Chia Yu Chian at ILHAM — Daily Dose of Chemo

Chia Yu Chian may not be a household name. And I don’t think it ever was, even though it should have been. I sure hope that the current and future generations come to appreciate who he was. He was an artist like no other but after his death, his works had largely gone under the radar. What a waste of such a gem actually ...

Mr Chia was born in 1936, and by the time he was 23, he was offered to hone his skills at the famed National School of Fine Arts in Paris. This is an opportunity unheard of at the time for somebody from a land just 2 years after Merdeka.

During his time in Paris, he held exhibitions in London showcasing Malaya there and made a name for himself. Returning back in 1962, he grew restless in Penang where he opened a gallery. In 1963, he packed his back and tried his chance in Kuala Lumpur. He settled at the newly built Selangor Mansion, one of the new tall building in KL. It must have been like staying at an apartment near KLCC in today’s money!

And since then, he was relentless. He painted, taught, toured and exhibited. But his work was magical. He painted with vivid colours and sharp observation. Mesmerising moments that he captured embodied the emotion of the time. And he was also sensible. He knew that he won’t be able to make a living painting impressionist portraits. So, he improvised. He had series on his travels to Perak and Penang, as well as street scenes in Kuala Lumpur. As the 90s approaches, his health deteriorated. The last few years of his life were spent in and out of University Hospital - now UMMC. So, he continued paintings his observations in the ward. And these I found really fascinating. You can also see the names of Doctors in his paintings, relating to his own experiences.

Sketches made of his observation before committing to canvas

A poignant photo of both Mr Chia and a politician I admired, the late Datuk Alex Lee

ILHAM Gallery honoured him by putting up his largest collection to date. It was titled “Private Lives”, which was eerily descriptive. Accompanying the exhibition was a short film by Mahen Bala titled “Nine Storeys ”, giving some context on what Selangor Mansion meant for the local community and the state of its affairs today. The exhibition would run until 23rd of June 2019 and admission was free. It is exhibition not to be missed if you ask me ...