Paper-cutting works themed “Dynamic Silence” and “Undone/ unfinished” by Macau-based artists Leong Fei In and Oscar Munoz Balajadia Jr (commonly known as Papa Osumbal) respectively are on display in an exhibition entitled “Hide And Seek” at the Creative Macau gallery until next Saturday, October 29.
The Creative Macau gallery is located on the ground floor of the Macau Cultural Centre (CCM) in Nape.
According to a recent statement by Creative Macau, paper cutting has a history of hundreds of years, in which people use scissors to cut out images on a piece of paper to depict their stories, legends, fables and myths from different eras. The statement noted that in some countries or regions, paper cutting is regarded as one of the highest cultural artform activities carried out exquisitely by those with special “scissor skills”.
Leong Fei In said in the statement that there are three key elements in “Dynamic Silence” – mapping the surface of the paper by marking grids, destroying the paper while creating it by cutting, and altering a sheet from a surface into a space object by making a fold. She also said that the creation of the lattice series was inspired by people’s psychological and emotional restlessness, aiming to achieve the effect of recovery and healing through repetitive labour.
Leong is a visual artist who graduated in 2016 from the Camberwell College of Arts and the University of the Arts London with master’s degrees in Visual Arts specialising in Book Arts, the statement said, adding that her works cover printmaking, book works, paper sculpture and installations.
Meanwhile, “Undone/ Unfinished” by Papa Osmubal, which was put together from the artist’s existing pieces slowly done over three years, is a collection of historical figures, famous and infamous, popular and unpopular, holy and notorious, peaceful and brutal, the statement noted.
According to the statement, Papa Osmubal, a Filipino poet-artist residing in Macau, is also engaged in occidental calligraphy, doing both modern and classical scripts. The statement said that one of Papa Osmubal’s works, “Capampangan Roots”, won the Philippine National Book Award in 2017.
The gallery opens from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday to Saturday, except on public holidays, with free admission.
The statement stressed that according to the Health Bureau’s (SSM) pandemic prevention measures, visitors must wear a facemask, undergo a temperature check and present a valid green Macau Health Code.
Photos: Yuki Lei
