23 Mar 2024, Saturday
3pm: Artist’s Performance (Get tickets here: https://forever-gone-but-always-exists.peatix.com)

“All conditioned phenomena are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, and a shadow; like dew and a flash of lightning. Thus we shall perceive them as such.” — Diamond Sutra.

Suma Orientalis Fine Art is delighted to present Aiwei Foo’s first solo exhibition, titled “Forever Gone But Always Exists”. This exhibition runs from March 9 to March 31, 2024, at our gallery in Damansara Heights, Kuala Lumpur. It features 6 recent works on paper by the artist, as well as a piece of performance art.

“Forever Gone But Always Exists” is the artist’s avenue in challenging the conventional ideas of time and permanence. She explores the nuances of memory, life, and the eternal imprint that transitory things leave behind on the axis of time. By doing so, she invites the viewers to reflect on the paradox of ephemerality — what has occurred does not go unnoticed; what has perished has merely changed its form of existence.

Through the potent medium of performance art, “Forever Gone but Always Exists” allows the viewers to investigate the delicate equilibrium between the passing of time and abiding repercussions, enabling them to elicit a wide spectrum of reactions and interpretations.

Inspired by various literature materials such as the Diamond Sutra as well as her personal experience, the artist meditates on the constant cycle of constructing and destructing in her artistic career, and extends her contemplation to the search for true meaning of life as a journey.

While the physical body serves as an ephemeral vehicle, are we too obsessed with the sense of objects or are the worldly pursuits simply inevitable?

This upcoming exhibition by Aiwei Foo sets the tone for a year full of provocative creative encounters. For an exploration of the fundamental and timeless domains of artistic expressions that will stimulate conversation about the fleetingness of life and the eternal value of past experience, take the chance to immerse in Aiwei Foo’s works which resonate with your inner realm.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐀𝐢𝐰𝐞𝐢 𝐅𝐨𝐨

Born in Sarawak, Malaysia.

Aiwei Foo graduated with a Master’s Degree in Fashion and Clothing Design from Aalto University, Finland in 2013.

Before this, she earned a Diploma in Apparel Design & Merchandising at Temasek Polytechnic, Singapore (2006) and a Diploma in Fine Arts at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore (2000).

A multi-disciplinary artist and designer, she is known for her unique approach to art and performance, as well as experimental music and fashion.

Her accolades include a nomination as Artist Ambassador for Japan Art Travel by the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO) (Hokkaido, Japan, 2019), the Judge Prize at the Unknown Asia Art Exchange in Osaka and Jam Factory Bangkok, Thailand (2016), the Masakazu Takei Award at the Unknown Asia Art Exchange in Osaka and Foil Gallery in Kyoto, Japan (2016), and the First Prize at the Pierre Cardin Design Competition in Singapore (2004). Her recent exhibitions include “Kaleidoscope Japan” (Japan Foundation in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2022), “Still Life” (The Godown in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2022), and the “Open Books Project” (The Godown in Wales, UK/Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2021).