Lot 035
Dzulkifli Buyong
b. Kuala Lumpur, 1948 - d. 2004
Kucing Sakit, 1984
signed and dated ‘DB 84’ (lower right)
oil on masonite board
86 x 62cm
PROVENANCE
Private collection, Kuala Lumpur
ESTIMATE RM 120,000 – 200,000
PRICE REALISED RM 134,400.00
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Kucing Sakit (Sick Cat) is without doubt a quintessential Dzulkifli Buyong. Paper Boat (1966), Mosquito Net (1964) and Burning Ants (1967), are all pastels and in the Malaysian National Art Gallery collection. What more, this is an unusual oil on masonite board. There are two things that fascinate and is fascinating of, Dzulkifli, and they are children and cats in ordinary domestic situations, maybe too because of the Malays’ reverence for cats. His works with naivette and humour went against the grain of the nature and temperament of the times that make Dzulkifli difficult to categorise, and certainly unique. Here, a boy in a squatting pose, is offering his sick cat a bowl of milk in the hope that it could gain strength and recover quickly. So much love and affection is shown, that this piece was selected for KL Biennale 2017 (theme is Be Loved) held at National Art Gallery Malaysia.
Dzulkifli Buyong is regarded as a self-taught art prodigy, excelling himself even when he was studying at the Victoria Institution (secondary school) from 1961-1965, when he received guidance from Patrick Ng Kah Onn. He even received the gold medal from the Raja Permaisuri Agong Tengku Budriah Tengku Ismail in one of the competitions. He won 3rd Prize and then 1st / 2nd Prizes, for his pastel works, in the Young Friends competition in 1962 and 1963 respectively; and 3rd Prize in the Bahasa Kebangsaan Month poster competition in 1964. He had said: “I like to paint children, colourful games, and subjective paintings about my surroundings. Beauty is not important. Better common things that other people don’t see, everyday happenings, children particularly their gaiety and liveliness.”
REFERENCE
Modern Artists of Malaysia, TK Sabapathy and Redza Piyadasa, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 1983. |