Kide Baharudin’s 'Nak Kono Cokau' (acrylic on canvas, 2025) is part of 'Moneyfesto' at Galeri Puteh, Kuala Lumpur, exploring themes of money and society. Photo: Galeri Puteh
EXHIBITION: 'MONEYFESTO'
Venue: Galeri Puteh, KL Eco City, Kuala Lumpur
Date: ends Jan 17
Galeri Puteh’s year-end group exhibition Moneyfesto brings together over 30 artists to explore money as power, value, contradiction and consequence. In doing so, the show – especially after today's 1MDB verdict – offers a compelling reflection on the state of the nation, revealing how art can mirror and question the world we live in.
"Moneyfesto examines how money builds, destroys, feeds, and steals – shaping personal ambition, social structures and moral choices. The exhibition brings together established and emerging voices in a timely reflection on value beyond price," reads the exhibition notes.
The inter-generational exhibition spans a variety of mediums – paintings, installations, sculptures, and mixed media – revealing a multilayered view of perspectives on wealth, influence and culture.
The exhibition features a strong line-up of established artists, including Jalaini Abu Hassan, Ahmad Fuad Osman, Amir Zainorin, Ahmad Shukri Mohamed, Tengku Sabri Ibrahim, Azrin Mohd, Mastura Abd Rahman, Masnoor Ramli Mahmud and Nizam Rahmat, presenting socially incisive works.
Adding further appeal is Kide Baharudin, whose presence brings star power to the show. Emerging voices also make a notable impact, particularly Lee Soon Hock, Ika Sharom, Al-Khuzairie Ali, Alisya Fahmi, and Amad Sarol.
Free admission exhibition.
More info here.
Ellynor Suria's 'Kampung Zoo = Buaya Darat' (watercolour, pencils, canvas and paper, 2025), a part of the 'Siasah' exhibition. Photo: Galeri Ruang Teduh
EXHIBITION: 'SIASAH: NARATIF POLITIK DALAM CAT AIR'
Venue: Galeri Ruang Teduh, Menara Exchange 106, TRX, KL
Date: ends Jan 22
Curated by artist-poet Abdullah Jones, this intriguing group show brings together artists who use watercolour not just as an artistic medium, but as a tool to engage with politics.
Often seen as light or decorative, here watercolour addresses weighty, everyday political questions.
Politics, the exhibition reminds us, is not only about politicians or elections – it exists in daily decisions, shaping how we think, choose, and act. Similarly, knowledge only gains meaning when internalised, otherwise, it changes nothing.
The exhibition features two groups of artists. One includes names like Juhari Said, Rafiee Ghani, Elly Nor Suria, Tajali Abdullah and others, who are not traditionally associated with watercolour, exploring it as a new language.
The other group consists of established watercolour practitioners, including Zamri Ismail, Calvin Chua, Ruzaidi M. Nor, and Padil Osman, who expand the medium through techniques like batik.
The deliberate dialogue between these groups challenges the medium’s romanticised perception, centering political themes.
Siasah thus becomes both a site for artistic experimentation and a platform where watercolour is pushed beyond comfort zones, serving as a critical, reflective lens on contemporary society.
Free admission exhibition.
More info here.
This Sunday, step into the calm of The Lostprints community studio and take time to learn the art of bookbinding. Photo: The Lostprints
WORKSHOP: BOOK BINDING x HAND PRINTING
Venue: The Lostprints, Lostgens, Jalan Panggong, KL
Date: Dec 28
This Sunday at The Lostprints community studio, take some quiet time to learn a new skill: bookbinding.
With guidance from The Lostprints team, discover how bookbinding is more than assembling loose pages into a secure volume - it is a centuries-old craft where function meets artistry. Through careful techniques and decorative touches, a book can become a work of art, carrying both beauty and meaning.
In this hands-on workshop (1.30pm to 4pm), you’ll not only learn the fundamentals of bookbinding but also explore the charm of block printing. Both are old-world trades that The Lostprints community holds dearly. These traditional methods shape the way books communicate knowledge, preserve stories, and inspire creativity, giving a deeper appreciation of books as both educational and artistic objects.
At the end of the workshop, you get to take home your own printed book while also learning about the interplay between bookbinding and block printing. Limited to 10 participants.
More info here.
Visitors are flocking to the ‘Busana’ exhibition at the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: The Star/Azman Ghani
EXHIBITION: 'BUSANA: TRADITIONAL COSTUMES OF THE MALAY WORLD'
Venue: Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur
Date: ends April 12, 2026
The Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia (IAMM) in Kuala Lumpur presents its year-end show Busana: Traditional Costumes of the Malay World, on display until next April.
Reflecting a renewed local interest in baju kurung, kebaya, and baju Melayu, the exhibition spans Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, southern Thailand, and the Philippines, showcasing the richness of Malay dress. The revival gained momentum in 2023 when Unesco recognized the kebaya as a shared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
IAMM draws from its extensive textile collection to celebrate the artistry and craftsmanship of these garments. Highlights include pieces from the late Tun Endon Mahmood, loaned by Yayasan Budi Penyayang, alongside complete ensembles with accessories — selendang (shawl), samping (waistcloth), and destar (headdress) — illustrating how attire reflects status, ceremony, and tradition.
Visitors can admire embroidery traditions from tekat emas to kelingkan, and the kebaya nyonya, blending Malay and Chinese influences with delicate lace and vibrant stitching. A dedicated section explores Islamic motifs, calligraphy, and geometric patterns, revealing the artistry and cultural depth of Malay textile heritage.
More info here.
A view of 'Crossing The Third Bridge' at Wei-Ling Gallery, a group exhibition exploring how identity shifts across time, distance and memory. Photo: Wei-Ling Gallery
EXHIBITION: 'CROSSING THE THIRD BRIDGE'
Venue: Wei-Ling Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
Date: ends Jan 24
Wei-Ling Gallery's Crossing The Third Bridge is a diverse group exhibition that looks at how identity shifts across time, distance and memory. It centres on the idea of Hua Qiao, a term once used for Chinese migrants from Qing China, and how its meaning continues to change across generations who are shaped less by migration itself and more by what is remembered, translated and inherited.
The exhibition brings together local artists, including Lee Mok Yee, Sean Lean, and Wong Chee Meng, as well as artists from across the region and beyond like Kenneth Tam (US), Ming Wong (Singapore), MM Yu (Philippines) and Tintin Wulia (Indonesia/Australia).
Working across installation, photography, moving image and performance, the artists reflect on family histories, cultural inheritance and contemporary life.
Some explore personal archives of absence or interiors filled with sentimental objects. Others trace emotions across generations, engage with Cantonese soap operas, or revive nearly lost linguistic forms.
For anyone interested in diaspora, cultural memory, and the subtle ways history shapes daily life, this exhibition offers an engaging, grounded experience.
More info here.
A view of the 'I Love Sushi' exhibition at The Project Room, Ur-Mu, The Toffee building in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: The Star/Muhamad Shahril Rosli
EXHIBITION: 'I LOVE SUSHI'
Venue: The Project Room, UR-MU @ The Toffee, Jalan Raja Chulan, KL
Date: ends Dec 31
Hurry, last chance to catch it! Malaysians can now explore sushi beyond the plate at the Japan Foundation, Kuala Lumpur's touring exhibition I Love Sushi, which offers a short but fascinating journey into Japan’s iconic dish, celebrating its history, art, and tradition.
This free exhibition, in its final days in KL, reimagines sushi as a cultural masterpiece - showcasing Japan’s creativity, craftsmanship, and deep respect for nature.
At the gallery, I Love Sushi allows visitors can explore captivating visuals, interactive displays, and digital experiences that trace sushi’s evolution - from a centuries-old preservation method to the refined nigiri-zushi of the Edo period, and finally to the modern global phenomenon it is today.
The exhibition also offers a multisensory experience at The Project Room, featuring a virtual reality “sushi shop,” educational videos, and exhibits - a sushi "wall" with 150 varieties - highlighting the precision and artistry behind every roll and slice.
Part of a decade-long world tour that began in 2022, the exhibition celebrates food as a bridge of cultural exchange, showing how, like art, it connects people across borders.
More info here.
A view of Ong Hieng Fuong (Hieng)'s 'Da Bo Gong Book' series (acrylic on linen, 2025) at the 'Ilham Art Show' 2025 at Ilham Gallery, Kuala Lumpur. Photo: The Star/Low Lay Phon
EXHIBITION: ILHAM ART SHOW 2025
Venue: Ilham Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
Date: ends April 5, 2026
Ilham Gallery in Kuala Lumpur is closing the year on a high with the Ilham Art Show 2025, showcasing contemporary artists and collectives across painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, installation, textiles, film, and video.
The exhibition has been drawing enthusiastic weekend crowds and brings together established names and exciting newcomers, including Gan Chin Lee, Wong Perng Fey, Roopesh Sitharan, Tiga Tawai, Eiffel Chong, Marcos Kueh, Joshua Kane Gomes, Kim Ng, Arikwibowo Amril, Syarifah Nadhirah, Kimberley Boudville, Yvonne Tan, Hieng, and Afiza Abubakar.
An open-call exhibition, the show welcomes artists based in Malaysia or abroad, regardless of background or experience. From over 270 submissions, 20 artists and collectives were selected in March 2025 by a regional panel including Gridthiya Gaweewong, Sharmini Pereira, Wong Hoy Cheong, and Rahel Joseph. Each received a production grant to realise works they might not have pursued otherwise.
While the exhibition isn’t tied to a theme, recurring ideas emerge: reflecting on history, exploring the fragility of nature, the fluidity of identity, and shifting social and familial ties.
Launched in 2022, the triennial Ilham Art Show continues to champion contemporary voices in Malaysia and beyond.
More info here.
