Looking at our way of life today, from the way we dress to the food we consume, it is hard to distinguish the real roots of our culture. The same thing is happening in the local art-making world today where young artists tend to refer to artists from western countries. I myself too am no exception. In this age of information technology, the internet has made the world succumb to the dominating cultures of the US, focusing only on the grandeur and the lifestyles of its people. This artwork describes the very conflict that our generation faces today. A pile of western-origin dishes as depicted in the middle of the painting highlights our obsession with western luxury. The barren land in the background symbolises the false idea we have on the overall wonders of the west, like staged scenes from movies or plays, while the phrase ‘hidangan dari kayangan’ (meal from heaven) simply means that most of the time we just meekly accept everything that’s being served to us without question or hesitation, like the Malay proverb ‘Umpama Lalang ditiup Angin’ (Like weeds blown by the Wind).
Hidangan Dari Kayangan “Western Taste”
Oil on canvas
214 x 200 cm
2016
