Ramblings on...painting

The last I saw a masterpiece was in 1977 in the Louvre - Mona Lisa. The others in the gallery, to me at least, pale into insignificance. And the last real painting I did was in the summer of 1976.

My dad was my inspiration. He drew beautiful lifel-like figures. His colours were muted pastels but his skin tones were exact.  My uncle "commissioned" him to paint in watercolour for his (I think SPM) countless yearly failed examinations. You were, at that time, given time to prepare your composition a week or two in advance. So my dad will execute a beautiful painting for my uncle in water colour. On the day of the examination, uncle would switch what he painted with dad's. I don't know how he came about those official watermarked empty drawing papers I will never know. Anyway, art was the only paper he passed every time. In the end he managed to pull through with the other subjects

Then came Tan Jun Kwang in standard one. I marvelled at his efforts. There is just this one memorable photograph of me doing just that - courtesy of Chong Chen Fah. Another was Hidhir (sounds correct) who produces cartoon images without batting an eye. My favourite was Dr. Zero. That was in Standard 5 - I think.

Another compelling source of inspiration was my mom's eldest sister's family of artists. I studied their techniques, lived with them for two weeks back when I was in Form 3 and copied their strokes - the late Misbahrulmunir (Abah), Khairulannuar (Ayum), Najib, Fahmi et al. This was in water colour. They used water colour in  a combination - as a wash and thick, like oil painting. One particular technique which I adopted were the rendering of leaves on trees and the fluffy clouds.

I thought nothing of painting until in Form 4, I declared my intentions - as a Science Stream student - in a hall full of other same batch of students, that I would (attested by Chong Chen Far the head prefect those days - why would he remember that?) take Art for my Malaysian Certificate of Education (MCE). I was the only one! Or was I? There were no classes on Arts and Craft for Science Stream students and I had to drop Religious Studies for two years. Of course it caused a stir since although I was physically sitting in the Religious Class I was lost in my  own world of colours, lines, shades...

I borrowed library books next door to my classroom looking for techniques in pencil, pen, crayon, water colour and the new found poster colours. I chose poster colours above others since it afforded both a wash effect and thick applications.

Of course I had ample practises on human figures. My model; a small jointed manikin. No nude subjects to practise my keen, roaming eyes though there were thousands of nude figures found in the library books on artists like Rembrandt, Michellanglo, da Vinci, Gaugin, Degas... I could never, till  now, appreciate Picasso and those subscribing to cubism or modern art.

The only memory I have left of  my MCE exam was on Art. The topic was still-life.

It was a transparent glass bottle, and a banana (I think) on a crumpled brown paper draped over a table. I executed my "rendition" of the crumpled paper with much ease since thick poster colour application cracks under the sun. My bottle had the exact transparency... The banana was accurately depicted with the necessary highlights and shading to breathe life to an inanimate object. It was my masterpiece which accorded me with an A2 grade - a triumph for me and all Science Stream Students in High School Muar

Whilst waiting for the MCE result armed with an easel, sable brushes (RM15 each at that time was a handsome price to pay) and oil paint from a shop in Malacca,  I painted my "life" away. Still life, sceneries, potraits...some on primed canvas whilst others on primed plywood.

There was a painting of the "Tanjung" not far from the District Officer's Residence with the tide crashing part of the way on sprawling mangrove roots from scrawny mangrove trees, a shameful looking beach with upturned bottles, plastic bags strewn all over...

One was of Parit Sakai itself near the old "Balai Raya" (Community Hall). One side was lined with equally spaced trees with white barks and scraggy leaves (what were they?). On the opposite bank was "Bongkok's" delapidated shophouse hidden behind rambutan trees and clump of unkempt bamboos along the edge of the still water.

One of my still life on plywood was that of what I did during my MCE - an attempt to replicate in oil for what was done in poster colour.

Another was a half-potrait of a haggard looking, deep lines and wrinkled face of a vietnamese lady in her 40s (but looked more like in her 60s) staring into nothingness, oblivious of her surroundings. The original was a black and white newspaper clipping.

None of my masterpieces remained due largely to termites (my sister can testify to these).

During the very long hot summer of 76 I did the same. One was of Magdalen Bridge. It helped me to while away the time. Each stone was accurately proportioned and given the mass it needed, the lone punter with his bowler hat shading his eyes, the lazy ripples beneath the boat... It took me all of summer to complete this. It was my intention to paint the deer park in Autumn with browning leaves from very old deciduous trees, hints of green conifers, whithering tulips lining the ankle deep decaying leaves on winding track... Though I made several charcoal sketches, I did not pursue.

During this time I discovered another faster drying medium similar to oil and poster colour - acrylic. It was as good as oil, poster colour and water colour. But expensive.

This was my medium for nearly 4 years. But they were all for my architectural design presentation drawings. Alas none were brought back. I painstakingly rendered each stone, granite or bricks using this medium. Window panes were "glassy" enough to mimick the real glass, trees were leafy and green, snow was fluffy...

I must say that they did look good...as a picture! Beauty is in the eye of the beholder - and so they were; to me at least,

At the same time I concentrated more on line drawings with pens or pencils. These were sketches of churches, historical buildings, detailing...

Some of my works of art were  mounted on boards and displayed above "dud" fireplaces in Liverpool, Huddersfield, Ashton-under-Lyne but never framed (could not afford them)... Alas, only my own faint memories of these self-classified masterpieces remained. None of my visitors commented on them for their interest lies elsewhere - audiophile

Back on home turf I turned up sketches in pen. The only few that survived the constant nomadic life are 3 sketches from 1987 of Singapore - Marina Bay, Orchard Road and Newton Circus. My passion came about from one of my visit to this budding (then) artist who lived in Bangsar - the late Ibrahim (?). Line drawings on canvas for a living!!!

I left all these behind with the new found love of photography. Except my doodling! These were habits way back when I first started: equally spaced horizontal and verical lines, equally spaced wavy and zig-zag lines, equally sized circles, triangles and squares...

I wonder whether I can produce another masterpiece at this age...

(This rambling is dedicated to a new found friend who will not comment on my English - though it is his mother tongue - but loves the way I "chronicled" my life)