LOT 89
LYE YAU FATT
(B. Kedah, 1950)
Sarawak Beauties, 1984
Signed and dated on lower left
Mixed media on paper
74 x 54 cm
Provenance
Private Collection, Kuala Lumpur
SOLD – RM 12,320
Known for his use of warm, earthy tones and deriving inspiration from mundane and monotonous settings in life, he draws on canvas a tender moment between two Sarawakian sisters.
The two women are donned in traditional clothing are seated together in the midst of nature, perhaps a garden, where they are caught in a moment of peace and quiescence. Not to forget, the Rhinoceros Hornbill that is perched on the window – the symbol and state emblem of Sarawak. Viewers almost feel as if they are imposing on the exclusivity of the moment, and the intricacy of the design of this piece makes it seem even more homelier and cozy – much like the relationship between the sisters.
Lye Yau Fatt was born in Kedah in 1950, he studied printmaking in New York. He held his first solo exhibition in 1979 at the Sum Art Gallery and has then gone on to win the Open Art Sculpture Award, the Malaysian Watercolour Society Award in 1987 and the PNB Watercolour Landscape Award.