The official opening of Belang was last Sunday at the Penang State gallery.
It’s the first time I’ve been invited to exhibit there, and it is an honour to be part of the movement to create awareness for our critically endangered Malayan tiger, which makes it even more meaningful for me.
We didn’t have much time to come up with an artwork for this show as the green light came quite close to exhibition date. I had a full week to come up with the concept, finish the artwork and get it delivered to Penang from Kuala Lumpur. It was a challenge indeed. My mindset was to make the tigers proud and to help them in every way possible.
Selling the painting and raising funds is not enough for me. I really want my artwork and all the other artists work to make an impact, otherwise what is the point of the exhibition. A lot of hard work and sweat has been invested in putting this exhibition and campaign together.
The question is how to stop the killing and how to stop the habitat destruction. It is always easy to take a back seat or to play the blame game. It is more challenging and more effective to come up with solutions that are effective. Admittedly I do not have the answers but I definitely do want to start this important conversation.
What do you think, what are your ideas and what can you do to help save the Malayan Tigers, and for that matter all wildlife and nature?
Society 6 store
May 5, 2020 at 17:02
O that’s a shame
May 3, 2020 at 13:16
Hii , i am not able to follow your fb page ma’am..
March 16, 2020 at 06:31
Thanx Uncle Rave, you are right, old palm is one of the problems but if its not oil palm it’s some other crop, at the end of the day its not the produce, its human greed.
March 15, 2020 at 21:54
Congrats, Kiddo! We need to boycott all the companies that use so much palm oil, or make them buy only from responsible and sustainable farmers. Loss of habitat is their #1 enemy. — YUR
March 13, 2020 at 17:17
Well, well, a direct ” chat”. How nice. Though by my calculations it should be around midnight over there. Are you in one of your insomnia bouts? Sending good sleep vibes to you: 😴😴😴Bonne nuit Tiffany.
March 13, 2020 at 17:07
Hope so
March 13, 2020 at 17:04
Sad. But as Americans say: It’s not over until it’s over.
March 13, 2020 at 09:49
Tiger territory is fragmented and losing its habitat in a phenomenal rate and poaching does not help
March 13, 2020 at 09:47
Thanx Andy 🌹
March 11, 2020 at 23:25
Yes, it is difficult. If a solution can’t be reached so that rural people make money with the tigers, maybe the only solution is to carve out a huge National park somewhere in Malaysia and bring all the tigers there? (How wide is a tiger’s territory?)
March 11, 2020 at 16:23
Congrats Tiff 🙏😊
March 11, 2020 at 04:58
There are less than 200 Malayan tigers left and they are living in fragmented forests which means most of them will not even see each other. Mating could become a problem. Good suggestion for how to spend the money. Poachers are one of the biggest problems.
March 11, 2020 at 04:55
Interesting ideas to think about. Definitely money is important and that’s what we are trying to do but then it’s choosing what to do with the money. Less than 200 tigers left, time is not on our side.
March 11, 2020 at 04:51
It was a huge relief and I knew I would get it done I just wasn’t sure how until the very last moment. I guess having faith and self belief helps 🌹
March 10, 2020 at 21:07
I’m not sure how many Malayan tigers there are, but a very high reward could be offered for the information to capture poachers, those that kill them. This could come from the wealthy and even corporations.
March 10, 2020 at 19:16
Congratulations on a well-deserved invitation.
Thoughts? When I think of the dwindling elephants of my childhood Africa, I feel a bit helpless.
A few thoughts you may carry with you? That others may build upon?
Repression (fight against poachers) has failed the world over. Which does not mean it should be stopped. On the contrary. But it’s not enough.
Education? Yes. But all the way to the “small” people who benefit from catching a pangolin.
And to the people who eat them or sell the scales for traditional medicine. (Repression at the selling point should be reinforced.
Money. That is I think the only solution, given human nature. If the people who live in rural areas, “get” more money by protecting the tigers, pangolins, rhinos, than by killing them, then maybe, maybe there is a slim chance. Turn them into “protectors”.
A final word: in the 80’s, world price fro coffee was “protected”, set at a high enough level that producers could make a decent living. Then the US blew the international coffee agreement. And prices fell. Producers started tearing down coffee plants and planting coca.
I hope this reflection helps. Go for the money. Turn it around.
Kam sia, Peng Yu for your art and your sensibility.
March 10, 2020 at 18:34
Congratulations on your receiving the invitation, and being able to complete your art and getting it delivered on time!