LEE Kian Seng 李健省
The Star (Metro-North) Thursday January 17, 2008
Artist shares his experiences
HIS battle with throat cancer has "inspired" celebrated artist Lee Kian Seng into a new arena of art - sharing his experience with budding artists.
“After undergoing cancer treatment, it became my wish to share my experiences with other people,” said Lee, 60, who was in Penang recently to visit the School of Arts in Universiti Sains Malaysia.
Over 30 students from the university gathered to listen to the award-winning artist and sculptor discuss several of his exhi-bited 3D works and the inspirations behind them.
“The racial riots that occurred on May 13, 1969 shocked and stimulated me to explore new horizons to express myself about a country I love so much,” said Lee whose cancer recovery is going well.
His concern and disappointment over the incident were expressed in his art when he presented a structure entitled Unity at the World Exposition 1970.
The three-member monument, fused together in a unifying singularity, was designed before the racial riots and expressed the energy, hope and unity of human beings and also represented the three major racial groups in Malaysia.
His determination to push the borders of art were also evident in the images of his structures entitled Mankind and From the Window of Red where he used real grass and a rotating canvas to display his art.
Lee plans to release two CDs of his works entitled ‘Soul and Form’ this year.
“The CDs will contain my works from the 1970s onwards, some of which have never been exhibited.”
“In the cases of some pieces, I felt it wasn’t the right time to put them on display at the time of completion for they may have been deemed too controversial or be misunderstood. However, now, the time feels right,” he said.
http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2008/1/17/north/20032914&sec=North
(Special note: Lee plans to release his art works entitled ‘Soul & Form’ Series, not “CDs” as stated in the above article. The accidental mistake will be rectified in the next press interview —Lee Kian Seng )