Art therapy

Malaysian Business, Apr 1, 2004 by Sharmin Varghese

MALAYSIAN visual artist, Yap Sau Bin believes in revealing the `classical

debate of mind and body' through his works. Through his installations,

various questions arise: `What is identity?', `What is consciousness and

being?' and `How do you (as the viewer) feel about the pieces?'

This is his process - he starts out with `flat templates' and then goes

on to `play of mind, allegory and what the material can offer'. `This is

the design aspect of it,' he says.

Yap, 30, uses word puns especially around the titles he chooses, `For

me, titles are not just part of the artwork, they are an important process

as well.'

With his installation works exhibited in Birmingham (United Kingdom) and

Galeri Petronas, Yap `studies rectangle shapes (or boxes) that have silver

pins stuck onto them. He explains the reason for this, `Playing with these

mapping pins reminds me of acupuncture pins that you usually see stuck on

mannequins. They remind me of the human consciousness.' He explains

further, `Anthropomorphic means giving human qualities to objects. The

idea that we need healing, these works (installations) portray this.'

With `healing' comes `peace' and Yap feels that there is a need to

achieve both to experience `inner balance'. To him, acupuncture needles

protruding on a white surface means `Needles healing the object. When the

audience comes in, they sit on a sofa and meditate on the works which are

placed about 2 1/2 metres from them. The background music and the white

cubes heal the viewers. You could describe it as, "art for remedy or

therapy",' he says.

When asked why he chose white, he answers, `Being a minimalist, I feel

the need to appreciate something, the attention from the viewer is

required. Instead of the work grabbing the attention of the audience, they

have to take the initiative or be initiated into the artistic process.

This initiation is important for the audience's artistic journey'.

Yap's ideology is of a `fictional acupuncture practice, structure_mancy

(from the word geomancy which is the German name for strukturmantie). The

whole idea seems to originate from Oriental knowledge, though studied by

the Europeans who categorise what they understand of it in the museum of

Alternative Science and the Knowledge Department of Oriental Discipline.

Yap's outlook on `Eastern practices in Western setting' is a `critic of

muselogy'.

He reveals this trend of thought when he `fabricates an actual display

of archaeological set-ups, appropriating a museum context'.

Whether the space he chooses is in a gallery or non-gallery setting, his

intention is to `inspire a reaction from the viewer'. He stresses, `It is

not about one single inspiration, it's more about the idea that appeals to

you as a viewer. The exhibition is to provide a critic's visual food,

while at the same time, enjoying the beauty of it'.

Art critics in New York will be able to view Yap's conceptual

installation works in a designers worldwide group exhibition entitled Man

& God this July 11.