LIKE A PRAYER

This blog is about people's daily prayers. It is not a religious blog but a place where you can read a prayer. You can share your prayers by sending them here . Thank you for sharing and hope all your prayers will be answered.

http://justlike-a-prayer.blogspot.com/

poetisk Bureau

Det Poetiske Bureau sparker atter gang i PoEtnisk Tirsdag i en lidt ny form. Multilingvist og husdigter Ole Lillelund er stadig vært, nu sammen med Mahasti Yazdi, men fremover kører vi med et fast program med inviterede digtere. Denne tirsdag er vi glade for at byde velkommen til Abdulmalik Beakasyar fra Afghanistan, Salim Assi fra Palæstina, Milena Rudez fra Eks-Jugoslavien og Amir Zainorin fra Malaysia. De vil læse op på deres modersmål og i visse tilfælde vil der også blive simultantolket på dansk.

 

i was invited to read poetry at the Poetisk bureau in copenhagen last night hosted by ole lillelund.

here are some pictures. please click headlines to see the names of all the poets participated. tq.

artwork of change

“The best part about living in Copenhagen is that you are free to speak your mind and make your voice heard without fear of being put behind bars. I also like that things here are very transparent and you can have an open dialogue or discussion about what is going on.”
He said Malaysia has been blessed with its multi-cultural societies and people with different religions and beliefs living and working together for hundreds of years.
“But this blessing is in danger of being lost if we lock ourselves in our little territory and not dare to go out to see what else is there to learn. If we want to be an example to other people and countries that we can live in love, peace, harmony and that everyone is treated equally, then we have to be more open about things.”

this article was written by wong li za of the star newspaper, malaysia. to read more pls. click headline, tq

Global Village

i will be part of this group show that will take part in alkmaar, holland. the exhibition will start from 24-31 january at the grand church of alkmaar, holland. please go to headline for futher reading, tq.

kunst og interkultur

pls. click headline/link to read more, tq

space gambus experiment

please check this experimental music by space gambus- of kamal sabran and  mohd zulkifli ramli of malaysia.

semarak seni di kota london-kosmo

 (to read article pls. click headline for link, tq)

made in malaysia-amir zainorin

The Opening-Pelita hati

Muar-born artist Amir Zainorin’s works have an international flavour. Muar-born artist Amir Zainorinâ € ™ s works have an international flavor. FRANCIS DASS writes on the man who spent his youth travelling and dabbling in many jobs before he found his calling. FRANCIS DASS writes on the man who spent his youth traveling and dabbling in many jobs before he found his calling.
AMIR Zainorin has found his true calling in life by becoming an artist. AMIR zainorin has found his true calling in life by becoming an artist.
If you look carefully at his paintings, you’d be hard pressed to imagine that this unassuming and pleasant Muar-born man is the mind behind art pieces that have an international flavour… If you look carefully at his paintings, youâ € ™ d be hard pressed to imagine that this unassuming and pleasant Muar-born man is the mind behind art pieces that have an international flavor ...

Finding his identity through works of art

"WHAT or where is my true home?"

‘T

it is a question commonly faced by most people who have relocated abroad.

It is also what constantly nags Malaysian artist Amir Zainorin, and one that found form of expression in his works of art.

Based in Copenhagen for the past seven years, Amir, 36, is constantly asked about his identity.

Delving deep into history and culture of his past, he came up with fifteen pieces of contemporary artwork that are being showcased in his first solo London exhibition at the Brick Lane Gallery in East London.

The exhibition entitled Mad(e) in Malaysia is being showcased by R A Fine Arts of Malaysia, and will run until March 30.

The exhibition was officially launched last night by the Malaysian Ambassador to Ireland Raja Nazrin Raja Aznam and attended by more than 60 people.

"The longer I stay away, the more time I spent looking into the question of identity and my roots," said Amir whose career spanned from advertising, banking, public relations, hotel and catering to driving school.

The diverse mix of jobs which saw him in different countries, such as Malaysia, America, Holland, Sweden and Denmark, enriched his experience and drove him further to satisfy his curiosity about his past.

"The question of identity is important while researching for this exhibition.

"I went back to study the history of the country from the era of colonisation to the modern-day Malaysia and beyond.

Amir's works reflect power relations, clash of traditions and modernity, East and West as he attempts to explore how the mass media shapes our identity and sense of belonging.

Speaking at the launch, Ambassador Raja Nazrin applauded Malaysia's pop artist as someone who had successfully blended the best of Malaysia and his experience abroad by producing works which are more universally accepted, rather than just Malaysian in nature.

"Amir's work is accessible on a global plane," he said.

One particularly poignant piece is entitled The Judge - Tunku portraying the first prime minister of Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman as a judge, with batik designs in the background and a prominent display of the national flower.

Director of R A Fine Arts Raja Ahmad Aminullah said he was encouraged by the positive response received at the launch.

"No doubt the artist was born in Malaysia but his works are easily recognisable by citizens of the world."

The guest curator for the exhibition is Badrolhisham Mohamed Tahir.

A father of two, Amir did his apprenticeship with Malaysian pop artist Ahmad Azhari and has held exhibitions in Copenhagen, Kuala Lumpur, Stockholm, Holland and New York

                                                  the judge - tunku, digital print on canvas, 2008

An artist abroad

Living and working in Denmark now, Amir was back to visit his old haunts in KL for a few months. But not content to sit and do nothing, he started work on an installation called Art, Politics and Power at the National Art Gallery, represented by a wall filled by makeshift flags, mostly created from bits of newspapers and satay skewers.
Sporting the mandatory Bohemian ponytail, Amir comes across as a fairly likeable person - always grinning, with a youthful, early 20s look and attitude that belies his 42 years, his sparse frame clad in a brand new white T-shirt.
"I get kicked and I get a kick out of it! I can be me, that's the closest thing I get to being myself, being honest to what I'm doing," says Amir, explaining his reasons for becoming an artist.
(to read more please click the headlines, tq) 

Pop Ficiton- 3 Pop Artist from Malaysia

“Some of his famous paintings include football legend Mokhtar Dahari and the nation’s first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman, which are now private collections at the National Art Gallery,” said Norsita.
“I was inspired by him to become an artist at a time when I did not know what to do with my life,” said Amir, who has made Denmark his base for the last six years.

(to read more, please click headline for the link.)

POP ART- MALAYSIA

"With his involvement in the Pop genre, Jeri has been given the title of 'Pop icon' or a 'legend' in the Pop genre in Malaysia. Even so, what is interesting about this exhibition is not how Jeri and his apprentices display their talents in the ways of Pop but 'different' they are in discussing mundane things especially politics. I believe they aren't the only ones expressing their opinions on politics through arts. There are many others. Therefore the question is what new things are being introduced by Jeri and his apprentices in the language of Pop? And why Pop? Is it perhaps even a mistake to categorize them as Pop artists? If we cannot answer these questions, perhaps there is a benefit for us if we examine closely the reality of Pop art such as what happened in the West six decades ago. I also would like to mention, since the creation of 'readymades' by Dadaism, art can exist in a variety of forms and materials, can be located anywhere for any reason at all; can be brought anywhere for any audience, whether it be in a gallery, museum or a garden or public space; in fact it can even be placed in the middle of a garbage dump. Maybe these are the questions that Jeri mulled over while he was still alive; what does it mean to be a contemporary artist? …The artworks which are being exhibited are clearly attempts to break from the mould in art. Obviously this teases our consciousness. This act of teasing and the space it creates results in a democratic space of knowledge where different interpretations are not just arbitrary but take place in a horizon where its probability is different in features. Maybe it is this difference which causes us to categorize them as Pop artists."

(Badrolhisham Mohamad Tahir, guest curator for the exhibition)

 please click the above headline to read more) 

amir zainorin

digital print on paper , from the stamp series-2008

                                     amir zainorin, the sunday times, digital print on paper-2008   

Flags

 

'This is derived from our desire to show power, be it of conquering new physical territory or epistemological space. The 99 names of God printed on 99 flags are the characteristics of God which can lead to spiritual power and closeness to God.'

to read more please go to link below, tq

http://www.amirzainorin.dk/press_5.html

The Balloon Park, Copenhagen, Denmark

the beatnik poet ole lillelund infront of his house at the balloon park with pic. of himself and chairil anwar

The balloon Park



( thi stext was written somewhere in 2006-7)

to god fearing people

be fear of god, and be very fear of yourself for fearing other people from using the word god.

amir-10jan2010

The Malays, Allah, God and attacked on the churches. help me God.

after david hockney

            digital plrint on paper, 2009

The Malays, Allah, God and attacked on the churches.

It is 0 degrees here in Copenhagen and the news that I read about  Malaysia the last couple of days has somewhat gave me the heat to cope up with the unusual cold winter weather that has hit Denmark and Europe.. The heat is the news I read from the online newspapers about a church in Kuala Lumpur that has been burnt and a few more that were attacked by an unknown group of people. 

Nobody has came out to claim the attacks but it is believed that the controversy came after the court decision to allow the use of the name ‘Allah’ to Catholic newspaper, The Herald.  It has marked a black day to Malaysia, a multicultural societies that have been living side by side for hundreds of years and a huge step back for racial harmony.

But I am not totally surprised by the attacks because racial tension has been there in the country all the time. It was just a matter of time before it exploded again. On 13st of May 1969, a riot broke up in Kuala Lumpur between the two largest groups of people inhabiting Malaysia. These two groups are the Malays who made up 60 % of the population and Chinese who are about 29%. This riot ended up with hundreds of people being killed which brought the country to a state of emergency. The cause of this riot was cited because of the New Economic Policy, which was introduced by the government that gives special privileges to the Malay who were perceived to be more poor and rural than the Chinese. But for many years now the biggest income gaps are not between the Chinese and the Malays but among the Malays themselves. So class differences are also more of concern to most Malaysian than ethnicity.

But the problem is made more delicate than the above.  The federal constitution states that Malay is Islam and Islam is Malay which states that a Malay is a person who professes to be a Muslim and habitually speaks the Malay language and adhere to the Malay customs. Based on this, the federal and state government administer, plan and implement various governance policies, touching every aspects of the Malay-Muslim religious life.

To the Malays the word Allah is everything from the pillar of religion, faith, norms and values in life, as the Malays are automatically Muslim.  They are born and die as a Muslim. The Malays are very sensitive with regards to issues concerning Islam as the feel that they own Islam and the social propriety ship couldn’t be question.

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Professor of Social Anthropology Prof Dr Shamsul Amri Baharuddin said ‘ the social reality complexity of Malays in leading the Islamic way of life becomes more difficult when Islam has been turned into a symbol and political ideology,  adding that it has brought political Islam into the global arena and further worsened the situation’.

The Malays feeling towards the word Allah are quite similar to the feeling of Muslims all over the world toward their prophet Muhammad. Muhammad means everything to them and in many cases more than their own family. So it is not surprise if some of them would do anything in order to protect their prophet and their religion.

Since religions and matters regarding the special privileges given to the Malays are sensitive issues to talk about, Malaysians in general don’t questions or discuss about it so much among themselves. What happened is that tensions about inequality and injustice keep building up and that it is very difficult for them to trust each other. But the reality is most people don’t want to create problems.  Ironically, people here are united and will trust each other in corruptions activities. The rich Malays, rich Chinese and rich Indians will work and agree with each other when they feel that they all can get something out of it. It all boils down to their own benefit.  Here we see that there is this class struggle rather than ethnicity.

 The problems also lay in the system in which produce differences and polarization and this started in vernacular school which we spend 13 years and was send to our respective ethnic groups.  

Malaysia has been blessed by its multi cultural societies, and people with different religions and beliefs, living and working together for hundreds of years, but this blessing is in danger of being lost because we are only like to see our own navel, and failed to see what is a round us, so despite travelling a lot, many of us are still ignorant.

There are a large number of people in Malaysia, particularly the Malays who against the use of the word Allah by non Muslim. In Facebook a group called ‘ Opposing the use of the name Allah by non-Muslim’ have about 200,000 members and growing . Peaceful demonstrations are being held in mosques to support the idea.. This way of thinking is similar to a group of people here in Denmark. Lead by Pia Kjærsgaard of the Danish Folk Party who only thinks that Denmark is only for ethnic Danish and everyone else should conform to the Danish values or they should leave the country.. There is some truth in that because in order to have contact with human full’s potential, the immigrant has to somewhat learn or embrace their new environment that they are living in and at the same time retain their own culture. But it has to work both ways. Pia Kjærsgaard  and her party members has to open up and learn about other people and their cultures. If she keeps her door closed, than her world and those people alike will be a bit smaller, a bit narrower and a bit lonelier.

A big wall is built in the name of Allah, God. Miles Davis says’ we don’t own anything’. Only if we all could learn that we don’t really own anything in this world , than we will be a free man. Otherwise we will be a prisoner of our own conscience.

invisible wall

today, an invisible wall is built in the name of allah=god in malaysia to separate you and me, us and other. we have to learn that we dont own anything in this world to be a free man, otherwise we will be a prisoner of our own concience.

jacob holdt's opening at lousiana- faith, hope and love

                                      

pia and jacob

                                               pia, malika and ilyas at the opening

ilyas amir poulsen

narrow escape from a shark

Onsdag 8/4 fra kl. 20-23: Sydøstasiatisk filmaften: Lillelund/Zainorin


Gratis adgang for alle



Verdenspremiere på den malaysiske instruktør Amir Zainorins poesifilm, Narrow Escape From A Shark, hvor digteren Ole Lillelund læser op forskellige steder i København. Zainorin introducerer og viser tillige en anden film om malaysisk kunst. Aftenen sluttes af med Adi Yadonis dokumentar Reflections of the Misunderstood Mat Rockers om undergrundspunkscenens udvikling i Singapore fra 1970'erne til i dag, med en kort introduktion af Ole Lillelund.

chairil anwar-nattens stemme- gendigtet af ole lillelund

Chairil Anwar : NATTENS STEMME

Poesi, paperback, gendigtet af Ole Lillelund, 90 sider, 120 kr, udkommet 19/6 2009
ISBN978-87-92280-08-4

cover of chairil anwar by amir zainorin. collage on canvas, 2003



Chairil Anwar, grundlæggeren af den modernistiske poesi i Indonesien, har alt for længe været et totalt ukendt navn i Vesten. Denne situation råder Det Poetiske Bureaus Forlag bod på med denne enestående gendigtning af multilingvisten Ole Lillelund; gå ikke glip af denne unikke mulighed for at smage på en fremmedartet og dog velkendt poesi fra et hjørne af verden du normalt ikke hører så meget fra. Køb nu

Anmeldelse i Urban
Anmeldelse i Politiken

Guanoelegier-ole lillelund

Ole Lillelund : GUANOELEGIER
Poesi, paperback, 80 sider, 120 kr. inklusive cd, udkommer 10/7 2009

ISBN978-87-92280-09-1

              cover of ole lillelund by amir zainorin.collage on canvas.2003

Ole Lillelund har snart prydet Bureauet med sin skarpslebne poesi i to år og nu pryder han også vort forlags katalog med sin første udgivelse siden sangbogen 'Sange fra kanten af en blå zafir' der udkom for fem år siden. Guanoelegier er ikke bare en bidsk kommentar til Rilke, men en sylespids poe

malaysian arts festival denmark 2009

UNCUT09: MALAYSIAN ARTS FESTIVAL 5 -15 August 2009


The first Malaysian Arts festival in Denmark will be presenting a number of recognized artists from Malaysia who will be making live performances within the two weeks. The festival will give the public in Copenhagen and Roskilde a possibility to expand their knowledge of Malaysian art and expression.
The tile ‘Uncut’ has a double meaning. Part of the title is referred to the uncensored and open dissemination of art form. The other part of ‘Uncut is referred to the same word pronunciation in Malay ‘ angkat ‘, which means to lift. One of the festival’s goals is to lift and introduce Malaysian art to a new audience here in Denmark.
The public can experience the dancer and choreographer Aida Redza (b. 1969). Here in Denmark is Aida known for her performance at Kronborg in 2002 and her part in the Images of Asia 2003. Aida is one of Malaysia’s most intense and controversial choreographers. Her dance and choreography explores the relation between dream, play, resistance and revolution from a perspective of a Muslim woman.
20 Malaysian visual artists will exhibit their work in a group exhibition. Among them are National Laureate A.Samad Said, Ruzekki Harris, Samsudin Wahab, Zulkiflee Zainal Abidin, Suddin Lappo, Melissa Lin, Rahmat Haron and Haslin Ismail.
The public will have the possibility to participate in a workshop with one of the artists; Fathullah Luqman Yusuff ( b. 1972 ). Fathullah, who is both singer/songwriter and visual artist deals with art therapy as a tool to work with children and teenagers.
At the festival there will there be presented a numbers of Malaysian short films. You can watch film interviews with a couple of the front figures in the Malaysian art world. The films debate about multiculturalism and tradition versus modernity. The interviews also debate the role of art in the society.
At last there will be poetry reading, music and dance performance during the festival while a variety of Malaysian food are being served.



About the organizer:

Uncut09 is organized by Malaysian visual artist Amir Zainorin and volunteers from the association Jambatan in cooperation with Malaysian artist and curator Nur Hanim Khairuddin, who is the editor for art magazine Sentap in Malaysia. Jambatan, which is a Malay word meaning ‘bridge’, seeks to build up a network between Danish and Asian artists. Uncut09 is organized with support from the National Art Gallery Malaysia, University of Science Malaysia, Sentap and Tourism Malaysia.







PROGRAM



The official opening of the Festival will be officiated by H.E. Dato' Kamarudin Mustafa, from Embassy of Malaysia, Sweden on 7 Aug 2009 at 5 pm at Gallery Shambala, Rosengården 7, 1177

København K.



GALLERI SHAMBALA

Rosengården 7, 1177 København K. TEL: 2940 9896

5 – 15 August

Group art exhibition of 20 contemporary artists from Malaysia

Opening time: 15.00- 18.00 Mon-Fri

10.00 – 14.00 Saturday



MUSEET FOR SAMTIDSKUNST

Stændertorvet 3D, 4000 Roskilde. TEL: 4631 6570

14 – 15 August

Screening of films from Malaysia



Day 1: 14. August KL. 19.00 – 22.00

Video interview and Short films



Day 2: 15. August KL. 19 – 22.00

Video interview and Collection of films from University of Science Malaysia





VERDENSKULTURCENTRET

11 – 13 August

Nørre Alle 7, 2200 København. TEL: 3536 0528



Day 1: Tuesday 11. August





COLLABORATORIUM PROCESS – KL 16.30 – 20.00

A studio based process will facilitate participants to experience a collaborative work with Aida Redza, Fathullah Luqman Yusuff and Amir Zainorin towards giving opportunity to create and showcase an interdisciplinary performance work to be presented on the 13 August.





Day 2: Wednesday August 12. 2009





DANCE WORKSHOPS KL. 10.00 – 19.00

Salen: Verdenskulturcentret

Workshop Fee: 100 Kr. per session Aida Redza - a Malaysian dancer and choreographer will conduct her first new dance workshop rooted in tradition. The dance workshop is open to all interested in the process of 3R - Ritual, Rhythm, and Repetition in performance of the expressive body. The workshop is open to all interested. There will be two sessions of the workshop; A slow Intermediate class for young and new beginners from 10 - 12 am, and an advance Intermediate class from 5 -7 pm.



Interested participants please contact Aida Redza at tel: +45 2227 9072 or email aida.mohdredza@gmail.com for dance workshop collaboratotium process.





COLLABORATORIUM PROCESS – KL 13.00 – 16.00

A studio based process will facilitate participants to experience a collaborative work with Aida Redza, Fathullah Luqman Yusuff and Amir Zainorin towards giving opportunity to create and showcase an interdisciplinary performance work to be presented on the 13 August.



Day 3: Thursday August 13. 2009



SALEN: VERDENSKULTURCENTRET

ARTWORKSHOP - KL. 10.00 – 13.00



An art workshop will be conducted by Malaysian artist Fathullah Luqman Yusuff,

He will be making a group painting workshop session with the theme – spontaneity, impromptu, experimental and playing with color lines.

Participants will be invited to use their whole body in relation to the canvas which is placed on the floor rather than painting on an easel or against the wall.

FREE ENTRANCE

Interested participants please contact Amir at Tel: +45 2940 9896 or email amirzainorin@gmail.com





SHOW/PERFORMANCE AT VERDENSKULTURCENTRET – KL. 18.00 – 22.00

A special performance will be staged at Salen and Cafetaria Verdenskulturcentret.



kl. 18.00 - 18.45 Poetry reading

Venue: Cafetaria

by Fathullah Luqman, Amir Zainorin and guest poet Ole Lillelund from Denmark.



kl. 19. 00 – 19.30 Music performance

by Fathullah Luqman - singer/songwriter, visual artist and poet.

He is known as an outsider edge musician and since 1997 he's been trained by artists from Malaysia and Indonesia in a more personal method of learning, leaning towards figurative expressionist style. Fathullah has done both solo and group exhibitions and he is also involved in art workshop/art therapy session as a medium to use art to reach out to society especially to teenagers and children.



kl. 19.45 – 20.15 Dance Performance

Venue- Salen

by Aida Redza – dancer and choreographer.



kl. 20.30 – 21.00 Collaboratorium showcase

Venue: Salen

by Aida Redza, Fathullah Luqman and Amir Zainorin.



22.00 Closed





Entrance: 75 kr inclusive of Malaysian food which will be served during the show.





For more information please visit the festival blog at www.jambatan.blogspot.com

interview with arteri

please check this interview that i did with sharon chin of arteri last august 2009.

here is the link:

http://www.arterimalaysia.com/2009/08/24/scandinavian-sambal-uncut09-malaysian-arts-festival/

interview-space 16 online gallery

I grew up in an environment of popular culture. Watching Walt Disney, the Lone Ranger, Six Million Dollar Man, Superman, to mention a few. My father was a singer in a Ghazal (Band) back in the 60's, so music has also been a big part of my life.


*The Dance, 170cm x 120cm, digital c print on paper, 2009
Image courtesy of A. Zainorin

[*MORE... Malaysian typical dances on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imiYNPEPS-M&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnUagvHGA2A&feature=related]

One of the main inspirations of making collage is because of its simplicity and the idea that you don’t necessarily have to buy paints or colors to make art.


Can you discuss your process in general? How does it all start, what techniques and materials do you use?

I have worked with many different materials. I first started with oil, and later on switched to acrylic and at the same time started to make collage and assemblage from objects I found from the street.

did this interview with sand t of space 16 online gallery recently.

check this link please..

http://as16online.blogspot.com/2009/08/featured-artist-amir-zainorin.html

The Global Village exhibition Holland

the cross-print and pen on paper-2009

can be viewed at Grand Saint Laurens church of Alkmaar, Holland.The exhibition will take place from Saturday 23 January 2010 till Sunday 31 January 2010.

The theme of Global Village is globalisation (like internet, media, mass consumption and climate change). We don�t want a pro- or con-globalisation exhibition. We see globalisation as just there, with it�s effects and opportunities (like this project). 55 artists from all 6 continents show innovating art (like installation, video en digital art) about this theme.

At the exhibition 55 artists with innovating work (like installation, video and digital art) show their art about the theme of globalisation (like internet, media, mass consumption and climate change). The artists are coming from all 6 continents; Europe, North and South America, Africa, Asia and Australia, see Global Village artists.

bbc

perhaps a couple of useful article about my art. please check out the link below.

new straits times

http://www.nstp.com.my/Current_News/NST/Monday/National/2512157/Article/indexpull_html?query_start=7&query=%27%27

kosmo

http://www.kosmo.com.my/kosmo/content.asp?y=2009&dt=0401&pub=Kosmo&sec=Varia&pg=va_01.htm

the dance

skraldekunst workshop-junk art workshop with heerup museum 2009

just finished a week long workshop with children from 10 different school in copenhagen. the workshop took place at heerup museum and at the radhudspladsen. the workshop is in conjunction with the environmental summit 2009 in
copenhagen.




Heerup Museum and the Malaysian-born artist Amir Zainorin will host garbage workshops, where you can build your own "garbage car" from recycled.....

http://www.buster.dk/b/a2.lasso?tt=f&fid=1&s=2009009&s=2009009&ser=2213