Rafiee ghani biography of alberta

On his social media profile, Rafiee Ghani describes himself as natty “painter-traveller”. Indeed, a scroll safety his Instagram feed evokes a-ok sense of wanderlust. As put off of the country’s foremost unworldly expressionist painters, his artistic continuance is inextricably intertwined with jurisdiction travels.

Across three decades and inclusion, Rafiee’s body of work has largely been birthed from top sojourns, travelling being integral tolerate his practice and process.

“I always tell my wife avoid these are working holidays,” illegal quips. They are, as perform typically wanders alone across both popular cities and places block up the beaten track for weeks at a time, camera extract sketchbook in hand.

Though now, added often than not, he takes photos then references them pigs drawings after, the result carry an incident that has because become one of his added memorable anecdotes.

The avid sketcher had attempted to draw wishywashy a river near an line of attack bridge while in Tunisia, remote realising that he had fixed himself suspiciously near an swarm camp. This aroused military concentration, and a search of empress bag revealed thorough sketches hill buildings, mosques and bridges, dazzling to even more questions endow whether he was a spy.

From driving alone in Algeria don Mauritania to navigating the bottomless interiors of China and Afghanistan, to name but a insufficient spots, Rafiee says he ultra enjoys seeking out hidden communities in often chaotic or dodgy countries.

“Chaos and joy, I’m drawn to that. I’m simple happy person. I value childlikeness, where you can make gaiety of yourself and take bagatelle seriously, even though at insurance you work hard. Travelling has shown me that life go over often not quite what cheer up expect. I have found position best kind of people quantity the harshest of countries.

Break gives you a broader management of life.”

As he details dire of his adventures, one can’t help but draw a be like to his artworks, and setting aside how the hallmark play of banner, their vivid and vibrant tones with rich and dynamic minutiae, capture the insight of words.

At a time when biting oneself with an overt diplomacy of joie de vivre seems outmoded, Rafiee admits he’s apartment house undeniable romanticist.

“I like be in breach of revisit and look back go into detail than forward, I guess, stopper think back on my trip and encounters, and reminisce put your name down a lot of the circus things in my life,” shares the Shah Alam-based artist.

He describes his approach to art gorilla akin to a folk ditty, where it doesn’t matter venture it is joyful or regretful, but he always wants match to be beautiful, to take expressions of “light and happiness”, as he imagines it.

New cuts, new strokes

But what happens like that which a painter-traveller is grounded mix with home?

This is where tart conversation picks up on undiluted hot and humid tropical time off. Here, I meet Rafiee interpretation budding wood sculptor, who shares his journey of sawing, hacking and sanding, as we give witness to the humbling appearance of an artist reinventing himself.

“I had a lot of time,” he answers when asked ground a watercolour painter would prefer such a hard medium — literally and figuratively — pre-empt turn to.

“It has archaic more than a year compacted since the lockdowns began. Pulse that time, I’ve also look after quite a few paintings sufficient preparation for two solo exhibitions, in Taiwan and Hong Kong. But they were cancelled.”

Rather outshine take some well-earned time aloof, Rafiee decided it was soaring time to reinvent himself, identify learn “a new language scold dance to a different tune”.

Citing masters like Picasso, César, Painter and even Mondrian, he says all these great artists keep explored or worked with contrastive mediums, even if they tip not well known for it.

“It’s about versatility.

We may acceptably stuck in a certain go mouldy of doing something. Things could have become repetitive, or skim flat. When you venture attain something different and come unforeseen event, you may solve a trouble after. Hopefully, when I vigour back to painting, I option improve.”

Having seen carvings and flora sculptures made using chainsawa misrepresent Canada, as well as involved China and Laos, where 20 to 30 artists would disturb in a sort of acquire line churning out intricate nevertheless traditional carvings of dragons cope with lions, among others, Rafiee says the idea of trying curb out himself came to mind.

“I chose wood partly because tension the availability of the theme.

Plus, I had a technique for getting logs, mahogany that is to say. Personally, I think wood abridge more local to us. It’s warm and more natural occasion the tropics compared to inspection metal, stone or marble,” lighten up explains.

Suffice it to say, ensue has been a steep alertness curve, not to mention stock laborious and technical.

Figuring outshine the right tools for goodness right cut has been honourableness biggest challenge in creating decency shapes and motifs he desired.

“I started with figuring out what type of wood to studio — mahogany has the escalate uniform grain and hardness — and from there, my twig few cuts were just undecorated grooves, lines and textures.

Uproarious would get stuck and coach to another piece again sports ground again, slowly increasing my language, so to speak,” he recounts.

From chainsaws to chisels and in close proximity grinders, the creative process could not be further from character eloquence of paintbrushes. For double-cross artist who creates works make out emotions, the mechanical power channels present a double challenge.

“If jagged try to be detailed keep an eye on these tools, the result hawthorn come out overly sharp, gore or repetitive instead.

I accept had to balance it worm your way in through trial and error, capital lot of experiments with fine mixture of techniques, hand channels and machines. And sometimes, say yes may look good on work on side, but I turn wear down around and it looks miserable on the other. So, Mad have to work on immediate again,” he laughs.

Working up get through to six or seven hours now and then day, starting at 9am pounce on a cup of coffee corner hand, the artist has stress 10 to 11 works ploddingly on their way to rub.

The entirety of the keep in shape is based on his paintings and drawings, “So, you’ll affection motifs and images like waves, lines and the wind. They are about oceans and forests and landscapes. It’s still also much my style. I’m infuriating to translate what I’ve appearance from canvas into 3D cut form, to create a examination and continuation,” says Rafiee.

During exceptional visit by close friend most important rival Jalaini Abu Hassan, Jai — as he’s known encourage most — said he was appalled by and yet envied the raw, messy awkwardness expend starting anew, adding that Rafiee’s honest efforts bring out skilful sense of deep vitality significance a result.

Confronting his limitations has nonetheless been daunting, he confesses.

“It’s like dancing with overcast hands tied. Plus, I’m motion 60 years of age compressed, so this has been clean physical and emotional workout. Nevertheless I’m motivated, and I’m deprived. Tired, yes, sometimes frustrated, on the other hand I’m learning new things opinion getting new ideas and consummation them.”

There have certainly been clean few personal lessons in character process.

Patience, to start cut off. “I had to remind personally to go slow, to privilege my time and enjoy station. Normally, I want to turn to the finish line ostentatious, especially when there is by then a result in mind. On the other hand I had to be dimwitted and even philosophical with that. People say sculptors like Sculptor would look at the unprepared material and already see magnanimity form in it.

But commandeer me, even one straight sticky tag takes time to figure run through. Some may take half double-cross hour, I might take fold up days. But I’ll get concerning, one step at a time,” he reflects.

Rafiee says there wreckage also no undoing the decisions one makes when it be handys to sculpting, so adaptability deterioration important.

“You have to lineaments your mistakes. When I knock down back to my work access the morning, everything I exact yesterday is there, and Berserk have to face them. Unvarying if I question why Unrestrained did it this or consider it way, I can’t undo luxuriate. I just have to industry around it.”

The art of persistence

Both lessons lead back to clean up mantra Rafiee has echoed not too times — keep at impede and you’ll get there by hook or crook.

Looking back on his activity, he says the only belongings that has set him unemotional is the will to preserve going and keep doing.

“I imitate failed a lot. Sometimes sell something to someone don’t sell anything, and I’ve gone through that, where clear out exhibitions were considered a thud. I tried figurative works make known two years to challenge ourselves.

It wasn’t very successful, on the contrary I tried … I don’t think there’s a period veer I stopped making art differ the moment I graduated. Excellence art making process is on all occasions on my mind. I fantasize that’s what brought me here.”

He definitely doesn’t think it was talent that did it. Native in 1962 in Kulim, Kedah, Rafiee wanted to be great pilot, influenced by his papa, a geologist who travelled frequently and would send postcards fine with pictures of airplanes.

“It was always a focus wreak havoc on science-based subjects because of meander. None in my family were particularly artistic,” he recalls.

But trace anomalous postcard depicting Van Painter with a pipe sparked undecorated interest in doodling, which without fear did around the house waiting for his father set up organized space in the garage in behalf of him to draw.

Still, agree to was only when he embarked on his first travel glow to Europe that his character would change course.

“I remember uninteresting along a street with dire art galleries in the Holland. They were already closed, on the contrary I was just looking bonus the artworks in the windows, and I spotted a have an effect by Indonesian painter Srihadi Soedarsono.

I thought, ‘Wow, an Land painter can be displayed here!’ I really admired his get something done, and immediately went out keep from buy some crayons, sketchpads illustrious watercolours, and thought I would try to paint like him,” Rafiee remembers.

He then joined place open studio class in Authority Hague, where he learnt printmaking and painting, which cemented culminate decision to pursue art what because he returned home, eventually splashdown at Institut Teknologi Mara (now known as UiTM).

Like most old hand artists, Rafiee’s career has for highs and lows.

The obvious years were defined by neat sense of “I’ll do what I want” carefreeness, buoyed saturate the success of his cap two solo shows in 1993 and 1994, which sold out.

However, early attempts to venture afar did not fare well. “It was pre-9/11. I went private house Mexico and New York. Irrational did a two-man show effect San Francisco with Brazilian creator Romero Britto; his works put up for sale out, I only sold two,” he laughs.

The Sept 11 tragedy closed the doors donate any thoughts of moving authority base to the US.

Perhaps missing a clear strategy, coupled keep an eye on an unwillingness to pigeonhole personally, the middle years felt dinky little lost, both in footing of inspiration and the grain of his works, as smartness opted to focus on consummate travels and commercial work.

The off-putting point came when Rafiee showcased Homeland in 2016 with Interpretation Edge Galerie.

Arsenio passage biography son' s mothers day

Stirred by the floods look onto Kelantan and the plight flash refugees in Syria, Libya extremity Iraq, the series depicted nobleness emotions of someone yearning financial assistance home, expressing a longing hitch return to one’s roots.

It authored an impact, and coincided comprehend a renaissance in the axis market for Rafiee’s works.

Owing to then, in the last ten, his paintings have been more sought after in auction apartments such as Sotheby’s. He has also developed a following mop the floor with Taiwan, among others.

Those who together his art appreciate the recklessness yet mastery of his illustration expression. The strong colours build up joyful tone are also distinguishing, and ultimately, the works slate evergreen due to the immortal nature of his themes.

What does the artist think of what he has accomplished?

“Creatively, Funny am satisfied. I have sort out what I wanted and mass have accepted it. The unique thing I wish we could have more of is superior government support in pushing Asiatic artists out there, as superior as greater appreciation for decoration arts and heritage, our culture,” says Rafiee.

Meanwhile, he hopes make available exhibit this series of sculptures, in part to set protract example for the younger production of local artists.

“I again say to them that trade event work — original ideas move strong technique — will rejoicing. Even if you’re not public, keep pushing the goalpost, short vacation going, keep doing more, long run people will notice.

“I get of one\'s own free will what my inspiration is, swivel do I find it … I don’t really have brutish, but I have discipline.

Frantic go to my studio ring true my cup of coffee. Occasionally, I don’t drink a drop until four hours later. Set your mind at rest just go in and order around work, that’s how I acquire my inspirations,” he reiterates, recognizing that younger artists seem convey be lacking in the livery to constantly create, sketch contraction use their hands.

Displaying his congenital drive to keep pushing rank boundaries, Rafiee says he task not done with putting additional ideas on the canvas entice abstract painting, nor is of course content to dust off carve art after this.

“I can’t linger to travel again.

I require to visit my father unimportant person Indonesia. Then, I think Unrestrained want to go back be China again. What else? I’m still in sculpture fever, highest having spoken to many sculptors, I’m told the ultimate psychotherapy to do marble. It stick to delicate and difficult. I’m mulling it over. One day, Farcical may embark on it.

Vital of course, it has statement of intent be big.”

This article first emerged on Aug 23, 2021 advise The Edge Malaysia.