The stereotype of the Artist is difficult to shake off – it is mostly negative anyway. The poor struggling artist. The one who finds it difficult to pay bills. One who paints the day away. Always furiously mixing colours and pigments, immersing himself in Art. Selling one or two pieces if he is able to. Finding no understanding or solace in others as the Public remains skeptical that Art can sustain a Living. Or in many cases, the Artist is likely to be eccentric, sometimes overly dramatic, possibly an eremite, often eschewing crowds.
Which was why I found myself in the USM Museum and Gallery yesterday afternoon, after gulping down a late lunch of fried rice. Nic and I had heard it was hosting a three-speaker forum/talk on “Art Makes Business Makes Art”.
Krista Goon
When All You've Got is Powerpoint!
Yes, Microsoft Powerpoint can be a monster. It can be a tool if it is used wisely but many a time, lots of people use Powerpoint, referred hereafter as PP, without respect at all. The biggest culprits are those in the factories. Penang has many factories in the Bayan Lepas Free Trade Zone. They’re multinational companies too and none of that dingy, smelly, horrific sweatshops we hear about. These factories are bright, breezy, superduper clean and full of people.
Good Dinners Do Wonders
If I covered the warungs, the beach cafes and the odd restoran or two in my last post, this time I’m going to tell you about the fine dining we had while on Pantai Tengah and Pantai Kok. I am not much of a fusion food fan (yes, I am Malaysian at heart, give me some rice please) and too much of Western food can get tiresome after a bit but once in a while, you need some wine, some good food and great company.
Sun Sutra
Sun Sutra is part of the stylish chain of cafes and restaurants owned by Jeffrey Leong under his Sun Group Langkawi.
The interior of Sun Sutra, looking out.
Jeffrey is a hands-on owner and is among many of the non-Kedahans we met. Apparently, he had arrived on the island some 13 years ago and decided that Langkawi needed some elegant eateries. One of them is definitely Sun Sutra.
Nasi Campur and Other Langkawi Eats
I brought along my Flavours’ Good Food Guide to Langkawi because I did not know what to expect, food-wise. Yes I know. The last time I used it for Petaling Street, I wasn’t very impressed. The recommendations did not live up to my expectations but then again, I am consoled by the fact that ALL Penangites consider themselves little food experts. Only Penang food is good enough for us food critics. One good indicator of good food in Penang is this: is the place still around after 1 year? If it closes shop within a year, everyone knows why. The food was below par!
Anyway, here are some of the places our friends took us to when we were in Langkawi two weeks ago (This is just Part 1…. Part 2 is coming up).
From One Island to Another
I had come home from Langkawi full of stories in my head but the recent haze and the flu I had when I came home erased most of what I wanted to say. Or maybe I had too much to say and didn’t know what to put down first.
I'm Here, I'm Here
Long silence huh? Doesn’t seem like me right?
Well, I was away for a week’s break in Langkawi. Yes, beautiful aquamarine sea, long road stretches without another car in sight (oooh, heavenly driving!) and the occassional water buffalo grazing…
Are You Ready for Heritage Heboh?
Nic and I toddled along for last Saturday’s sneak preview of Heritage Heboh at ABN-Amro. I didn’t know what to expect. After all, I had said yes to Vern because I was curious about this Heritage Heboh event. And Vern was very excited, from the way she wrote about it. (Actually dear Vern is part of this major event, which is one of the many cultural events and performances held in conjunction with the Malaysian Citrawarna celebrations).
With Love, From Japan
The story was simple. It was about family, love, and a young girl’s memory of growing up as a 14 year old in a typical Japanese suburb where she says “nothing ever happens”. Boredom probably causes some people to murder others and bury them in concrete, she surmises.
Sugina is fresh-faced and adorable (kawaii comes to mind) but she is also a typical teenager. Living with her mother and stepfather in a pretty and orderly Japanese middle-class community, she notes that her life is quite mundane.
When You Just Crave Cake…
Although I enjoy cooking, I don’t particularly enjoy baking. That’s why I used to weasel my way out of making cookies as a child. Maybe I don’t have patience. I don’t enjoy waiting for batches of cookies to bake, or waiting for them to cool, before I could consider it all done and over with.
And I don’t really like cookies or biscuits either.
But cakes.
Now cakes are heavenly, in my book, and I love my Aunt’s Philadephia cheesecakes. (She does everything by hand, even creaming the cheese.) She does not make them very often now as everyone in the family is either on a perpetual diet (hence, no fattening cheese, please) or have become health freaks (cheese = cholesterol = clogs up your arteries). These people are the sort to eat chicken without skin. Now tell me, what sort of enjoyment is THAT?
I’m very partial to cakes. Banana cake, cheesecake, Indonesian layer cake, butter cake, I am game. Cake-making is simpler than biscuit-making too. You just need to whip everything into a tasty batter, plop batter into pan and bake it in the oven. In less than an hour, the aroma of baking cake will seduce your senses. And it goes well with tea and coffee.
A Sunday ago, I made a steamed cake using a cake premix. I know, I know, the purists out there will shake their heads. It’s not right to use cake premix. It’s a short cut only lazy people succumb to. As I said before, I am not much of a baker. I don’t know my flours, I don’t know my butters but I do know I want to eat cake!
Speaking From the Heart
Blogging is something that I have been doing for the past three years. It gives me much satisfaction to write. It keeps me sane particularly when business goes a bit nutty (nutty meaning when I have to deal with people who just keep demanding more and more although there’s only one of me!)
Today, I shared my insights about blogging in a 35-minute talk at KDU Penang in conjunction with their Literary Day. It was refreshing to talk about something close to my heart because I feel that blogging is a great way to write, an immensely fun method to practise writing, to make friends online, to participate in other people’s blogs and to receive instant feedback on one’s writing.