I've been interviewing artists (for a book project), I've come to learn a lot about the sacrifices artists make for their art, the joy they get from painting and new art forms.

Now, i have increased appreciation for contemporary/popular art forms like COMICS and DOODLING.  I guess one would say that i'm ol'skool. Leonardo daVinci is till my art hero!  Have never doodled before as i would never desecrate a book (although nowadays the books I read have notes, jottings, afterthoughts and markings written all over. Scribbles, but not doodles.. hmm..). I came across this blog by one such comic lover and i must say the graphics (comics) are very detailed, professionally done and rendered beautifully. No wonder, some even call this SEQUENTIAL ART- art works that tell a story.  See for yourself -  http://rambai-art.blogspot.com/

Juxta Art at National Art Gallery

Check out also :  Raja Azeem, a young man with a talent for what i'd like to call ENDLESS DOODLING for his lines and images fill up every cm of the canvas and surfaces like stones. He calls it Juxta Art. Here's his blog :   http://juxtaart.blogspot.com/2011/03/juxta-art-in-impiana.html

Abby Zain's naive painting - Yusof Buaya (it actual lives in Zoo negara)

Also there seems to be a growing interest (artist & buyers alike) for a painting style known as NAIVE ART.  I guess, with all the technology and wizardry that we have now, the human being still longs for days when things were not so wired and complex. The simple painting, often defying perspective and colour balancing, garish at times and often child-like in look is finding a niche in the Malaysian art. We were told, at the ZIG-ZAG ZOO exhibition that even Balai Seni Lukis Negara has started to collect them.
Hurray for naive artists!  http://crazeepatches.blogspot.com/search/label/naive%20art

CARAN d’ACHE's limited edition luxury pen  (Kufi design by Shukor Yahya)

Oh, we must not forget another exciting revolution by Shukor Yahya. His frens and 'students' in Facebook call him 'Kufi Master'. Check out his beautiful blog to learn of this interesting art form, based on an Arabic font. http://shukoryahya.blogspot.com/



Hail the new era in art!!
...or was i just behind in my art appreciation knowledge... he he

Welcome, my dear ACG friends..

I started this blog at the end of 2007. It came as a personal need to DOCUMENT interesting snippets in the art & craft world and has also the more lofty intention of providing INFO & ENCOURAGEMENT to other creative people & ordinary folks. I find SHARING, most fulfilling for me. ... And so, i BLOG on just about any kind of craft (& a little art)...

Then in 2009, I started to feel lonely... I missed my group of frens - members of ACG, an almost defunct art & craft guild. I started by 'lending' my blog to the guild and organised the first meeting (reunion) at Annexe Gallery's Art fo Grabs event. Although only two turned up (+ a few who were manning their stalls at the event), we did manage to get inspired enuff to resurrect the guild!

Thus began the AGMs, designing membership forms, emailling, creating Facebook presence, up-dating the blog and event had a website (but was difficult to use)...

Now, in 2010, i have separated the blog entries for ACG and my personal entries and created a dedicated blog the the guild http://www.acgmalaysia.blogspot.com

Our 2011 AGM (Annual General Meeting) is coming up!! So if you'd like to join the guild, mark APRIL 24 (SUNDAY) 2-5pm @eco-cent$, vintage & preloved fashion store. And we're going POT LUCK (a tradition for us) -- ie.. each member brings a little food - their favourite snacks, finger food to be shared...

I would also like each one to BRING AN ITEM or two of their craft / artwork / portfolio ... so that other members can share & appreciate each other's hard-work!!

There will also be a MEMBERSHIP DRIVE...so bring frens who share the same passion :)


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Down memory lane ....
22 Dec 2007 (MY FIRST POST)

My passion for crafts lead me to a group of artists and crafters of various creative skills. I learned about ceramics, Chinese brush painting, stenciling, sculptures, oil, watercolour, ... Many have become my dear friends.

I realised that I was more interested in helping others to appreciate the arts & crafts, than doing a particular craft. People often ask me what is my craft? Well, I was into fashion designing, then costume research, then 'faux mosaic', which is one way of recycling fashion magazine pages into functional items. I made jewellery with safety pins, magazine gift wraps... I love wrapping presents!

At one time I organised exhibitions at art galleries, collected reference materials about all kinds of crafts, craft supplies & materials, wrote newsletters, press releases as part of my duty as president of the group (ACG). Those were one of the happiest times!

This goes out to my friends from the Guild. We have been trying to keep the guild relevant but I guess times change. So, I hope with this blog, we can still keep in touch and keep our interest in crafts and the arts alive. I started this blog a few days ago with the aim of launching it on Christmas Day - the most magical time of the year! A time for immersing in the spirit of friendship and camaderie (remember all those exhibition launches & crafting activities? :)) ... and sharing of knowledge, less the art of crafting diasappears completely, due to lack of practice and time, overtaken by other priorities.

Technology has changed the way we live our life .. so, let's incorporate it into our art & craft. My hope is that each of us stay in contact by logging into this blog from time to time & post comments. The beauty of it is that it's 24/7 (computer speak for 'anytime/all the time'). Those who would like to start their own blog (to introduce their art/craft to the world) can contact me / email, if you need help setting it up. It will be our 'hi-tech' craft project .. ha ha. If you already have a site, I would like to include it in my links - great for promotions and making our presence known in cyberspace!

Here's to a new beginning ... Cheers!! Merry Xmas, Season's Greetings & Happy New Year !!!

Am i creative?

Many people who come to our events will declare apologetically that they are not creative! .. but they just like & appreciate our work. They r bound by the traditional view that to be creative means one must be able to draw an exact copy of the Mona Lisa. Creativity encompasses more than that.

See if any one or more of these fits you. Then, you ARE CREATIVE!

Excerpt from Creativity - Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.

Characteristics of the creative personality: (pages 58-73)

• Creative individuals have a great deal of energy, but they are also often quiet and at rest.
• Creative individuals tend to be smart, yet also naive at the same time.
• Creative individuals have a combination of playfulness and discipline, or responsibility and irresponsibility.
• Creative individuals alternate between imagination and fantasy at one end, and rooted sense of reality at the other.
• Creative people seem to harbor opposite tendencies on the continuum between extroversion and introversion.
• Creative individuals are also remarkable humble and proud at the same time.
• Creative individuals to a certain extent escape rigid gender role stereotyping and have a tendency toward androgyny.
• Generally, creative people are thought to be rebellious and independent.
• Most creative persons are very passionate about their work, yet they can be extremely objective about it as well.
• The openness and sensitivity of creative individuals often exposes them to suffering pain yet also a great deal of enjoyment!

What makes U creative? Care to comment?...

1001 Malaysian Artists 1Malaysia

An invitation to all ACG members who r established artists and emerging artists who have participated in at least one solo or group exhibition.

One artist, one painting. United in art & diversity of media, culture and love of our country, Malaysia.

A chance to join a royal, charity exhibition, supported Yayasan Di Raja Sultan Mizan (our present Yang Di Pertuan Agung).

MORE INFO:

1. Criteria for entry : Malaysian citizen, must have done a group or solo exhibition before (please attach an updated Bio-data when submitting entry form)

2. Type of Work : One artist, one painting - any media, Maximum size 7' x 7'

3. Date of submission : Between 4th Jan to 1st March, 2011

4. Commission : 50 % of sales price to be donated to Yayasan Di Raja Sultan Mizan

5. To maintain overall quality of the exhibition, applicants & their work may be vetted by a panel. Disrespectful or obsene work will not be allowed.

6. Participation fee : RM50 (refundable if work is not accepted for exhibition)

1001 MALAYSIAN ARTISTS BOOK : In addition, a coffee-table book will be published as a compilation of 1001 artists in Malaysia. Each page will feature 2 artists - coloured print of their work, a photo of themselves, a 150-word write-up of about them and contact no. (tel & email).

This is very exciting for all artists because, due to the sheer volume of this book, prospective buyers are expected to refer to this when looking for artists & their artwork.

This has never been done before, collecting 1001 artists all under one roof. Can you imagine the Exhibition Opening and with the Agung, himself officiating it?

GALLERIES & OTHER ART GROUPS r also welcomed to introduce their members so that this will truly be a 1Malaysia initiative. To acknowledge your assistance & cooperation, you will be listed in all promotions - in print (Art Malaysia magazine, 1001 Malaysian Artist hard cover book) & online (artmalaysia.com.my)

ACG is assisting to gather artists & provide any other assistance to make this exhibitions a success.

Email for more info: acgmalaysia@gmail.com
OR http://artmalaysiamagazine.blogspot.com

Be a WIRE BENDER!!

COME EXPLORE YOUR CREATIVITY !!!

Are you a painter? A potter? A designer? Try a new medium!

You can't paint, you can't draw? but you can bend wire?

BE A WIRE BENDER

Date : 23 January, 2010

Venue : Laman Budaya Rakyat

- ACG's booth (under invitation from National Art Gallery)

Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur

Time : 4.30-10.30pm

Anyone can come & participate --

We supply the Inspiration & wire

... You supply the Creativity & camarderie!

This will be the FIRST COLLABORATION of members for 2010, new & old, prospective or just curious visitors...

These are some of the wire sculptures found on two websites :

http://www.wirelady.com/
http://www.wireinspire.com/

These are some ideas to get you started : (NOT to be copied, but INSPIRED)

DO IT AT HOME & BRING IT

or COME & DO YOUR WORK AMONG FELLOW ARTISTS

If u o prefer tyo make something utilitarian (that you can use),

try making a bookmark, placecard holder, bunga telur 'basket'

BTW wanna try to do a WIRE KETUPAT???

These are some of my experimentation:

Exploring a piece of wire

A piece of wire ----

... useful & ordinary... and often overlooked as a medium for creative art work - WIRE SCULPTURE

DEFINITION

Elizabeth Berrien, godmother of modern wire sculpture movement defines WIRE SCULPTURE as "any art made from wire.... There are no rules, no limits, no boundaries. Just as there are infinite variations in the way an artist may create a pen-and-ink drawing of any subject in any style, there are unlimited opportunities for wire sculptors to explore and innovate. Wire sculpture as a medium presents a vast, challenging frontier, wide open for exploration and discovery." http://www.wirelady.com/
"Cloud Princess", intricately hand-twisted wire illustration by Elizabeth Berrien,

CONCEPT

Some artists, Angela Hook have a preference for using a single strand to create 3-dimensional figurines. http://www.wireinspire.com/

"One of the big things I had to learn was to let the wire bend the way it wanted to, if that was at all possible within my designs. You will find that the more you mess with a piece of wire, the less it is willing to cooperate with you!

So, rather than overworking the wire, I have trained myself to work slow and steady, and have learned to respect the natural tendancies of a roll of wire. Making the right bend the first time is far more desirable than trying to correct the direction of the wire later.

"I see my work as 'linear sculpture'... it's like drawing without taking your pencil off the paper... only in three dimensions." The continuous line is very important. That is what helps the viewer's mind to fill in what is not there. It's a very elegant way of asking the audience to participate in the art, to finish the picture."

GREEN?

Using wire to create sculptures is the most greenest (eco-friendly) way of using metal in art. Elizabeth Berrien's airy, openwork sculptures use only 1% of material of solid metal art.

If we think of it, wire just surrounds the air and defines the shape. So a WIRE SCULPTURE IS actually 99% AIR%. Elizabeth uses recycled steel, copper or aluminum wire and hand-twist and weave lace-like creations. which is a low-tech method, that does not use welding torches that often releases chemical emissions.

TYPE OF WIRE

This includes any kind of wire - hardware store bought wire, found/discarded wire, chicken coop wire, wire meshes, even colourful wire pipe cleaners.

FORMS

Sculptures can be 2-D or 3-D.

2-D 3-D
Made from a single strand of copper wire!

Brass, copper & silver wire is commonly used in jewellery-making, wrapping semi-precious stones & combined with beads.