Zakaria Ali’s Principle as a Method of Analysis in Uncovering the Elements of Malaysian Culture, Based on Chuah Thean Teng Batik Painting

Abstract

Art appreciation is a process of observation to perceive, understand, enjoy, and interpret the values (meanings) contained in an object of art or work of art related to physical qualities (forms) that cultivate the urge to observe, appreciate, evaluate, as well as to delight. Art criticism and visual analysis were taught in school for students to understand the concept of art appreciation. The purpose of this paper is to assess Malay cultural elements in the context of Malaysian visual art as manifested by Chuah Thean Teng in a dissemination of his cultural ideas based on a theory posited by Zakaria Ali. The Theory of Malay Aesthetics is the concept of beauty in art based on Malay ideology in the context of visual arts. Zakaria Ali is one of the scholars that came out with the novel concept of Malay Aesthetic. Aesthetics is a part of philosophy that deals with the analysis of concepts and the resolution of issues that occur while interpreting an aesthetic object. Aesthetics also refers to the knowledge gained from analysing a work of art. The Malays‟ artistic objects often emphasise beauty that focuses on materials and techniques. Hence, to decipher the content analysis in identifying the Malays‟ cultural elements on the chosen artwork samples, an observational method was carried out for this paper. The artwork entitled “Breast Feeding” was made to immortalise the 10th anniversary of the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA) in helping to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding.