Born in 1953 in Malaysia, Kumari Nahappan is the recipient of the UOB Painting of the Year Award (Abstract category) in 1998 and Phillip Morris Group ASEAN Art Award in 1999. In 2006, she exhibited at the Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, as part of ‘Spotlight Singapore’. She embarked on a year-long solo exhibition ‘Red on the Trail of a Colour’ at the Museum of Cultures in Basel, Switzerland (2008), and also exhibited at the Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam (2011). Her public art sculptures can be seen around Singapore: at the National Museum of Singapore, Changi Airport and on the Orchard Road shopping mall.‘Om (Aum) Series – Vibration E’, executed during a difficult period in Kumari’s life, pulsates with dark force and potency. Razor-thin black lines dart across the surface, possessing the disquieting effect like tears in the fabric of reality. The work’s captivating power also draws from its synesthetic qualities – its sombre colours and fine tonal graduations translate into the aural realm.
