LOT 46
RAFIEE GHANI
B. Kedah, 1962
After the Rain, 2020
Watercolour on paper
152 x 152 cm
Private Collection, Kuala Lumpur
Signed, titled, and dated “Rafiee Ghani After the Rain 2020” on the lower left
RM 15,000 – 25,000
Born northwest of Malaysia in Kedah, Rafiee Ghani is one of the country’s foremost abstract expressionist painters to date. Rafiee was trained at the De Vrije Academie Voor Bildeende Kunst, the Hague, Holland in 1980 before returning to retake his Diploma in Printmaking at the Mara Institute of Technology in 1985. He then graduated with a MA (Fine Prints) at the Manchester Polytechnic, England, in 1987. It was in Europe that he gained experience and inspiration to create his personal form of art. As an avid traveller, his works revolved around his travels, scenery, and still life that depict all types of objects of everyday life including vases, stools, chairs, flowers and many more. His works speak for itself through brilliant composition, colour combination, balance of light and shadow. Rendered in glistening washes of blue, emerald and magenta, After the Rain channels a serene aftermath of a tropical downpour. Executed in 2020, this expansive watercolour demonstrates a restrained yet luminous palette, where layer upon layer of transparent hues evoke moisture-laden skies and reflective surfaces. The sweeping washes, rhythmic abstraction, and interplay of negative space recall the moodiness of a rain-soaked landscape, yet the work remains abstract and immersive rather than representational.