Lot 15
CHONG AI LEI
b. Johor, 1985
UNTITLED, 2008
Signed and dated 'AILEI 2008' (lower left)
Oil on canvas
90cm x 67.5cm
PROVENANCE
Private Collection, Kuala Lumpur.
ESTIMATE RM 5,000 - 7,000
PRICE REALISED RM 10,640 |
Chong Ai Lei attained earnest attention from the art circuit with her award-winning artworks submitted for the Malaysia Emerging Artist Award competition in 2011. Technically refined with her sophisticated choice of colour palette, the three awarded paintings are decorated with domesticated and familial objects – the subject, a youthful female figure dressed in batik sarong captured in various poses around the comfort of home – at the piano in the living hall, on a bed in her bedroom and in the kitchen. She creates “fine and fastidious painting of female muses engrossed in the privacy of their thoughts and preoccupations be it an indoor or outdoor setting, give glimpses into a world from a feminine view.”
This piece on offer, executed three years prior, is an early indication of Ai Lei’s curiosity in capturing not just the female figure, but also to permeate emotions of seduction and innocence in her painting, letting one’s imaginations wander sultrily and/or lustfully into a fantasy. Devoid of material distractions, this imagery focuses on the figure’s curious posture of bending forward in an act of wilful submission. The subdued colour palette of neutral white applied on the figure’s white cotton dress against a light background contributes to the dreamy quality of this guiltless piece.
Chong Ai Lei obtained a Diploma in Fine Art from Dasein Academy of Art, Kuala Lumpur in 2005. She has participated in numerous group exhibitions namely Art Below 1000 held at Valentine Willie Fine Art, Kuala Lumpur (2005, 2006 & 2007); Palette at The Gallery@Starhill, Kuala Lumpur (2008); Self Conflict, Self Cohesion, Malaysia Tourism Centre, Kuala Lumpur (2010); Local Only at Taksu, Kuala Lumpur (2011); and Seated at HOM Art Trans (2013) among others. Her first solo exhibition titled P!NK was held at Sangkring Art Space in Yogyakarta, Indonesia in 2013. She was one of the finalists for the Malaysia Emerging Artist Award in 2009 and 2011. She also received Honourable Mentions from the Freeman Foundation Asian Artists Program, Vermont Studio Centre, United States of America. A member of The F Klub – an art group focusing on figures as subject matter – Chong Ai Lei has recently participated at Art Stage Singapore 2015 in a group show titled Being Human: Figuratism of 16 Malaysian Artists alongside Ahmad Zakii Anwar, Jalaini Abu Hassan, Bayu Utomo Radjikin, Kow Leong Kiang, Chong Siew Ying, Phuan Thai Meng, Shia Yih Yiing, Chin Kong Yee, Chan Kok Hooi, Marvin Chan, Gan Chin Lee, Cheong Tuck Wai, Arif Fauzan, Fadilah Karim and Hisyamuddin Abdullah which was also displayed in White Box, Publika. Her works were also featured in a group show titled Stepping Out, collaboration between Galeri Chandan, Kuala Lumpur and Jada Art Gallery, Singapore at Art Stage Singapore 2015.
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