Image size: 16.8 x 9.3 cm
Latiff Mohidin, born in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia in 1941 completed his primary education in Singapore. While in Singapore, at an early age, Latiff’s precocity in understanding paintings earned him the nickname, ‘Wonder Boy’. From 1960-1964, Latiff studied art at Hochschule fur Bildende Kunste in Berlin, Germany and did brief residencies in Paris and New York. Inspired by his exploration of Southeast Asia in 1964, Latiff has since produced compelling series of artworks – the result of a synthesis between his European experience and the rediscovery of his homeland. He is also a poet who has published several volumes of poetry. The Langkawi series is a body of work known for its three-dimensionality. Introduced by Latiff as wall sculptures, each artwork is a combination of sculpture and painting. ‘Langkawi (1)’ is a sketch exploring the sculptural forms of the series. Most of the forms show traces of Latiff’s previous study of shields, boats and ‘congkaks’ and are reminiscent of sacred art such as domes, the kiblat in mosques and altars. All of these studies and resemblances have appeared some ten years earlier in the Pago-Pago series as well as in numerous supporting sketches and drawings.
