~Arts for Grabs March 2013~ "Do You Hear The People Sing?"

A bit of background for those who have just tuned in: Arts for Grabs is an independently-organized arts market, where budding local artists can showcase their arts, do a bit of networking, and maybe even make a buck or two over the weekend.

View of the Annexe Gallery from the top-floor loft ...

I've been to Arts for Grabs before, and while my previous experience with the event was like a charming weekend stroll through crafts markets like Convent Garden or St Kilda Esplanade ... last weekend, for some reason, felt like a post-French Revolutionary Bohemian meet, with politically-charged passions running high, and the stark, smoky smell of art-in-progress in the air. O__O <-- as you can see, I've been very strongly influenced by the art-vibe. Just being there felt like I was being part of some underground anti-government movement -- maybe it's because elections are so near?



There were so many interesting stalls, not selling goods, but selling ideas. I'm so amazed by what our local arts scene has to offer.

Take, for instance, this intriguing stall below:
Set up by Datin Marion of the Five Arts Centre, she was selling -- not crafts or t-shirts or homemade soaps like the other stalls -- but conversations. I found the idea so intriguing I just had to sit down for a session with her. I found out quickly that 1-minute-for-RM 1 was too short a time for a quality conversation ... and that quality face-to-face conversations are a rare thing these days~ :\

We talked a bit about Yasmin Ahmad films (after randomly flipping through her stack of topic-cards, and picking the first thing that appealed to me),  and everything moved on as the flow of conversations usually do. We were joined a bit later by Nadzrin and his colleague, and then later Kids. And a few minutes-for-Ringgits later, the little chicken-shaped kitchen timer on the table told us our time was up and we moved on ...

The next stall I thought was so different from the others was just a table, the artist, and a poster that reads as such:

"THE SOIL IS NOT MINE 

 Trade anything in exchange for a work from the artist! A specially mixed packet comprising soil from Malay Reservation Lands, soil from the artist's home, a torn copy of the artist's birth certificate and the artist's sperm. Limited to 50 packets.

Trade anything indeed, but with one condition. It must be an object with high "Bumiputera value" - however you wish to define, imagine or narrate it - as long as it convinces the artist."

I didn't really go for it -- the idea of handling some stranger's sperm-sample, even if it was mixed with soil, was a bit too 'out there' for me -- I really liked the idea of barter-trading something of value (or something of non-value?), in your own terms, for something that may or may not belong to the artist. As I said, it wasn't so much for the physical exchange itself, but more of conveying a statement, an idea, a message.

After a steep stair-climb to the upper storey, I met a group of volunteers who visit orphanages to teach life-skills to less-privileged kids.

Downstairs, a man was selling DIY kits to make fake cardboard diamond rings -- a not-so-subtle jab at Rosmah's notorious USD 24 million diamond ring scandal awhile back ...

Missing USD 24 million diamond ring? No problem~ Just make your own DIY cardboard replacement for only RM 24! Blatant squandering of rakyat's money not included. :)

There were the usual craft stalls and photography booths -- one that stood out featured a custom-made wetplate film camera on display, which cost over RM 12,000 to commission. It stood just beside f64, a local black-and-white film photography enthusiast group. :)

Awesomely cool custom-made wetplate camera ... /envies

Somewhere in the adjacent hall was a club of cycling enthusiasts, promoting a healthier lifestyle and less traffic congestion by selling cycling maps around KL; right next to a group advocating recycling trash and used materials.

Cute quad-lingual signs ...

Items made out of recycled goods ...

There were booths selling independent writers' books in both BM and English, witty posters, and cute postcards. I couldn't resist buying this one:

"Mid-twenties Breakdown:
A period of mental collapse occurring in one's twenties, often
caused by inability to function outside of school or structured
environments coupled with a realization of one's essential aloneness
in the world. Often marks induction into the ritual of pharmaceutical
usage."
-- Douglas Coupland, Generation X

It's so witty, so hilarious and so nicely-written~ (And somewhat relatable orz ...) Wish there was more stuff like this out there~!

Definitely no regrets heading to this Arts for Grabs -- I feel like I've learnt a few things, which always means a productive weekend. ^^

And later that day ...

That evening, I went to Alia's house with the rest of our Astro Scholarly for a much-postponed, much-anticipated dinner (supposedly to 'celebrate' our "Astroversary", the date Zhian and I joined Astro) -- with delicious Mexican food, yays! :D

Chicken fajitas for dinner and fruit tart for dessert, yums~ I can never say no to guacamole and cheese and sour cream! *Q*

The night ended with a hilarious game of Taboo ... and like after all Taboo matches, our vocabulary expanded, and I'll never look at the words "dolphin" and "package" the same way again ...

All in all, a very intellectually-stimulating day, which is always a good thing. :)