A day of art and artists, in the 14-acre tropical greenery of Rimbun Dahan, 45 minutes from Kuala Lumpur.
On Sunday 27 April 2025, Rimbun Dahan will be open to the public, sharing new art works by our current resident artists: visual artists M. Sahzy (Kuching, M’sia), Tan Choon Ting (Johor Bahru, M’sia), and Pare Patcharapa (Thailand), with author Nuril Basri (Indonesia) and composer Izuan Shah (KL, M’sia).
Guest artist Cheryl Hoffmann (Canada) will also be joining us.
Free entry. Registration required for garden tour only (see below).
Schedule
9:00am-11:00am: Guided garden tour of our 14-acre native Southeast Asian arboretum and garden at Rimbun Dahan by Angela Hijjas. [UPDATE: GARDEN TOUR IS FULL, AND REGISTRATIONS ARE CLOSED. Please feel free to drop in, no registration required, for other Open Day events from 11am to 6pm.]
11:00am-1:30pm: Artists’ studios open to the public. Please visit and have a chat with the artist!
1:30-2:30pm: Lunch break; studios closed. You are welcome to bring your own picnic to enjoy in the garden; please take your rubbish with you.
2:30-6:00pm: Artists’ studios open to the public. Please visit and have a chat with the artist!
2:30-4:30pm: Workshop “Singing Niskala: Songwriting The Unseen” by Izuan Shah (Bumi Liar). Slots are very limited, and registrations are required. See more info and register here: https://forms.gle/9SweNke6BZZcxQRF8
4:45-6:00pm: Reading and discussion by author Nuril Basri.
Travelling Directions
Use Waze to drive to Rimbun Dahan: https://waze.com/ul/hw284q6meb
Use Google Maps to drive to Rimbun Dahan: https://maps.app.goo.gl/ft5fV9YpGsvciCtU8
Landmarks: Our front gate is opposite Warung Selera Ria and also next to the start of Lorong Belimbing. Do not enter Lorong Belimbing, please enter the front gate from the main road.
Tips for Visitors
- We have parking inside the compound, along the driveway. Just drive in the front gate and park as indicated along the drive.
- Bring your own mosquito repellent!
- We are sorry, Rimbun Dahan is not a fully wheelchair accessible venue. Wheelchair access is possible to the artists studios and some of the outdoor areas, but not to the underground gallery or the heritage houses.
- Wear practical shoes if you are planning to walk around the garden.
- Bring an umbrella in case of rain.
- No refreshments or water provided. Feel free to bring your own picnic, and enjoy it in the gardens; please clean up all your trash.
- No pets, no swimming — thank you for your cooperation.
If you have any questions, please email arts@rimbundahan.org or WhatsApp Bilqis at +6017-3103769.
About the Resident Artists
M. Sahzy, a Malaysian sculpture artist based in Kuching, Sarawak, was in residence at Rimbun Dahan for one month in March 2025. Born in 1996, Sahzy draws inspiration from the jungle, crafting surreal sculptures from organic materials. Sahzy infuses his sculptures with personal narratives and experiences, incorporating discarded man-made objects to enrich the storytelling aspect of his creations. Through his artworks, Sahzy invites people to think about change, strength, and the cycles of life.
Pare Patcharapa Inchang from Thailand has been in residence at Rimbun Dahan for one month in April 2025. Born in 1984, Pare began painting in her mid-thirties. Her painting work primarily focuses on themes of emotions through poetics, memories within individuals or communities, and the interaction of social issues and political conditions, reflecting personal experiences. Pare holds a BA from King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology Ladkrabang, and her works have been exhibited across Thailand. This Sunday at Open Day, Pare will present her painting works and experimental music recordings as ‘Whisper from the Ground : Soundscape Between Soil and Sun’. The works explore the passage of time, through stories of life and labour, in the space between the creator and the sun.
Izuan Shah (Bumi Liar) is a Malaysian songwriter/composer and multi-instrumental musician. His music repertoire stretches back 20 years with his art band Auburn, his pop duo Emmett I, and various other featured appearances. He trained at the Australia Institute of Music in Sydney, majoring in composition. In 2013, he won Best Digital Music Video category at the Malaysian Digital Film Awards for his music video for Auburn’s song “Youth”. In 2019, his rock song for Emmett I, “Mogok”, featured in blockbuster film Polis Evo 2. A writer at heart, his lifelong journaling and lyrical practice has crystallized as one with his musical output, striding further into poeticism. During his residency, Izuan is pursuing a solo album highlighting previously suppressed traditional rhythms while remaining true to the spirit of his work: truth, resistance, rebellion and amplified dissonance.
Tan Choon Ting, a Malaysian painter from Johor Bahru, will present new works on nightscapes, portraits, plants, and passive imagination, from his 3-month residency at Rimbun Dahan. Tan Choon Ting was born in Johor Bahru, Malaysia in 1992. He graduated from the Fine Arts Department of National Changhua Normal University in Taiwan in 2019. In recent years, he has been focusing on painting as his main creation. In his creation, he is interested in accident, expressiveness of painting and microcosm.
Nuril Basri is an Indonesian writer whose work blends tragicomedy, autofiction, bildungsroman, and offbeat storytelling. His novels have been translated into English, Malay, and French. In 2023, his novel Le Rat d’égout won the Grand Prix du Roman Gay Traduit in France. He has been supported by institutions such as the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris, the National Centre for Writing in Norwich, the Literarisches Colloquium Berlin, and others. He is currently working on his 10th novel, an exploration of identity, power dynamics, pain, queerness, and the working class.
Cheryl Hoffmann is originally from Canada. She landed in Kuala Lumpur in 2005 and stayed for 15 years. Cheryl has photographed traditional performing arts, religious festivals and rituals with a focus on exploring the interwoven belief systems of Southeast Asia. Cheryl’s ongoing project The Liquid Land, with photographer Mark Morris, explores the immensity of tin mining in Malaysia. During her week at Rimbun Dahan, Cheryl as been exploring different ways of printing images of tin talismans, using cyanotypes, anthotypes and transfers.
More info about the participating artists coming soon…
About Rimbun Dahan
Rimbun Dahan is the home of Malaysian architect Hijjas Kasturi and his wife Angela. Set on fourteen acres outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the compound of Rimbun Dahan is a centre for developing traditional and contemporary art forms. It features buildings designed by Hijjas Kasturi, as well as two early 20th century traditional Malay houses from Perak and Penang, in an indigenous Southeast Asian garden environment which has recently been awarded arboretum status. Rimbun Dahan is private property, and is only open to the public on Open Days.