Street art livens up Bazar Karat
THERE is a new tourist attraction at Bazar Karat Johor, here. A 100m stretch which is known as Lorong Pasar Karat has been renamed Stesen Seni.
Walls on both sides of the 0.9m wide lane are filled with murals and graffiti art by Johor artists.
Artist Taib Abu Razak, 35, who is popularly known as Taib Aur, said Art Untuk Rakyat had gathered a group of artists, including himself, to spend two full days filling the walls with vibrant street art.
The other artists are Iskandar Noor Rahim (who goes by the moniker Akeem), Jefri Abdul (Jeps), Nurul Izzati Ramli (Jaie Ramlee), Iqbal Hareez Osman, Nik Nazhar Nik Kamaruddin, Ismail Arshad, Chong Xiao Yun, Chong Yong Chin, Anthony Leow Cheng Ting, Chong Zi Ning, Muhammad Azri Zahri (Jizu Two), Md Rafy Md Idris (Jack Rafy) and Ghazali Bunari (Tok Rimau).
The graffiti and mural works include Akeem’s Monapod, which is his version of Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. Mona Lisa is depicted as taking a selfie using a smart phone with a monopod. Akeem used an existing hole on the wall to create the image of the smart phone.
There is also a painting of a 3D green scooter. Jaie Ramlee’s work features a little boy sitting on a stool. His elbows are on the table and local delicacies are on the wall.
Anthony Leow Cheng Ting has drawn a map of the state and used wood panels to label the 10 districts.
Taib Aur, who is known for 3D drawings and watercolour works which depict Johor scenery, said Stesen Seni was made possible with the collaboration of the Johor City Council, Johor Tourism Department and Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda), which had got Nippon Paint to sponsor the materials.
He said it was still a work in progress and more masterpieces would be added to the walls.
“Some people call street art an act of vandalism but, in reality, it is not. What we have here is graffiti which is also a form of art,” he said.
Taib Aur said it had to be considered an art form as the pieces required planning and imagination, and contained artistic elements such as colour and composition.
He said it would only be considered graffiti if the medium used was paint from a spray can.
“The walls were bare before this and it is the back lane behind the shops. Now, people are here to capture pictures of our art and take home a piece of Johor with them,” Taib Aur said, adding that city council representatives had reached out to shop owners and operators and they had welcomed the project.
Johor Tourism Department director Dr Badrul Hisham Kassim said the idea was mooted about a year ago.
“Besides beautifying the facade, we also wanted to provide our local and bona fide artists with a platform to hone the skills and introduce themselves.
“There are many talented artists in Johor but most have moved to look for greener pastures, citing limitations here. By providing them with ample platforms to showcase their work, we hope they will come back,” he said.
Badrul said Stesen Seni was a pilot project and added that, based on feedback from the public, more murals would be added in stages throughout the state.
He said priority would be given to Johor artists.
Akeem posing with his Monapod.
~News courtesy of New Straits Times~
THERE is a new tourist attraction at Bazar Karat Johor, here. A 100m stretch which is known as Lorong Pasar Karat has been renamed Stesen Seni.
Walls on both sides of the 0.9m wide lane are filled with murals and graffiti art by Johor artists.
Artist Taib Abu Razak, 35, who is popularly known as Taib Aur, said Art Untuk Rakyat had gathered a group of artists, including himself, to spend two full days filling the walls with vibrant street art.
The other artists are Iskandar Noor Rahim (who goes by the moniker Akeem), Jefri Abdul (Jeps), Nurul Izzati Ramli (Jaie Ramlee), Iqbal Hareez Osman, Nik Nazhar Nik Kamaruddin, Ismail Arshad, Chong Xiao Yun, Chong Yong Chin, Anthony Leow Cheng Ting, Chong Zi Ning, Muhammad Azri Zahri (Jizu Two), Md Rafy Md Idris (Jack Rafy) and Ghazali Bunari (Tok Rimau).
The graffiti and mural works include Akeem’s Monapod, which is his version of Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. Mona Lisa is depicted as taking a selfie using a smart phone with a monopod. Akeem used an existing hole on the wall to create the image of the smart phone.
There is also a painting of a 3D green scooter. Jaie Ramlee’s work features a little boy sitting on a stool. His elbows are on the table and local delicacies are on the wall.
Anthony Leow Cheng Ting has drawn a map of the state and used wood panels to label the 10 districts.
Taib Aur, who is known for 3D drawings and watercolour works which depict Johor scenery, said Stesen Seni was made possible with the collaboration of the Johor City Council, Johor Tourism Department and Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda), which had got Nippon Paint to sponsor the materials.
He said it was still a work in progress and more masterpieces would be added to the walls.
“Some people call street art an act of vandalism but, in reality, it is not. What we have here is graffiti which is also a form of art,” he said.
Taib Aur said it had to be considered an art form as the pieces required planning and imagination, and contained artistic elements such as colour and composition.
He said it would only be considered graffiti if the medium used was paint from a spray can.
“The walls were bare before this and it is the back lane behind the shops. Now, people are here to capture pictures of our art and take home a piece of Johor with them,” Taib Aur said, adding that city council representatives had reached out to shop owners and operators and they had welcomed the project.
Johor Tourism Department director Dr Badrul Hisham Kassim said the idea was mooted about a year ago.
“Besides beautifying the facade, we also wanted to provide our local and bona fide artists with a platform to hone the skills and introduce themselves.
“There are many talented artists in Johor but most have moved to look for greener pastures, citing limitations here. By providing them with ample platforms to showcase their work, we hope they will come back,” he said.
Badrul said Stesen Seni was a pilot project and added that, based on feedback from the public, more murals would be added in stages throughout the state.
He said priority would be given to Johor artists.
Akeem posing with his Monapod.
~News courtesy of New Straits Times~
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