ANN/THE STAR – We can see the constant news regarding the impact of climate change and environmental degradation on various parts of the world including wildfires and floods affecting communities, wildlife species and habitats.
The recent poor air quality due to haze to the scorching El Nino heatwave in May and June also impact us. Experts warn the extreme weather events are only going to worsen over time.
In recent days, air quality has hit unhealthy levels in several parts of Malaysia, due to forest fires in Indonesia.
Feeling the heat to call for urgent action, Malaysian artists have been increasingly using their creative works to sound the alarm, and this year has seen several festival initiatives, exhibitions and theatre shows using art to address themes surrounding climate change, nature and sustainability.
In the local arts scene, there is a lot more work to be done to draw attention to such urgent issues, and many in the arts community are finding new ways to engage the public and respond to the climate crisis.
CLEARING THE AIR
It might have been a case of a climate change exhibition that was held too early.
In May this year, Greenpeace Malaysia, Studio Birthplace and Splash & Burn jointly organised the Haze: Coming Soon activist art exhibition to urge the government to enact the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act to hold polluters accountable.
The exhibition, which attracted more than 6,000 visitors to the REXKL arts venue over 10 days, included works from artists such as Ernest Zacharevic, Cloakwork, Pangrok Sulap, Kai Yi Wong, Fahmi Reza, Bibichun, Trexus and Trina Teoh.
“It’s easy to shrug off the idea of climate change when it’s not tangible. It’s clearly present and affecting the world around us at an alarming rate, but people still find it hard to believe or even reject it altogether,” said Studio Birthplace creative campaign producer Alea Rahim.
If the Haze: Coming Soon exhibition opened this month, especially as the haze continues to shroud the country (with more areas recording unhealthy Air Pollutant Index (API) readings), more people might start to pay attention to how art reflects everyday reality.
The haze is not an abstract concept, but there are challenges to get climate change messages across through the arts.
“Bringing this topic to life, whether it’s through film or art, personalises the message and makes it real. And once that shift in perspective takes place, that’s when important conversations start to happen, resulting in – what we hope can be – action,” said Alea.
At the exhibition at REXKL, visitors could walk through an immersive, misty “Haze Corridor”, displaying the severity and effects of haze from 1991 until 2019, a stark reminder of living through recurring haze episodes for over three decades. Multiple artworks – including large murals, striking posters, paintings and poetry – were displayed in the main exhibition space. Attendees also had the chance to interact with polls and browse informational displays explaining the story of haze and inviting them to take real action to join the movement.
Months after the Haze: Coming Soon exhibition, the masses can still catch elements of the showcase online.
Premiering at the exhibition was the online Haze-zilla, a satirical short film by Studio Birthplace.
“We aren’t here to preach. We are here to share art and communicate our concerns for the pain our world is going through via paintings, film and images,” said Abhilash Chandra, the short film’s director.
Haze-zilla is a satirical take that highlights the destructive impact of corporate greed on the environment. The film brings to attention to the urgent need for legal measures to ensure that Malaysian companies will not contribute to haze locally and abroad.
“The most important aspect of the exhibition and campaign was how different facets of society were coming together to share this experience and communicate what it meant to them and this awareness allowed a moment in time which could perhaps shape further discussions for change,” he added.
The film, which you can watch on YouTube, has reached over 182,000 views since its release in May.
At a discussion during the Haze: Coming Soon exhibition, a panel also addressed the importance of keeping conversations about air pollution alive throughout the year, even when skies overhead are clear.
“There are more efforts by companies to stop the conversation surrounding haze, than them actually contributing to the fight for clean air,” said Zacharevic, who raised the point on how quickly the topic of haze is dropped from the media agenda.
SONGS OF SEAGRASS
Award-winning contemporary gamelan group Rhythm in Bronze took audiences on a journey to learn about Malaysia’s endangered seagrass meadows in Seruan Setu – The Secret Gardens Of The Sea.
The show’s run at KLPac in August melded the artistry of music, dance and film together with informative snippets given by actual scientists live on stage to provide the audience an overview of the topic.
Another interesting aspect about the show was that the team behind Seruan Setu hosted a public roundtable after the show’s run, comprising panel discussions that shed light on the challenges facing the fragile seagrass ecosystem and highlighted the potential in combining performing arts and marine conservation.
Jillian Ooi, Rhythm in Bronze artistic/music director, who is also a marine ecologist and senior lecturer at Universiti Malaya, said that combining science and the performing arts is potentially one effective way of making people sit up and listen.
“By fusing music, theatre and science, we hope to educate audiences about the complex role seagrasses play in supporting the health of the planet, and to inspire them to become involved in efforts to protect and conserve these precious ecosystems,” she shares.
When asked for her opinion on the level of awareness among Malaysians on climate change and environmental issues, Ooi replies that she has observed its gradual increase over the years.
“However, this is only the tip of the iceberg and there is still a considerable amount of work ahead. The real challenge is to make these far-reaching, global concerns intimate and relevant on a local, personal level.
“This is where our mission comes in. The story of Seruan Setu is not just about seagrass, it is also about the well-being and food security of coastal communities in Malaysia who depend directly on seagrass for their daily sustenance,” said Ooi.
RETURNING TO OUR RIVERS
The community-driven Klang River Festival (KRF), which held its second edition last month, was founded with the aim to bring people closer to the Klang River.
“Historically, rivers were a major form of transportation, used to connect communities to one another. But the way Kuala Lumpur has been developed over the years, residents who live and work around the river now tend to turn their backs to it.
“The perception held by many Malaysians is that urban rivers are dirty and stinky – an eyesore. But rehabilitation efforts are improving our rivers,” said creative director of KRF and president of arts venue KongsiKL Joseph Foo. – Hanis Maketab
