A close-up of an artwork by Penang-based artist Eryn titled 'The Blue Room' (acrylic on paper, canvas cutout), which is showing at the Temu House exhibition 'Growing Together, Not Too Soon'. Photo: Temu House
EXHIBITION: 'GROWING TOGETHER, NOT TOO SOON'
Venue: Temu House, Petaling Jaya
Date: March 8 to April 6
This Saturday, Temu House opens the Growing Together, Not Too Soon group exhibition, which supports the Students Not Brides 2025 campaign to end child marriage in Malaysia. Part proceeds will go toward the initiative, which works with civil society and policymakers to strengthen child protection laws and challenge cultural norms around early marriage.
The exhibition features a line-up of over 20 artists, including Ho Mei Kei, Yante Ismail, Louise Low, Sheena Liam, Danielle Lin, Kimberley Boudville, Xeem Noor, Binti, Anissa Razali, and Nia Khalisa.
Exhibition is open on weekends only.
More info here.
At Gerakbudaya in Petaling Jaya on March 8, translator Pauline Fan will lead a discussion on Fatimah Busu's short stories, offering insights into the acclaimed author's narratives and themes. Photo: Handout
'CELEBRATE WOMEN'S DAY WITH GERAKBUDAYA'
Venue: Gerakbudaya, Petaling Jaya
Date: March 8, 1.30pm
Independent bookshop Gerakbudaya has a full day lined up tomorrow, featuring an introduction to women's rights NGOs, a book discussion, short film screenings and more. For the literary highlight, Pauline Fan, Qurratul 'Ain, and Aisyah Rais will explore the remarkable journey of senior novelist Fatimah Busu and her newly translated An Ordinary Tale About Women And Other Stories.
Two short films and a post-screening discussion will be presented by Engage Media. In Hai Anis, a Malaysian teen falls for someone online, only to be ensnared by a predator’s deception. Balang Terang follows a Malay-Muslim restaurant owner and his daughter, misled by false rumours, as they unwittingly mirror the prejudice they once believed when taking in a Chinese businessman’s child.
Gerakbudaya will also highlight books by its women authors.
More info here.
Alicia Lau Pik Yen's 'Grace In Motion' (spray paint, graphite on paper, 2024). Photo: Cult Gallery
EXHIBITION: 'BERSERI KANDI' WOMEN'S SHOW 2025
Venue: Cult Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
Date: March 8-23
Taking inspiration from the wordplay of "berseri” (radiance) and “kandi” (the legendary warrior), this group show, opening tomorrow, at Cult Gallery celebrates resilience and defiance in all its forms - one that radiates and nurtures its surrounding.
"Through various artistic expressions, the show reflects on identity, autonomy, and the evolving roles of women in an ever-changing world. The featured artists boldly reclaim narratives, pushing past societal confines to exist authentically and unapologetically," reads the exhibition notes.
The line-up brings together 17 women artists, spanning generations – from esteemed veterans like Ilse Noor to established names such as Bibi Chew, Umibaizurah Mahir Ismail, Chong Ai Lei, and Anniketyni Madian, all the way to contemporary voices like Kimberley Boudville, Siti Gunong, Binti, and Dhan Illiani Yusof.
More info here.
POETRY, MUSIC: JALAN DALAM’S INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY SHOW
Venue: Miss Coco Cafe, Menara Noble Land, Kuala Lumpur
Date: March 8, 8.30pm
Tomorrow evening, performing arts collective Jalan Dalam is presenting an all-women line-up of spoken word poets, musicians as well dance performances in its International Women’s Day celebration. It will take place at Miss Coco Cafe at Wisma Noble Land in Kuala Lumpur.
Paired with the cafe's Venezuelan cuisine, coffee, and chocolate, this special Jalan Dalam show - held outside its regular monthly open mics - features a new generation line-up. Poets Aida Safiyah, Nest, and Bethany Luhong Balan will bring sharp wit and verbal flair, sure to have audiences snapping in agreement.
Meanwhile, Farah Aini, a Sabahan barista and chocolate maker at Miss Coco Café, returns to the stage with a diverse setlist of songs in English, Bahasa Malaysia, and Spanish - a skill that once made her a viral sensation in Latin America.
Closing the show is Jalan Dalam’s own talented dancer, Deepa Li Yen, who will pay tribute to the cafe’s Latin roots. Admission is free.
More info here.
Ilham Gallery's 'Boom Boom Bang: Play & Parody In 1990s KL', which revisits Kuala Lumpur’s restless arts scene and counterculture movements in the 1990s, closes this weekend. Photo: The Star/Shaari Chemat
EXHIBITION: 'BOOM BOOM BANG: PLAY & PARODY IN 1990s KL'
Venue: Ilham Gallery, Ilham Tower, Kuala Lumpur
Date: ends March 9
It's the final weekend to catch Ilham Gallery’s exhibition, Boom Boom Bang: Play & Parody in 1990s KL - a time capsule of a decade where art, theatre, comedy, protest, and punk collided in a creative explosion.
Spanning multiple mediums, the exhibition revisits a period of bold cultural and social experimentation, where artists wielded humour and rebellion to challenge the status quo. Its title references Boom Boom Bang, a 1998 documentary by Berlin-based Zakiah Omar and Hanno Baethe, which captured the artistic pulse of the time.
The show features works by Ismail Zain, Ahmad Fuad Osman, Wong Hoy Cheong, Bayu Utomo Radjikin, Azizan Paiman, Five Arts Centre, Instant Café Theatre, Yee I-Lann, Nur Hanim Khairuddin, Zulkifli Yusoff, Carburetor Dung, Raja Shahriman Raja Aziddin and many more.
Boom Boom Bang concludes with a series of engaging public programmes. On March 8 at 3pm, art historian Sarena Abdullah will present “Art in a Time of Change: Artistic Responses in 1990s Malaysia,” offering insights into the creative shifts and cultural dynamics of that transformative decade.
Then, on March 9 at 3 pm, artist Niranjan Rajah will take the stage with “Revisiting The Failure of Marcel Duchamp/Japanese Fetish Even! or How I Saw the World Wide Web of the 1990s as a Medium for Art,” exploring how digital innovations influenced artistic expression during the era. Free admission exhibition.
More info here.
On March 8 and 9, the 'Upacara Cemar Tapak' (Ceremony of Stained Feet) will take place at The Back Room gallery, which is hosting Rajaie's 'Sorga Rawa' exhibition. Photo: The Back Room
EXHIBITION: W. RAJAIE'S 'SORGA RAWA'
Venue: The Back Room, Zhongshan building, KL
Date: ends March 9
It's also the last weekend to check out Sorga Rawa (Bog Paradise), a solo installation work by W. Rajaie that has filled up the entire The Back Room gallery.
Known for his earth paintings – textured works of compacted dirt with deep cracks – Rajaie expands his exploration of soil as a medium, pushing it into metaphysical territory.
Sorga Rawa is a surreal, shifting landscape where matter becomes myth and ritual turns to religion.
On March 8 and 9, the "Upacara Cemar Tapak" (Ceremony of Stained Feet) will take place at the gallery. This simple ceremony expands the mythic world of Sorga Rawa, during which visitors are invited to take off their shoes and enter barefooted into the exhibit's mud site.
These will be the only days when viewers can interact with the site - on other exhibition dates, the site can only be viewed from the threshold of the gallery’s entrance. Admission is free.
More info here.
