The artist simply steps out of his home in Kampung Pulau Kempas in Banting and walks into a nearby forest. He looks around him, takes pictures, finds a comfy spot and begins sketching – sometimes for thirty minutes, other times for three hours, depending on the complexity of the subject he’s tackling.
“It’s a great place for me to disconnect from the internet and be connected with nature,” he told FMT Lifestyle.
Shaq, 39, belongs to the Temuan tribe in Banting. And naturally, the focus of much of his art falls on the indigenous peoples of Peninsular Malaysia as they are poorly represented in the various arenas of national life. He has long regarded it as his responsibility to speak for them through his art.
Shaq said he is an “artist-activist” who champions indigenous rights and raises concern over environmental degradation. Many of his paintings deal with issues such as the struggle for land rights and the effects of climate change.
A painting he is particularly proud of is one he completed in 2013. Titled “Confession of Palm Oil”, it depicts a tribesman standing before a field of palm saplings. He said the painting is a representation of deforestation.
“I like to use art instead of just words to make my presentations relatable and interesting,” he said. “Art is a powerful tool in storytelling.”
Some of his works are done on pandanus woven mats instead of canvas. The idea is to preserve orang asli culture. He has also held solo exhibitions to spread public awareness on issues affecting the Orang Asli.
He has presented papers on these issues at many international conferences, the most recent of these being the 28th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Dubai last year.
Speaking about how he became an artist, Shaq said he was about five years old when his brother, part-time artist Ramlan Koyok, taught him how to draw.
“He used to bring his art equipment back from school and draw in front of me. He’d see me watching and one day he asked whether I’d like to draw too. So, he taught me. Over time. my interest became an obsession.”
Shaq went to college to study fine arts, but he said he found it hard to gain recognition for his works in the first few years after graduation.
However, he persevered and made a name for himself eventually. He held his first solo exhibition in Melbourne about 12 years ago.
“Nowadays,” he said, “I don’t simply accept solo exhibition invitations anymore because I want to work at my own pace and produce works that I’ll be proud of before showing them to people.”
He said he was glad now to return to his roots after spending the past nine years in Kuala Lumpur.
Sitting in the recently built culture centre in his village, he said it was the result of a collaboration between his community and the Global Environment Centre. He designed all the decorations adorning the centre and is the proud artist behind the large mural on its exterior wall. It’s a painting of his niece.
“This culture centre is my dream,” he said. “It’s a place for the younger generation to learn more about Temuan culture. It’s where we can teach and showcase our culture to outsiders.”
Over the next two years, Shaq plans to conduct art workshops at various Orang Asli villages on the peninsula.
“I hope the younger generation will show more interest in our culture and be proud of it,” he said.
Follow Shaq Koyok on Facebook and Instagram. Head to his blog here.