SECOND LIFE

CHANG YOONG CHIA

Web Review by Alexandra Tan

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“Second Life” was an apt title for a survey exhibition of Chang Yoong Chia’s works at the National Art Gallery in Kuala Lumpur. An intimate traverse of his intellectual and emotional journeys across more than two decades, the show was an invitation to witness the artist’s preoccupations with nature, narrative and myth.

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Chang’s predominant visual language—comprising intricate mountains of animals, plants and interweaving characters—is often expressed in large, fantastical monochrome canvases. These “Flora & Fauna” (2003–08) paintings often feature Chang in a white shirt and tie alongside his wife, writer and collaborator Teoh Ming Wah, and, often, a white rabbit. The frequent motif of the self reads like a Kahlo-esque exploration of the psyche, as the artist examines himself with detachment and muses about identity and memory. One could argue that while the white rabbit is richly symbolic in Western culture, representing a waking up or discovery of deep truth, in these works it is perhaps also a stand-in for Chang himself, who was born in 1975—the year of the rabbit according to the Chinese zodiac. The creature takes center stage in Happy Garden (2005), which is punctuated with versions of Chang and his wife in various configurations and sizes—including miniatures of himself constructing a giant brick man. Chang’s rich inner life is often portrayed in the context of topical references and universally recognizable symbols; in this instance, the mythical characters of Ganesha and Shou Xing. These elements distance the works from being entirely self-referential and illustrate Chang’s engagement with his external reality. 

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If perhaps this symbolist aesthetic and dramatic modeling could be perceived as an angst-filled vehicle through which Chang primarily addresses his feelings, his other major works and use of media are darkly funny and playful. Delightfully peppering the show were works of repurposed biological matter: insect wings form a self-portrait and the spikes of a sea urchin form a mini torture chamber, complete with tiny, artificial skeleton. The Leaning Tower of Teluk Anson (2008) is a pagoda of crab shells, dramatically lit against a monochrome backdrop. These iterations of a second life are a little macabre, a nonconsensual revival of things that are routinely discarded. It’s an interesting conversation, especially when considering Chang’s major work at the outset of the exhibition was the ongoing Quilt of the Dead (2002– ), a collaborative effort with his wife, where obituary photographs are stitched onto cotton cloth.

Chang’s imagination is brightly manifest in understated works such as The Maiden of the Ba Tree (2007), a serial fiction painted delicately onto porcelain spoons, and “The World Is Flat” series (2009–11)—beautifully crafted collages made of thousands of postage stamps chopped up to form vibrantly colored statements about the history of humanity and nation. These works reveal Chang’s skill in storytelling in unusual media and his absolute dedication to precision and detail. The series’ namesake centerpiece is a world map, humorously piecing together a collective political conscious recalled through the imagery of world leaders. Throughout the series, Chang’s post-colonial perspective is conveyed through repetitive cut-outs of Queen Elizabeth II’s head across various narratives. The use of stamps is also a deliberate choice. As a British export, stamps are infused with meaning in Chang’s Malaysian worldview, appropriated as a tool for dissemination of state narratives before increasingly falling into disuse and in some cases, becoming a collector’s item. 

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The show alluded to Chang’s international residencies, and there is an undercurrent of the artist exploring his cultural identity as a minority Malaysian-Chinese, at first at large in a global context. The exhibition ended with a focus on Malaysian history, offering diverse explorations of race and power structures. In this presentation, the most personal of the works was Don’t Spread Rumours (2012), where weapon-wielding figures stand among a bright pink sea of fallen men and women. Each of these characters is crafted from stamp fragments of the word “Malaysia.” Referencing the racially-motivated political riots against the Chinese in 1969, Chang uses original stamps postmarked from the ’60s and ’70s to portray colorless people in senseless violence. 

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The curation of the show was non-intrusive, offering broad thematic overviews of the artist’s oeuvre. The absence of a detailed biography or prescriptive interpretations in accompanying collateral allowed for a personal interaction with his work—forming a loose, yet deeply personal survey. 

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Chang Yoong Chia’s “Second Life” is on view at National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, until February 24, 2019.