Malaysian artist uses coffee cups to warn us of consumerism

Contemporary artist Azad Daniel Haris is warning us about personal space invaders encroaching on our lives. In his current Space Invader(s) exhibition, he pays tribute to Space Invaders, the classic late 1970s arcade video game.

Of course, nothing is straightforward with Azad. He also believes modern day “invaders” are already a part of daily life.

“It’s a pun on space. Space doesn’t need to refer to the galaxy. It can be the root m around you, and how your personal space is being invaded by corporations,” he says during a recent interview at Artcube gallery in Kuala Lumpur, which is hosting the exhibition.

Azad points to gentrification as an invasive force. And he cleverly plays on this fact through his art.

In his exhibition, there are installations made from 7oz cups, the typical size used by coffee chains.

As a caffeine junky, Azad, 34, admits he often patronises Starbucks and even considered reusing the cups there – if not for the exorbitant cost and low-durability of paper cups.

Azad Daniel Haris carefully assembles the painted coffee cups which make up the 3D installation pieces of his Space Invader(s) show, which is on display at Artcube gallery in KL till Aug 31. Photos: Artcube

“Big coffee chains play as a component (in this show), though it’s not the whole description,” he explains, adding that the coffee cups and Space Invaders (aliens) were examples for consumerism.

The KL-raised artist notes that the Space Invaders video game’s pop culture impact is drawn from nostalgia, which made it commercial fodder, in the same way superhero movies and remakes of cartoons are being churned out these days.

Azad says nostalgia doesn’t quite do it for him, admitting that he hadn’t played Space Invaders before and ended up having to Google the images for reference instead. Interestingly enough, a Space Invaders arcade machine is a (working) prop at the exhibition.

Through the Space Invader(s) exhibit, Azad, a former curator/gallery owner, wants to question how Western influence in the country is affecting society and how corporations try to brainwash the masses.

Space Invader(s): III (fibre glass top, plastic cups, stainless steel rings, auto paint on board, 2016). The unique curved 3D nature of the pieces require viewers to look at it from set angles or risk obscuring the image.

“You get caught in this brand-driven world of products. You lose yourself and your own identity in the process,” he explains.

Azad points out that millions are being spent on consumer research to figure out the ideal size for a chocolate bar or the perfect amount of crunch for a potato chip. Then he gets a bit self-aware and breaks out in laughter.

“I don’t know, I’m starting to sound like a paranoid conspiracy theorist,” he says, adjusting a mock tin-foil hat.

Artistic statements aside, he reveals that the Space Invader(s) exhibit, which took two years to complete, remains a technical headache.

The eight sculptures in the exhibition uses a total of 1,133 plastic cups, with the biggest piece Space Invader(s) (120cm x 507cm) using 423 cups. However, trial and error meant more than 2,000 cups were used to perfect the final version.

The images on the sculptures, made in the 8-bit style of the era, was achieved by individually masking and spray painting the cups like polygons, topping them with plexiglass moulds and placing them on metal rings.

At certain angles, the images are immediately clear and they slowly distort as the viewer moves around the installation.

Azad’s Glitch (auto paint on acrylic board, 2016) marks a return to the superflat pop style, a favourite of the artist.

Perfect placement is a must for this show. Azad recalls the nightmare in setting up the exhibition. He considered glueing the cups into place so they wouldn’t slide out. Even now, visitors can potentially ruin the set-up by turning the cups around.

To meet the show’s curatorial direction, Azad balanced the three dimensional installations with 11 paintings made in the Japanese superflat pop art style. They are drawn in Photoshop, and Azad applied layers of auto paint to the acrylic boards. It creates an optical illusion of depth and movement, not unlike the technique used by the Space Invaders game designers back then.

The Space Invader(s) show, while originally designed for the Artcube exhibition programme, is also one of the Malaysian collections chosen to take part in Singapore Art Week next January.

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The Space Invader(s) exhibition is on at Artcube gallery, The Intermark Mall in Kuala Lumpur till Aug 31. Opening hours: 11am-8pm on weekdays, 12pm-6pm on weekends. Call 03-2181 1787 for more info. Facebook: Artcube.

Source : Star2.com