Andy Yang Pride & Joy

Born in 1973 in Malaysia, contemporary abstract visual artist Andy Yang received his practical and theoretical fine art education as foundation studies to his Diploma in Graphic Design from the renowned Malaysian Institute of Art in Kuala Lumpur.

With a successful career as an illustrator which included creating the designs for the Singapore Pavilion at the 52nd La Biennale di Venezia in 2007, Andy’s deep passion for art became rekindled, after which he began participating in numerous group and solo exhibitions.

Deeply inspired by the genre of abstract art that not only afforded him options in exploring colours and forms, Andy was also seduced by the flamboyancy and immense power that only the bold expression of vivid colours can bring.

The artist also considers the genre of abstract art to be well suited as a visual response for his longstanding passion for music. The exploration into the myriads of possibilities between visual art and music led him to the creation of works under musical stimuli and also in collaboration with, amongst others, local indie band The Observatory. In Anitya 1 (2011) the artist exposed the process of his art making in full cycle, from creation to destruction, and provides the compelling visual focal point to the music played live by The Observatory, at the Earl Lu Gallery of the Institute of Contemporary Art Singapore.

An additional characteristic which elevates Andy’s paintings and his progressing artistic research is the way in which the mediums are manipulated and explored to maximize the effect which he desires. By using air to control the distribution of colours on each canvas, Andy aims to harmoniously combine the antithetical terms of control and chaos.

Pictured: Pride & Joy, 2016. Acrylic on paper. 80.5 cm x 115cm. Collection of the artist.