AN art gallery in Sarawak is exploring ties with foreign exhibitors and organising an art camp across the state in support of the tourism sector.
Hoan Gallery director Hoan Kee Huang recently received inquiries from Taiwanese art curators about showcasing art inspired by tropical beauty.
“This is still at a very early stage, but I hope to bring Sarawak’s flora and fauna to an exhibition in Taiwan.
“I cannot reveal too much yet except to say we are cautiously optimistic,” he said at the gallery’s season opening show in early March.
The interest from Taiwan has helped shape Hoan’s focus for the year ahead.
“Tourism is a great angle for me to focus on, as this year is Visit Malaysia 2026,” he said.
Hoan also said he will coordinate a statewide art camp with several art societies in the middle of the year.
He said this involved plans for up to 20 artists travelling from Miri to Kuching to explore, experience and create art inspired by Sarawak.
“There is genuine and growing interest in Sarawak art. We have so much richness and beauty here,” he added.
Hoan Gallery’s opening show, titled “Fragments: Perceptions of Sarawak”, is its largest exhibition to date, featuring over 70 works by six artists.
The show pairs established names such as veteran artist Lee Choon Kooi from Kedah with emerging Sarawakian talents, including painter Brandon Ritom and sculptor M. Shazy.
Lee, 76, is known for his Chinese ink paintings, which portray Sarawak’s people and landscapes through delicate tones and flowing lines in a timeless medium.
Ritom, 36, explores presence, history and cultural continuity in his oil paintings, while M Shazy, 30, creates sculptures using organic materials from the jungle.
The exhibition also features new works by Marvin Chew, a Sarawakian artist based in Singapore who paints in watercolour and acrylic.
Other participating artists are Nolan Chee, who builds dioramas of miniature Kuching scenes from cardboard and plastic, and Chen Li Lee, who explores the relationship between people and objects through mixed media and installation.
Chen’s current installation, A Hundred Faces of Life, comprises unedited lines written by different individuals, transforming private words into visual form.
Hoan said the show featured a mix of paintings, small objects and room-sized installations.
“We are proud to bring together artists of different ages, experiences, races and cultural backgrounds, with one shared theme: Sarawak.
“It’s an exhibition about six different artists’ attempts to show what Sarawak is,” he explained.
He added that Sarawak is the clear common thread holding the show together.
“Visitors will see how naturally, culturally and historically rich Sarawak is. They will find paintings of nature, works that capture heritage buildings, installations built from beautiful timber and intricately assembled dioramas.”
The opening ceremony featured a live portrait painting session with retired police officer Deputy Supt Peter Lim Chian Seng as the subject.
Lim, who served during the Communist insurgency in Sarawak, appeared visibly moved by the finished portraits.
Hoan said the portrait painting was an example of art bringing Sarawak’s stories to life.
“Art can help unearth history, retell stories, help preserve our nature and celebrate Sarawak,” he added.
All artworks in “Fragments: Perceptions of Sarawak” are available for sale. The show runs until April 7.
