THE container art from the Penang International Container Art Festival (PICAF) at Prangin Mall on the island has been relocated permanently to the Design Village Outlet Mall in Bandar Cassia today.
Design Village chief operating officer Andy Song Chung Boon said the relocation of the beautiful container art piece is timely to commemorate the mall fifth anniversary.
“This amazing art piece now has a permanent new home and this shows our commitment to preserving the arts, culture and tourism in Penang.
“As for the container placed here, it highlights ‘The Trishaw Rider’ mural with the living heritage elements found in the George Town heritage site.
“It was drawn by Ukrainian artist Sasha Korban. It depicts a local trishaw rider who makes a living by ferrying tourists around the heritage city on his trishaw, offering them a memorable touring experience within the heritage site on a vintage transport.
“This same site also features another mural, titled ‘Tribute to the late Chuah Thean Teng.’
“In the mural, Penang-based artist Bibichun pays tribute to Chuah – The Father of Batik Art. The mural depicts a Malay lady dressed in a traditional Kebaya top and batik sarong, inking a batik of her self-portrait and watched by a toddler.
“In short, this unique container art is the perfect piece for us as we are one of the most unique shopping marketplaces in Penang due to our green environment that is refreshing and definitely a memorable place for a day out with your friends and family,” Song said in his speech during the launching ceremony at the mall today.
The event was officiated by the state Tourism and Creative Economy Committee chairman Yeoh Soon Hin.
PICAF, which started in early 2020, features five pop-up container art installations at five different venues. They are located in Kampung Terang in Balik Pulau, Prangin Mall (George Town), Karpal Singh Drive (Jelutong), Aspen Vision City (Batu Kawan) and Dataran Pemuda Merdeka in Butterworth.
The murals were drawn by 12 international and local artists.
Each installation depicts Penang’s identities and characteristics to create a sense of belonging amongst the communities as well as visitors.
PICAF 2020 was organised by Can Can Public Art Plt and endorsed by the Penang government.
Yeoh said with the relocation of the container art to Design Village, it would help to enhance the creative economy ecosystem in Batu Kawan which is in line with the Penang Tourism Master Plan (PGTMP).
“Actually, another container art at Aspen Vision City also has been relocated to Square@Cassia recently.
“And with the relocation of these two containers, we believe it will create a unique township identity and instil the character of arts to Bandar Cassia.
“Thus, this will allow Bandar Cassia to be transformed into future work-life-balance city and give a soften image to the developments at Batu Kawan,” he said.
Yeoh also announced that PICAF is set to return once again soon.
“The festival is important as it demonstrates that Penang is a place prepared to try new things, and our willingness to think outside the box has elevated Penang’s thriving art scene to the new heights,” he added.
Meanwhile, Song said a total of 30 food trucks are also available now in conjunction with the shopping mall fifth anniversary.
“All the food trucks are available until Nov 28, thanks to Penang Global Tourism (PGT) which arranged all the food truck operators.
“The food trucks also will be scattered around the mall to avoid overcrowding, so that shoppers can enjoy shopping while at the same time enjoying various type of food along the way.
“In addition to that, we also brought in trishaw operators so that shoppers will have the opportunity to experience a real trishaw ride to shuttle them on a pre-determined route in the mall with a minimal ticket purchase from our customer service counter,” added Song.
Also present during the ceremony were Bukit Tambun assemblyman Goh Choon Aik and PGT chief executive officer Ooi Chok Yan.
Story by Riadz Akmal
Pix by Noor Siti Nabilah Noorazis