SOMEWHERE TOO is Desmond Mah's first solo exhibition in NSW. The exhibition presents a series of paintings that examine the subjective nature of memory. Drawing from his Chinese heritage and the Western world he lives in, Mah examines the shifting forms of cultural identity from his memories. His paintings are a cautious balance between chaos and composure, abstract and figurative, flat and tactile, drawing and painting. His complex approach to painting is rooted in personal narratives, collective memory and mythology. His artworks illustrate his own cross-cultural world where things from the past, the present and the future co-exists together. By applying the concept of scent to his work, crushed mediums such incense are mixed with paint to provide another dimension of complexity and engagement with his work.

Desmond Mah, is a Singapore-born Chinese-Australian artist, a second generation Chinese born outside China. Having spent his childhood in post-British colonial Singapore and migrated to Perth during the late 1980s. Mah is motivated by a deep concern of diaspora, migration and alienation associated with his personal experiences and histories of racial discrimination in Australia. Mah invites his viewers into his memory which he referred as 'Somewhere', a place where the East and the West can co-exists.

Desmond Mah (1974) is currently based in Perth, Western Australia. Graduating from Loughborough University (UK) with a BA (Hons) in Painting and LaSalle College of the Arts, Singapore. He established his arts practice in 2016, after many years of working as a teacher and as a landscape designer. Mah has participated in various exhibitions in Perth, Sydney and Beijing, with representation in Sydney by Art Atrium.

26 Oct - 9 Nov 2019
Opening on Saturday, 26 Oct 2019, 2.30pm - 4.30pm
Opening by Dr Oliver Krischer, Deputy Director of China Studies Centre, University of Sydney, former managing editor of Art Asia Pacific magazine

Artist Conversation on Saturday, 9 Nov 2019, 2.30pm - 4.30pm

Wed - Fri 12.00pm - 5.00pm, Sat 12.00pm - 4.00pm or by appt
Director Simon Chan 0411 138 308 or info@artatrium.com.au
12 Daniel Street, Botany, NSW 2019
artatrium.com.au

See Art Atrium Catalogue
Download Somewhere Too Catalogue

Neanderthal, incense, Chinese ink oil & acrylic on mdf (panels of 2), (H) 90cm x (W) 120cm x (D) 3.5cm, 2019