Angkor Thom, Angkor

Latiff Mohidin (1941), born in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia completed his primary education in Singapore. While in Singapore, his precocity in understanding paintings at an early age, earned him the nickname, '�Wonder Boy�'. From 1960 to 1964, Latiff studied art at Hochschule fur Bildende Kunste in Berlin, Germany and did brief residencies in Paris and New York. Inspired by his exploration of Southeast Asia in 1964, Latiff has since produced a series of compelling artworks the result of a synthesis between his European experience and the rediscovery of his homeland. He is also a poet who has published several volumes of poetry. �'Angkor Thom, Angkor'� was realised upon Latiff'�s contemplation of Cambodia'�s historical architectural ruins. In this work, he seems to reflect its ruins as destroyed by time and nature. Apart from the iconic representation of the erratic growth of plant-life, the deconstruction of the majestic and textural traits of the enduring capital city of the Khmer empire is much emphasised here. The tremendous battle of muted colours and the violent vibrations of forms depict the energy of destruction through the prism of Latiff�'s emotion.