In 2017, Ezzam bought a blue tin with the word ‘sabar’ (patience) as a souvenir from Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Today, this tin is part of Ezzam’s installation at Sabar Menanti Restaurant. A burst of keropok crackers – a staple in Indonesian culinary culture – explodes outwards from tin to ceiling, forming an installation of cloud-like shapes.

The work is a homage to serendipity and the stories of Iszahar, the owner of Sabar Menanti. In the cafe corner dedicated to Iszahar’s late sister, Surya, the artist transforms the space into an existential question that is all at once about love, loss, and life.

The work conjures not meaning, but rather an attitude. We may chart a course, but life is also full of happenstance. Wait patiently, we may one day meet again.

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Ezzam Rahman (b. 1981, Singapore) is a multi-disciplinary artist known for his interest in the body and the use of common, easily accessible, yet unconventional media in his art practice. Working across sculpture, installation, digital and performance, he creates works that are often time-based and ephemeral, aiming to pique viewers’ thoughts on the themes of body politics, impermanence, traces, and objection.

He was awarded a joint winner of the Grand Prize for the President’s Young Talents (2015); the People’s Choice Award by the Singapore Art Museum; the Goh Chok Tong Youth Promise Award (2016) by Yayasan Mendaki; and the prestigious Young Artist Award by the National Arts Council, Singapore.

Artist: 
Ezzam Rahman

Uncooked Belinjo crackers, pattern trace and interfacing white polyester, thread, adhesive, epoxy compound and metal Indonesian keropok tin
Dimensions variable