Origins Artistic Management (OAM) had to put a halt on it's Graffiti Project that has been on-going since late December 2006 as a result of the absence of the co-founder of the project, the first coordinator and a local graffiti writer, Tag'One which had to leave to UK to further his studies. According to Jeffri Ibrahim, co-founder of OAM, in the absence of a proper coordinator, the space provided for the writers have been abused by unauthorized civilians with physical vandalism and vulgar scribbles. However the project has officially restarted after a few months with the newly appointed coordinator and fellow crew member of NGB, Zyla. For proper authorization, please contact Zyla via Email. Current procedures include submission of sketches for approval of the management or coordinator.

Contact Zyla at oddrotten@hotmail.com

Earlier this month Malaysian-based street artist and designer They held his first ever group show called Kecik-Kecik, a showcase of more than 250 miniature artworks by 29 local artists in his art studio at The Annexe, Central Market.


I got a chance to hang with They at his studio after the opening night. Picked up an Anokayer painting and ended up talking about the show and well, just art in general:

MEI: How did you come up with the concept of Kecik-Kecik?
THEY: If you look at the music scene in Malaysia, there are gigs every week which is why it's really progressing. With visual arts, there isn't a real platfrorm unless you go to art galleries where the environment is always so serious. What I wanted to give these newcomers an environment which they're comfortable in.

M: I noticed how there was a freestyle battle sometime last night. Obviously they've made themselves very comfortable...
T: *laughs* They were just b-boys and MCs who wanted to express themselves so why not, right? I pay a flat rate every month (for rent) so we can do whatever we want.

M: True. So coming from a graff background, is street art the main focus of your show?
T: Not really, we showcase anything that has to do with visual arts. Photography, painting, and obviously graffiti is art too.

M: Can you describe the Malaysian graff scene?
T: Well, it started about9-10 years ago and now there are over 60 writers in KL alone! What you can judge them by is consistency.

M: Is there a distinctive style in the scene?
T: There is a lot of influence from New York graffiti - wild style. But now you really can't say that there's one distinct style because everyone has their own thing. There's a big mash-up of all different styles.

M: Which is evident in the artworks at this group show. So what role does contemporary art - especially street art play in the mainstream Malaysian society?
T: We've come a long way and it's a lot more accepted now than how it was before. I think that if you get out there and really show off your skills then people will recognize it as something positive.

M: Yeah, that's pretty much true for anything, it's always about quality. So any future plans?
T: There are three shows coming up in the next two months - there's Klik-Klik, a photography show on the 20th-27th of January, then there's show for customized hats, tees, shoes in the beginning of February (1st - 8th) and Kecik-Kecik #2.

M: Awesome. Well, thanks so for your time and I guess I'll see you soon!
T: No bigs, see you soon!

So for those of you who didn't get to check out the first show, the pre-calling for the second show has already started and it's bound to hit on the 23rd - 29th of February. Be sure to check it out, or better yet sign up to exhibit your artwork! You can contact They or Bibichun for further details.

So, what are you waiting for? ;)

This blog represents the unity of two whole different art worlds tied together by the element of one: Passion. From my gritty dark backgrounds of chisel tip taggings, hollow and filled throwies on late night dirt trips and technicolour pieces to my counter contributor's refined brush strokes on plain canvases, expressive oil paint renderings and stigmatic installations. It doesn't matter if you're a sneaker head, skateboarder, graff writer, street artist, emcee, DJ, b-boy, fine artist, couture addict, poet or just an appreciator of the urban street culture. We're just taking you out to see the world in our eyes. Art is our passion, passion is love and we're spreading the love. Showing you simply what most overlook. Art in it's many forms unintentionally or not, conveyed on the streets and everyday life. We'll try to give you the best insight of what it is to be, art-whores.

So yes, this isn't a street culture blog. It's an art blog.