Khairul Izham’s debut solo exhibition sees the promising Malaysian artist tackling polarising themes of abstraction and figuration, conscious and subconscious, intentional and accidental in a series of works inspired by the use of lines in intricate imagery. While everyday doodles may seem unrefined and uninspired, Khairul takes a sophisticated approach by adopting complex layering and conscious masking in his artmaking and allowing the lines to grow organically to form a complex composition of impressive images.
The Pahang-born Universiti Teknologi MARA graduate begins by peppering one singular and spontaneous line before letting his intuition and imagination run free in a narrative that emphasises the journey over the outcome. An old ring telephone, a guitar, numerous faces, hands, a helicopter and a duck are just some of the seemingly random pieces present among the myriad of elements in his works, but connect the dots and you might just be able to read between the lines and stumble upon the bigger picture. Wong Boon Ken