Five creatives in Penang who are working for social change
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Five creatives in Penang who are working for social change

The world of social ventures needs more art and the world of art needs more social ventures. Five Penang-based creatives show us the impacts of their respective art forms in championing positive social change.

By Agnes Chin

Superficially, creatives are merely seen as people who showcase their artistic representations and artistic representations are considered mere products of entertainment. Truth is, every creative has a story to tell, and every story represented in every work of art has the capacity to transform societies. Encouragingly, we don’t have to look far to find these transformative stories. They are right in our very own backyard if we care enough to hear their voices.

Aida Redza  

Breathing Life and Artistry into the Abandoned and Forgotten

Wondering Padi, presented at the Ansan Street Arts Festival in Korea. Photo courtesy of Aida Redza.

With an internationally acclaimed career as a dancer, choreographer and teacher, Aida Redza is prided as one of our most socially engaged creatives in the country. Her performances advocate her social causes in supporting the underserved and displaced communities, environmental wellness, and the development of youth. Her well-known outdoor performances are site-specific, expressed through emotional connections with the site environment and its people, creating a natural and immersive platform to champion her message. 

Aida founded Euphoria Penang Modern Dance Ensemble as a vehicle for nurturing young dancers with the noble aim of bringing together diverse cultures and races under one roof, providing them with opportunities to train and perform locally and abroad. Committed young adults with one to two years of basic dance background are encouraged to join the ensemble by contacting Aida directly. Workshops are conducted one to three times weekly in Paragon Mall at no cost in exchange for participants’ commitment to their training. 

While Aida enjoyed success in many past social projects—some of which highlighted awareness of our dying rivers, farmers’ survival, and the inclusivity of underprivileged mothers and children in performing arts—she hopes to one day be able to work with relevant NGOs on the theme of immigrants that expresses their lives back home and the transformation they experience in Penang. 

Follow, support, and connect with Aida Redza at:  

Kausalyaa Sugumarin  

Youth Empowering Youth

Facilitating a practice session under PPR Project: GEMPAK FLAT 100. Photo courtesy of Kausalyaa Sugumarin.

A performing arts graduate of the Temple of Fine Arts, Penang branch in 2019, Kausalyaa Sugumarin is a performing artist, photographer and videographer, who yearns to facilitate Indian classical dance among underprivileged children. Post-pandemic lockdown, she finally had the opportunity to pursue community work this year, through Arts-Ed’s community-based arts programme within the domain of PPR (People’s Housing Programme) in Penang. 

As a Community Facilitator in Project PPR-GEMPAK FLAT 100, Kausalyaa and her peers, under the guidance of mentors such as Aida Redza, made it possible for the children in her movement team (aged 8 to 12 years) with limited access to arts programmes a chance to learn and participate in arts and cultural education. 

Kausalyaa hopes to make use of her experience working with children as a Community Facilitator to advance her cause of bringing Indian classical dance to underprivileged children. She has identified a home in Pantai Jerejak that she’d like to work with sometime soon. 

Follow, support, and connect with Kausalyaa at:  

Read more: https://penangartdistrict.com/arts-ed-on-working-with-communities-and-outside-art-silos/ 

 

Andrew Han  

The Pleading Voice behind the Cries of Nature

Behind the scenes of ‘Doa Seorang Nelayan’ at Sungai Batu, Penang. Photo courtesy of Andrew Han.

Utilising his educational background in English literature studies, and experience as an educator and educational content creator, Andrew Han taught himself to produce expository and participatory documentaries upon realising the potential filmmaking has in empowering those without voice. 

As an independent filmmaker, Andrew champions environmental preservation in the recurring battle of development versus environment, specifically within the Penang landscape. His documentaries commonly address environmental and social justice issues; the exploitation involved in overdevelopment and its impacts on flora, fauna, and our societies namely coastal fishermen, and the underserved minority, particularly those who fall under the B40 bracket. A recurring theme in Andrew’s productions begs the question, “What are we willing to give up under the disguise of sustainable development?”

Andrew’s upcoming project will bring to us drone-captured visual art blended with sound design to deliver the film’s intention. He welcomes collaboration and hopes to work with local musicians in creating musical compositions for his future projects. 

Follow, support (subscribe to his YouTube channel), and connect with Andrew Han at:  

 

Dr. Mumtaz Begum  

A Beacon of Hope for Those Without

Using drama and movement for gross motor functions with children with cerebral palsy. Photo courtesy of Dr. Mumtaz Begum.

Having spent almost a decade working with children with cerebral palsy, Dr. Mumtaz Begum, a senior lecturer, researcher and trained dancer, uses dance and theatre to help marginalised communities and special needs children develop motor skills and cognitive learning while building resilience. 

Working with the Cerebral Palsy Children’s Association of Penang, where most of the children are on wheelchairs or walkers and can speak a little, she has successfully trained them to perform full-length productions. Ensuring there’s a transfer of knowledge to teachers and caregivers, it took her two years to break the children into performing arts, slowly helping them with their speech and movement through drama and music. By the third year, they were able to perform a two-to-three-minute movement piece and by the fifth year, a full forty-minute theatrical production. 

Pre-covid, Dr. Mumtaz also invested her time working with Rohingya children and most recently, with Penang Shan Children’s Home Association, teaching English through drama to children from neglected and abusive environments. 

Dr. Mumtaz is currently working towards integrating these children’s workshops and performances within her USM community where both groups can mingle and gain exposure. She’s also hoping to collaborate with Arts-Ed and Aida Redza to bring together a collaboration between the children from Shan’s home and those from PPR projects. She welcomes any artist collaborators to join her in these projects. 

Follow, support, and connect with Dr. Mumtaz at:  

 

Tan Lay Heong  

The Shadow of Reason that Reminds Us of Light

Plastic City, a contemporary shadow play on environmental awareness using upcycled items by Plasticity Theatre Troupe. Photographer: Thum Chia Chieh. Photo courtesy of Tan Lay Heong

An artist focusing primarily on installation art, painting, and shadow play, Tan Lay Heong is a fierce upcycling advocate. Through her artistic representations locally and abroad, she pushes for societal involvement in upcycling through simple artmaking in everyday lives. Her upcycling workshops in community projects and youth art programmes send the message that one is never too young to contribute to the cause and that waste materials are just waiting for an opportunity to be turned into something meaningful. 

Having co-founded Plasticity Theatre Troupe, Tan also champions social justice and human and environmental rights through contemporary shadow play performances. 

Her upcoming shadow play project involves the remaking of ‘Di Luar Bayangan’ into a twenty-to-thirty-minute full version from the previous screening of an eight-minute show. In advocacy of human rights and civic education, the show depicts the true story of death and abuse during custody, based on court transcripts and testimonies from the victim’s family; a collaboration with Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM) Penang Branch and Eliminating Death and Abuse in Custody Together (EDICT). 

Follow, support and connect with Lay Heong at:  

Read more: https://penangartdistrict.com/tan-lay-heong-uses-trash-to-get-people-thinking/ 

 

We may have only scratched the surface of integrating social ventures with artistic endeavours. But the motivation demonstrated by our local creatives, some of whose work has crossed many international borders, is social proof that this integration could redefine their storytelling to build a more inclusive world. One that replaces ignorance with proactivity, abandonment with inclusion, and marginalisation with elevation. One that gives voice to the voiceless, be it animate or inanimate.

A self-proclaimed writer cum entrepreneur with a corporate background in strategic management and operations efficiency, Agnes Chin enjoys living in her fairy-tale bubble where she envisions a world of happy endings.