After retiring from government civil service, Pg Abd Wahab, resumes his creative work through his paintings which have garnered him a reputation in the creative community over the years. He is one of the exhibitors in Pause and Rewind 3, showcasing 11 pieces of his work, the earliest one dating back from 1975 to his most recent work this year. He is a prime example of a person with strong passion in what he loves to do. Despite being advised to take a different path to do Psychology and Philosophy in university, it does not hinder him from producing artwork from time to time.
To my understanding, abstract art is a kind of art which has no barrier or boundaries. These type of art form is known as a type of visual language in which artists create independent composition of color, shape and line from the references of visual world. These are the kind of paintings that Pg Abd Wahab are into which comprise of abstracts that represent his experiences of doing jungle activities and being surrounded by natural environment. He uses his paintings as a form of self-expression, hence producing abstracts give him more freedom to do so.
One of his paintings, titled ‘The Brunei River and Waves of Modernisation’ has a very interesting meaning. He described that it represents a peddler (padian) who sells her wares of fish and vegetables on a sampan in the Brunei River but now has a vanishing sight due to the progress and modernization and the oil and gas industry which generates the majority of the country’s wealth. As a Geography student, I understand that modernization only symbolises a process of change that indicates the adoption of the modern ways of life and values. It is an attempt on the part of society, particularly those people who are custom bound, to adopt themselves to the present time. In this case geography affects the culture in making and shaping them. Cultures exert their own influence on the landscape around them.In the case of Padian, by 1980’s, the activities had slowed down significantly. Padian can no longer be seen as they are now more comfortable selling their goods in open air markets or “Tamu” in the capital.
When asked about his opinion on the current trends of art, especially with the rise of technology and production of digital art, he agreed that they are just a different mode of transferring idea. Digital art is a new medium with new attributes. This new medium can grasp tradition and conventional art. One may figure a distinction would be that digital art is a new medium and it has not ever been utilized before. He said “if you look at a lot of art, even during the Renaissance, you can see all the time that new mediums come to existence such as where times paints were made from clays and change how art gets made”.
The artist has a firm belief that the standard of arts in the kingdom has the potential to match that of established works from around the world. The difference is just in how well the artists are able to market their works and propelling themselves into the scene. He is very thankful for the opportunity given by Creative Space through Pause and Rewind to reintroduce the artist to the general public. “In Brunei, people do not know who are the artists, we are only known by a small circle of people,” he expressed. ‘Pause & Rewind’ is an initiative by Creative Space that is in line with their mission to record, conserve and preserve Brunei’s Art-Culture heritage. The project provides resources to garner better education and appreciation for art, art management and ultimately aim to pause for reflection, remembrance and respect for our cultural heritage.