A Day in the Life: Haffendi Anuar
Reimagining traditional Malaysian cloth
By Haffendi Anuar, with Sharrona Valezka
‘A Day in the Life’ is a series by A&M where we invite artists to share a day in their life through images accompanied by brief descriptions.
Haffendi Anuar.
Haffendi Anuar is a Malaysian artist whose work spans across sculpture and painting. Based in Kuala Lumpur and London, his lived experience between the countries has influenced him to explore themes of postcolonialism, architecture, ways of living, and identity construction in his practice. Haffendi’s recent body of work reimagines kain pelikat, a traditional Malaysian cloth, while examining the fabric’s origin, social use, and visual patterns.
In this ‘A Day in the Life’ feature, Haffendi shares more of his works and past exhibitions, as well as glimpses of his studio in London.
Haffendi Anuar, 'Rumah Berkaki (Legged House)’, 2022, installation view at Ikon Gallery, United Kingdom. Photo by Stuart Whipps. Image courtesy of the artist.
In 2022, I exhibited my work, ‘Rumah Berkaki (Legged House),’ at Ikon Gallery in the UK. It was a pleasure to work with Melanie Pocock, Curator and Artistic Director, Exhibitions, to present a small body of recent sculptures and mixed-media paintings in Birmingham, a town where my father studied in the 1970s.
Installation view of 'Interiors' at Richard Koh Fine Art, Singapore, 2023. Image courtesy of the artist and Richard Koh Fine Art.
Last year, I mounted a solo exhibition at Richard Koh Fine Art in Singapore. Titled ‘Interiors’, I presented a new body of textile sculptures in the exhibition.
Haffendi Anuar, 'Pengaturan (Arrangement, Master Plan)', 2021, kain pelikat, felt, hemming tape, eyelets, zinc washers, dyed canvas, oil, acrylic, spray-paint, gutter pipe, plastic rice bags, thread, wood and screws, 190 × 30 × 10 cm. Image courtesy of the artist.
In the studio, I am currently working on watercolour pieces on canvas and textile sculptures incorporating batik painting, sewing techniques, and mixed-media collages. I like the mobility of watercolours and the vividness of the pigments. They are dilutable water-based media that allow for painterly experimentations. I also enjoy using the batik technique.
Haffendi's studio in London. Image courtesy of the artist.
I moved to London from Oxford about two years ago and have been in the UK on and off for nearly nine years. Currently, I am in a long-term live-work studio set up called Acme Fire Station in East London, which is a converted fire station that houses artists.
Studio pottery collection. Image courtesy of the artist.
When I have free time and the weather is nice, I enjoy running around the nearby canal or visiting gardens such as the Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum. I have also started collecting studio pottery and spending time online looking at them, and learning about ceramic techniques and studio pottery history.
Follow Haffendi Anuar on Instagram here and visit his website to see more of his works.
Read all A Day in the Life stories here.
All images are courtesy of the artist.
About the Artist
Haffendi Anuar's current work explores the notion of construction and the built environment through the combination of painting and sculpture. His recent work reimagines structures such as hammocks, cradles and nets and he would recreate them using various found textiles in a process that incorporates collage, layering, painting, and sewing.
