There is a dramatic account in German naturalist and explorer Fedor Jagor’s Singapore, Malaysia, Java. Reiseskizzen 1866 publication about tigers sneaking up on the coolies hard at work in the gambir plantations of Malaya.
“It is the Chinese on these plantations who are so often killed by tigers. When the coolie crouches almost naked in the dense bushes to pick the leaves, the tiger sneaks up on him from behind and usually kills him with a bite on the neck,” Jagor wrote.
Contemporary artist Chang Yoong Chia’s new batik artwork, Gambir And The Tiger, captures this scene perfectly, of a ferocious tiger leaping on an unsuspecting man, and sinking its teeth into his neck.
It is part of his new batik series, which he is presently working on.
After relocating from Kuala Lumpur to Tangkak in Johor, Chang, a trained painter, has been reflecting on the small town’s agricultural history and plantations.
Initially, the 46-year-old had expected to see gambir trees (Uncaria gambir) in Johor as it had vast gambir plantations in the past and Malaya was once the biggest exporter of gambir in the world.
“I thought at the very least I could see some surviving by the roadside or in someone’s garden. But to my surprise, I found none except a few trees that were imported recently from Indonesia that were planted in a Chinese school compound for education purposes,” he says.
Chang points out that tigers used to be frequently sighted in Johor and tiger attacks on gambir plantation workers were a recurring phenomenon.
“It was even mentioned in The Malay Archipelago by (British naturalist) Alfred Russel Wallace. I am so fascinated by this because things that were so physical and tangible - like the tiger and gambir - have almost disappeared from our country and from our consciousness. Therefore, I made the artwork of a tiger attacking a gambir plantation worker, hoping to somehow reignite the imagination for our country’s past,” he shares.
Chang’s new batik works also set out to question the floral and butterfly motifs commonly found in Malaysian batik.
In reflecting on the agriculture industry and cash crop plantations in the country, he hopes to look beyond these motifs as mere decoration.
“I want to explore these motifs as a way to understand the history of cash crop plantations in this country. It is a glimpse into the landscape of profit, invasion, colonialism, exploitation and ecosystem, as well as migration, setting down roots and preserving traditions,” he notes.
An exhibition featuring these batik works is planned for the second quarter of the year.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Get 20% OFF The Star Digital Access
Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Unlimited access with perks.
