LOT 72
KELVIN CHAP
B. Indonesia, 1975
Symphony of the Rainforest, 2022
Mixed media on canvas
131 x 131 cm
Private Collection, Kuala Lumpur
Signed and dated “Kelvin Chap, 2022” on lower right
RM 3,500 – 7,000
Kelvin Chap grew up in Sabah, despite having been born in Indonesia. There, he developed an intense fascination for the Borneo tribal culture and symbolisms, which are always present in all his artworks. The masks, totem poles and everything iconic from Borneo is present in this artwork, clashing with fluorescent colours to represent modernity. The artist explained that the idea behind this piece is simply a social commentary; the overlapping of tradition and culture with modernisation, of how they clash, and the portrayal of a society that is too eager to accept urbanization, so much so that the lines are blurred and almost obscure the original culture identity. Kelvin Chap Kok Leong graduated from the Malaysian Institute of Fine Art in 1994, after majoring in print-making. He has won many art competitions such as the Pilihan Negeri Sabah 1993, 1994, 1995 and the Philip Morris Art Award Honourable mention in 1995.