A Mutual Collaboration with The Impact-based Foundation To Ensure The Tradition and Talent Are Kept Alive for Future Generation
The art exhibition is a culmination of Hasanah Talent Development programme which enables mentorship for selected artists in different creative fields to ensure a sustainable talent pipeline is created in the local Arts, Heritage and Culture (“AHC”) ecosystem. The event was graced with the presence of YBM Senator Dato’ Raja Kamarul Bahrin Shah Ibni Raja Ahmad Baharuddin Shah, the Deputy Minister of Housing and Local Government who officiated the exhibition at Langkasuka Gallery, witnessed by Puan Shahira Ahmed Bazari, Managing Director of Yayasan Hasanah. Norhaiza Noordin, or more fondly known as Jah, the Malay master wood carver was born in 1963 at Kampung Raja, Terengganu. Learning the basic of wood carving in a workshop with his first guru, Wan Su Othman and his son, Wan Po, he further his study later to refine the craft with Tengku Ibrahim, Tengku Wok and with the brothers, Abdul Rahman and Latif Long. He then began to study both the technique and philosophy of the Malay arts with the late Nik Rashiddin Nik Hussein, by then the respected Master Craft of wood carving. To date, the highly refined and intricate wood carving artworks of Norhaiza Noordin have travelled far locally and globally, marking a milestone in his artistic career journey; with one design work series of his wood carvings, adorning the entrance to the prestigious Malaysian Auditorium at the OXFORD University’s Centre for Islamic Studies, England. The talent development programme, which took place in a 6 months’ duration aims to preserve and conserve the art of traditional wood carving through a sustainable talent pipeline, focusing on the holistic approach of wood carving disciplines, both on theoretical and practical aspects. A total of 5 apprentices are selected from highly potential wood carvers’ talent, namely;
- En. Che Hami bin Che Hamzah – Bentara Sulong
- Mohd Faizal bin Ramli – Bentara Alang
- Hanis Zulakhba bin Che Hussin – Bentara Anjang
- Mohd Noor Idzuan bin Muhammad Radzali – Bentara Bongsu
- Wan Mohammed Azizi bin Wan Yahya – Seri Gemala
Each apprentice chosen is not a novice in the craft and comes with a minimum 5 years of ready experience and knowledge. The programme goes deeper into the art discipline, the philosophy of their design, its inspiration and the ability to have discussion about their work in a more informed manner. The objective of the talent development programme is in line with the aspiration of Hasanah to build capacity among communities and practitioners to enable them to more effectively carry out AHC activities in a sustainable manner, and close both the talent and subject expertise gaps in this area, as part of the wider planned capacity building and strengthening of the AHC ecosystem.
Hasanah Managing Director, Shahira Ahmed Bazari said: “Hasanah aspires to deliver meaningful long-term and sustainable impact for Malaysians, with Arts, Heritage & Culture being one of our Focus Areas. The preservation and conservation of our local arts hold the key to what makes us uniquely Malaysian. It is important for us to ensure the tradition and talent is kept alive to be cherished by the future generation.
The exhibition today, RESIDENCY with MASTER WOOD CARVER Norhaiza Noordin marks the completion of the talent development fund programme which started in the middle of the year 2018, showcasing the artworks of all 5 resident wood carvers and the Master Wood Carver, Norhaiza Noordin.