For artist Raduan Man, it took a whooping 20 years to complete his masterpiece, Kayangan.
Consisting of eight canvases combined together, Raduan actually started work on this piece before the new millennium even began and only recently put the brush down.
To strangers, spending two decades working on a single art piece seems to be an incredible endeavour, and Raduan admits that it is.
But given his story and creative soul, one can hardly fault him for dedicating his life to the world of art. The Pahang-born artist explained that his forays into art began by scribbling on school property.
“When they caught me, my teachers would ask, ‘Did you draw this?’ And I would go, ‘No, no, it wasn’t me,” Raduan recalled with a laugh.
These adolescent misdemeanours proved to be a sign of Raduan’s artistic aspirations and despite his humble beginnings, he worked hard to realise his dreams.
“It was complicated. I didn’t know what I wanted to do so I just went with the flow. As an artist, I can find myself and finally be free,” he said about his decision to dedicate his life to art.
As a self-employed artist, Raduan has the freedom to choose his projects and set timelines, which differs from gruelling nine-to-five office jobs.
“It’s not easy to be an artist in Malaysia. The only way to succeed here is through hard work and some luck,” said Raduan, who has to balance between spending money on his craft and on daily necessities.
To Raduan, an artist must first satisfy themselves before they share their artworks with society.
“As a full-time artist, I work on my pieces when I feel happy, otherwise I can’t work at all,” said Raduan.
According to Raduan, interpreting artwork is highly subjective and the idea of good or bad art is inherently flawed due to it being self-representative in nature.
His earlier works were largely based on realism, but lately, Raduan has been exploring abstract art which he finds to be liberating.
“I can use a pen to draw a chicken or a human figure. But in abstract art, you don’t know what to draw. Instead, I have to play around with my mind and my soul. Then, suddenly, it clicks.”
The amount of time it takes to complete a single artwork varies greatly, with the minimum time needed being a day or two.
And of course, there’s the occasional masterpiece like Kayangan that took a massive 20 years to complete.
The Kayangan series are based on the folk tales that he grew up with, with each piece paying homage to specific folktales.
The themes are subtly concealed and it takes patience to unearth Raduan’s intended messages and concepts.
“There’s no proper art education. We have to educate people to love and appreciate art. That’s the problem here in Malaysia,” he lamented, pointing out how Malaysians do not appreciate the subtle nuances of art.
He also noted how art is not on the government’s priority list, which forces artists to fend for themselves, though he also believes things have improved in recent times.
Raduan pointed out that in certain countries, artists and their works are taken seriously in the public sphere, with government patronage of the arts benefiting society as a whole.
He also noted that Malaysian parents should be supportive of their children if they choose the life of an artist after leaving school.
“The truth is people fail to realise that art is more than just paintings on canvas. The chairs that we sit on, engineering plans, medical diagrams, they’re all art!”
Raduan Man’s Kayangan series is available for viewing and purchase at Artas Galeri, Kota Damansara. Call 010-900 9363 (Roy) to make an appointment or for more information.