Ilham Gallery welcomes the New Year with a group exhibition – in partnership with Hong Kong’s Art Para Site – titled ‘Afterwork’. It explores the issues of class, race, labour and migration. Running until mid-April, this exhibition debuted in Hong Kong in March last year before making its way to KL. Artists from all over the world have taken part in this exhibition, including artists from Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia. The pieces in ‘Afterwork’ delve deep into issues and past experiences relating to migrant labour, making it a very relevant exhibition today. The artists have provided a voice for the oft-neglected migrant worker, showcasing the different practices and contexts that the public doesn’t often see. Here are some of the highlights you should not miss out on.
‘Opening New Doors’, 1991, Alfredo Jaar
‘The Vietnamese ‘boat people’ crisis began in the late ’70s and lasted for two decades at the end of the Vietnam War. ‘Opening New Doors’ came about after Alfredo Jaar heard about a possible mass suicide by the Vietnamese who were kept at camps.
‘Imelda Goes to Singapore’, 2006, Brian Gothong Tan
‘Imelda Goes to Singapore’ is a piece on the former First Lady of the Philippines, Imelda Marcos. However, what we see here is another side to her: We see Imelda as a housemaid in Singapore performing her favourite song, ‘Dahil Sa Iyo’.
‘Agama’, 2015, Pangrok Sulap
Pangrok Sulap channels the topic of agama through this piece referencing Maphilindo (Malaya, Philippines and Indonesia). He imagines a utopian world where Filipino and Indonesian migrant workers are residing in Sabah, Malaysia in the present day.
See the works at Ilham Gallery, Level 3 & 5, ILHAM Tower, 8 Jalan Binjai, KL until April 16. Tue-Sat, 11am-7pm; Sun, 11am-5pm.