Ivan Lam

Born in 1975 in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)
Lives and works in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)

Ivan Lam graduated with a BA in Fine Art (majoring in painting) from the Maine College of Art USA in 1998 and returned to Malaysia to begin his career as a fine artist. Lam’s works span a variety of mediums and ideas inspired by popular culture, autobiography, current affairs and every day vistas. The concept of duality has been continuously present throughout his journey as an artist, with contrasts and opposites always playing a role in his works. In 2015, Wei-Ling Contemporary held a comprehensive survey documenting twenty years of the artist’s practice, entitled Ivan Lam: TWENTY. In 2013, Lam participated in Art Basel Hong Kong with the exhibition COMA – Compendium of Malaysian Art. And in 2016, Lam participated in Volta New York.

For his video for KB17, Lam references a workshop he conducted with students earlier in the year at the NJV Building, one of the principal sites of KB17. He states: “The artwork that I will be showing is the last of its many incarnations--from the workshop with the NJV students, to the building of a three dimensional color wheel, and now to this video installation. The video consists of moving images of all the artworks the students did during the workshop, along with some hidden footage blended in. It's a pensive work; the color dots lull in a maze of quiet discontentment and beauty.”