A visual art exhibition by Seni Collective @ The Warehouse Gallery & Cafe. Admission is free. Exhibition runs from 16th August to 7 September 2012 (Opening night: Saturday, 25 August 2012). Exhibiting works by: Ali Akhbar Othman, Ashly Nandong, Cracko, Fuah Shahminan, Jon Bagul, Kin Aznam, Satria Utama, Kim Young Ha (Australia), Sam Badaruddin (Brunei) and Yuma Hyodo (Japan).

Bachelor of Graphic Design. Graduated with honours from the Utrecht School of the Arts in 2008.

previous exhibitions:
Sleep Alone Gallery: Pai, Thailand 2010 (group exhibition)
Pai Art Party: Pai, Thailand, 2011 (group exhibition as part of an art festival)
MCAT: Melaka, Malaysia, 2011 (group exhibition)
In-Fest 2011: Melaka, Malaysia (two day festival with art, music, film and photography)
At first Glance: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2012 (group exhibition)
Stories and Creatures: Melaka, Malaysia, 2012 (group exhibition)

"I work with existing images a lot. Is that right? Is it right for an artist to do that? But I change them so much and they feel like mine after I’m finished. I don't copy the images, I borrow them, as a friend once told me. I’m a reinventor; right now I’m reinventing.

Insects are considered the scum of the earth when it comes to the food chain and mother nature and all that, but when you look at them closely they’re sooooo beautiful and God knows how many types of insects there are. I love the intricacy and the grotesque beauty of these insects that everybody disregards and steps on. I have a thing for ugly beauty, if that’s the right word. Like old people, or decaying carcasses and skeletons, or sadness. I don’t have many pictures of people smiling. They’re all sad or melancholy or… yes.

The process is a mix of intuition and technique. What happens is I flip through books and magazines and if an image strikes me I’ll know straight away, ‘that’s the one’. When I did the scrub jay I knew that I wanted to do the colours like that. I did it deliberately, but mostly it’s intuitive how it comes out. I don’t need, or even want the eventual picture to look like the photo. I use it as a reference, but because there’s something striking about it I trust that it will come out right. I would still call what I’m doing ‘line-work reverie’.

I don’t just work off of images, though. I can also use a lyric from a song, or something somebody says. Also, I don’t have to give something a title, but sometimes I’ll hear it from somewhere…it will come to me and I’ll know that’s it. Like how the photos come. I like the name of the bird piece, Scrub Jay. That’s just the name of the bird.

I am also one of the core members of an art collective called In-Fest. In-Fest is the brainchild of several local and expat artists, musicians, poets and dancers. Our main goal with In-Fest is to share our passion for art and music. We wished to create a low threshold art platform, inviting everyone to participate with their creative input. In-Fest was born with the creation of a two day festival in Melaka consisting of visual art, short films, photography and music.

The festival set of a number of other art projects including installation pieces, and dance and music performances.

The KL International Photo Awards is an annual international photography competition seeking the best entries on the open theme of contemporary photography, where amateur, emerging and professional photographers can compete on a level playing field. Now in its 4th year, the 2011 KL Photo Awards received well over 1,000 entries from outstanding competitors across the globe.

The Warehouse Gallery is proud to be hosting the Awards Ceremony and Exhibition. The Awards are held in partnership with Kodak, Pacsafe and Time Out KL, and have total prize money of over US$12,000. To enter, please visit www.klphotoawards.com.

The elite Homme Magazine is one of KL’s most popular and highly regarded men’s lifestyle publications. In March 2012 The Warehouse Gallery is delighted to present the Homme VIP Exhibition (Iran), featuring a selection of top quality artworks from some of the leading artists in Iran. These pieces are both exceptionally rare and of outstanding quality, offering KL art patrons an unrivalled opportunity to view and purchase some of the world’s most valuable art treasures.

Prices start at RM10,000 to RM100,000. For an invitation to the private viewing & VIP launch party please contact us.

"Art unites, it triggers, it involves. It helps us to see and think differently. In order for us to be whole, I truly feel that art has to be part of your being. We must start trusting ourselves and listen to our inner selves and art is the perfect medium to help that."

Marini Ramlan is a graduate of the Birmingham Institute of Art and Design in Visual Communications and Fashion. With a long career in broadcast media behind her, Nini has used her experience in content creation to explore her artistic side, and has developed into one of Malaysia’s most exciting and talented new artists: using her love of fashion and colour to create delicately beautiful art and broad, vibrant images.

As well as developing and expanding her stunning portfolio of artworks, Nini’s experience has included many fascinating collaborations: including with soft furnishings company Island and Republik, painting murals for well-known KL restaurants Palate Palette and Wau Penyu, working on the new Levis GO FORTH campaign, magazine illustrations for leading brands including HerWorld and Harper’s Bazaar, and painting the new Fendi baguette bag as part of their 10th anniversary celebrations.

Her latest projects include a range of stunning smartphone case designs, as well as a collaboration with local label ThirtyFour to create a range of stunning jewelry dipped in gold.

THE WAREHOUSE is proud to present NINI RAMLAN.