The First Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art

MALAYSIA ZULKIFLI YUSOFF The power 11991 Installation Shown at the National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur Zulkifli Yusoff was born in Yan, Kedah, Malaysia in 1962 andundertook a Diploma of Fine Arts at the lnstitut Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Malaysia in 1985-89. He then studied at the Manchester Polytechnic in England, completing a Master of Fine Arts in 1991. Between 1987 and 1991 he participated in many group exhibitions, bothin Malaysia and abroad, including 'Tasik Cini', Australian High Commission, Kuala Lumpur, 1987; three exhi­ bitions at the National Art Gallery in Kuala Lumpur in 1988; '3rd Asian Art Exhibition', Fukuoka, Japan, 1989; two exhibitions in Manchester, England (1989 and 1990); and 'New Art from South-East Asia 1992', touring Japan, 1992. Recognition as a significant artist by the Malaysian art world came early to Zulkifli Yusoff. He was honoured by the National Art 28 Gallery with the Major Award of the annual 'Young Contemporaries' exhibition in both 1988 and 1989, and received Second Prize at the International Sand Sculpture Competition in Hong Kong in 1989. He is currently an art lecturer at the lnstitut Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam. As was evident in its first appearance at the 'Salon Malaysia' in 1991, The power I is a compelling work, its force arising from the artist's concern about the use and abuse of power in politics. That is, the power vested in an individual to rule a society and thus to control the lives of other human beings. In Malaysian art, a statement such as this is quite unprecedented. T he 'power' alluded to by Zulkifli Yusoff presumably may protect or destroy, but the visual metaphors through which he images power - sharp weapons like swords and spears - carry feudal overtones. Since feudal power was invariably absolute, the use of such metaphors is provocative. What makes the artist represent power in such imagery from the past? Despite the apparent transformations of power, is it ultimately feudal in its essence? Is the artist depicting the nature of power in Asian societies? The objects he uses and the atmosphere created remind the viewer of old Japanese sho­ gunates, or sultanates from the Malay Archipelago in a former age. Zulkifli Yusoff's formal style brings together significant choice of subject matter and virtuosity of draughtsmanship-a union which engenders a stark, forceful, yet beautiful composition of forms. Judges have stated of his The power I that 'in scope and execution it exudes authority and conviction'. And that at least in the historical context of Malaysian art, it 'has expanded the very notions of sculptureand of art-intellectually, emotionally, materially and psychologically'. Zainol Abidin Bin Ahmad Shariff