'I still have so much more to explore, and I think exploring the unknown is what makes painting feel so free and captivating,' says Kua, who is exhibiting her fourth solo show at The Back Room in KL. - CC KUA
Have you ever entered a house of mirrors at a carnival or amusement park? The moment you step inside the dark interior, you’re suddenly surrounded by multiple yous in all directions. Which one is the real you? Perhaps all of them?
Visiting CC Kua’s latest solo exhibition titled I See, I See at The Back Room, Kuala Lumpur, feels familiar – but instead of your own reflection, you see different facets of the artist, captured in works created over three years (2022–2025).
Kua’s new series showcases a diverse range of works – from pastel whimsies on canvas to neon absurdities in watercolour and ink, and dark monochrome etchings in HB pencil and Pitt pastel.
Her latest work may not carry the pandemic-era dramatic backstory of her extended Rimbun Dahan residency, where lockdown led her to sing Celine Dion's All By Myself daily – ultimately inspiring the title of her July 2020 solo exhibition at The Back Room.
Kua takes the thrill of ink on paper to the limits with 'New Country' (2023).
Her playlist has grown, but she pauses to realise it's been five years since her last solo show – a period of change both in her life and the art scene.
She's also amused by the gallery's exhibition notes, which describe her as "a young artist known for her whimsical, naive style of painting."
"I've been practicing art for almost 10 years now!" says Kua, 34, sounding surprised at how quickly time has passed.
However, she agrees that age is just a number, reflecting on her journey as a full-time artist after leaving her lecturing job.
Artist CC Kua at her studio near Old Klang Road. Credit: CC Kua
Ultimately, she hasn't lost her ability to create her own playful, personal worlds through art.
“Like everyone else these days, I have a habit of scrolling on my phone for entertainment. But when I really think about it, the best kind of entertainment comes from creating my own scenes and escaping into them,” says Kua.
“Many people view my works as colourful and happy. But if you look closely, there’s quite a lot of dark humour attached to them, too. I don't like anything that's too straightforward. So there's two sides to it,” she adds.
A close-up detail of Kua's 'I Have Something To Give You' (watercolour on paper, 2022).
The artist notes that the show's title is a common phrase she often hears people, herself included, saying.
“It’s a nod towards how, when faced with something they don’t quite understand, some people like to say, ‘Oh, I see...” as a go-to response. Often, they don’t really ‘see’, but they say it for the sake of saying something,” says Kua.
Saturday Morning (2024). ‘I See, I See' exhibition by artist CC Kua. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star
Stating the obvious
The show, running until April 13, is divided into two rooms. The first room greets visitors with large, bold pieces, where Kua's illustrative side takes centre stage, showcasing her vivid imagination and quirky approach to visual storytelling.
“I’m used to creating small works, so many of the pieces in this room are a bit of a change for me, as they’re slightly bigger. Stylistically, these pieces are also simpler compared to my previous works; they’re more minimalist,” says Kua, a Kuala Lumpur-based artist, who holds a Master of Fine Arts from Tainan National University of the Arts, Taiwan.
She points at Today Is Here on the wall behind us – a cheery yellow piece with the somewhat ominous text “Tomorrow Is Coming” emblazoned across it.
“I don’t always like to go with something that is too obvious, but when I do, it has to go extreme. Then it becomes funny, and it makes people pause and think,” she says with a chuckle.
'I still have so much more to explore, and I think exploring the unknown is what makes painting feel so free and captivating,' says Kua, who is exhibiting her fourth solo show at The Back Room in KL. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star
For her, there are two ways of working: “Either I know exactly what I want to draw, or I just have fun playing with the materials and go with the flow.”
For instance, Kua presents two pieces as a set: Chinese Duck, depicting a delicious Chinese meal, and Ang Mo Duck (Western), featuring the iconic yellow rubber duck typically seen during bath time.
“One day I was walking down the street and came across a Peking duck display in front of a restaurant, and I immediately imagined this visual juxtaposed against a rubber duck toy.
Kua's acrylic on canvas set (2025) titled 'Chinese Duck' (above) and 'Ang Mo Duck (Western)'.
“In my work, I often try to strip symbols and let things just be. But if I can’t escape symbols entirely, I like to mess with them and disrupt the relationship between the signifier and the signified, trying to shake up the way we see and understand things,” she says.
Different strokes
If you're familiar with Kua's previous work, the second room will feel more familiar.
It features her signature outlandish scenes, bursting with colour on one wall, in stark contrast to the eerie, experimental black-and-white drawings on the opposite wall.
A close-up detail of Kua's 'Sometimes My Cat Looks Like A Snake' (2025) artwork.
“When I use different mediums, it kind of gives me a different way of working. The pieces in this room have more of a dreamy quality to them, mixed in with some of my long-forgotten childhood memories,” says Kua, who currently works as a part-time lecturer at the Malaysian Institute of Art.
Compared to the pieces in the first room, the intricate lines in the pencil and pastel drawings slowly pull you in, almost hypnotising you into inspecting each piece more closely, because the more you look, the more hidden details you notice.
Kua goes monochrome with 'Hidden Rooms & Secret Doors' (pastel and pencil on paper, 2024).
Having begun her career with two bold and experimental shows at Lostgens' Contemporary Art Space in KL, followed by a role as an educator at an art school, how has Kua's practice evolved over the past decade?
“In my years as an artist, I’ve found that painting is kind of like playing Blackjack. When you get to 17 points, you’ve got a dilemma on your hands – do you play it safe or take a chance?
"So when working on a piece, an artist will also encounter the same problem: do you leave it as is, and it might not be enough; or do you push your luck, and you could lose it all?" she says.
“For the piece A Quiet Moment, I was stuck on whether to add a nose and mouth, and ultimately decided against it – the eyes said everything I wanted to say.
'A Quiet Moment' (2025) by CC Kua. Oil on canvas.
"My favourite moment as an artist is when I know exactly when to stop. Getting it right in one go is so addictive, but this only becomes easier through experience and practice. So I've definitely become more confident in my work.”
Kua admits that when she first started as an artist, she was more focused on her creative freedom.
“But I don’t think it’s my main concern anymore. Now I think about the impact of my art on people, and how it can be a tool for provoking thoughts and tickling minds," she concludes.
I See, I See is showing at The Back Room, Zhongshan building in Kuala Lumpur until April 13. Open: Wednesday to Sunday, noon to 6pm. More info: thebackroomkl.com, cckua.com.
