From left to right: Mr Azizi Latif, Gold Winner in the Established Artist Category of the 2015 UOB Painting of the Year (Malaysia) Competition; Ms Shamillia Sivathambu, Senior Vice President and Head of Strategic Communications, UOB Malaysia; and Mr Chok Yue Zan, Winner of the 2017 UOB Painting of the Year (Malaysia) Competition and the 2017 UOB-Fukuoka Asian Art Museum’s (FAAM) Artists Residency Programme at the launch of the 2019 UOB Painting of the Year (Malaysia) Competition.
The month-long UOB-FAAM Artists Residency Programme supports and promotes the development of up-and-coming artists through a series of workshops, lectures and exhibitions. Through it, UOB aims to offer artists greater exposure and interaction with different artists from around the world who attend or visit the FAAM in Fukuoka, Japan. Every year, a panel of UOB’s POY judges selects the artist-in-residence after a rigorous interview process and a detailed review of their body of work.
Ms Cheong won the 2018 UOB Painting of the Year (Malaysia) competition for her artwork titled ‘Through the Eye of the Flower’. The 38-year-old artist impressed the art experts with her technical skill and creative use of ink on canvas to depict an intricate collage of symbols inspired by nature to tell a story of hope and rejuvenation.
“Winning the UOB Painting of the Year (Malaysia) award last year gave me a great sense of accomplishment. As a local artist, it is truly an honour to be selected for the UOB-FAAM Residency Programme. I am looking forward to spending the month collaborating and learning from renowned and international artists, as well as experiencing a new culture and sharing my work with a wider audience,” Ms Cheong said.
Ms Cheong Kiet Cheng, winner of the 2018 UOB Painting of the Year (Malaysia) Competition and 2018 UOB-Fukuoka Asian Art Museum’s (FAAM) Artists Residency Programme completing an artwork during her residency programme at the FAAM, Japan.
The FAAM is the only museum in the world that collects and exhibits Asian modern and contemporary art and has a permanent collection of more than 2,900 artworks. Since the UOB Painting of the Year Competition began in Malaysia in 2011, four other local winners have gone on to complete the residency programme at the FAAM.
Mr Wong Kim Choong, Chief Executive Officer, UOB Malaysia, said, “We are proud that yet another Malaysian artist has been chosen for the prestigious UOB-FAAM Artists Residency Programme. This is the third year running and the fifth time that a Malaysian artist has been selected for the residency programme. Ms Cheong’s residency is testament to the abundant artistic talent we have here in Malaysia and how the UOB Painting of the Year Competition is nurturing the next generation of great Southeast Asian artists.”
Call for entries to the 2019 UOB Painting of the Year (Malaysia) competition
The 2019 UOB Painting of the Year (Malaysia) Competition is now open for entry. Artists, aspiring and established, are invited to submit their entries by filling in the entry forms, providing a physical or digital photo of their artwork and sending in their entries via email or post. Entry forms are available online at www.uobpoy.com and across UOB Malaysia branches nation-wide from 7 June 2019. Submission closes on 22 August, 2019 at 5.00 pm.
The winner of the 2019 UOB Painting of the Year (Malaysia) award, to be announced at a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur in October, will walk away with RM100,000 and go on to compete for the 2019 UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year award in Singapore in November.
The 2019 UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year award winner will receive an additional US$10,000 and the chance to attend the one-month residency programme at the FAAM.
For more details of the competition, please visit www.uobpoy.com.