Lot 68 | Auction XIV

LOT 68

STEPHEN MENON
(B. Pahang, 1972)

The Movie Series No. 5, 2011

Silk screen on paper
66 x 51 cm

Provenance
Private Collection, Kuala Lumpur

AVAILABLE – RM 3,000 – RM 5,000

“It’s not about the personality but rather their stories or journey. Chin Peng might be viewed negatively, but there are certainly many interesting stories about him.” Artist Stephen Menon has always been fascinated with famous faces and has them as his muse, regardless of whether they were a positive figure or a negative one. One thing for sure is that they have many interesting stories behind those faces.

He researches these faces – reading, watching films about them or talking to his subject’s companions before painting them. “After my research and getting all sorts of opinions, both negative and positive, I put my opinions into the painting. I’m just like a middleman. I will only start work when I have done thorough research.”

Stephen Menon was born in Kuantan, Pahang in the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia. He graduated with a Diploma in Graphic Design from Kuala Lumpur College of Art in 1993. Stephen has a particular penchant for figurative drawing and has learnt much from Amron Omar, one of Malaysia’s leading figurative artists. This evolved to his fascination to paint famous faces such as his much sought after and famed Tunku, P.Ramlee and Mao series. As Stephens’s subjects change, the media he uses change as well. There seems to be no end to his creative limits. Stephen has held 3 solo exhibitions and currently is the resident artist at University Malaya.