Syed Thajudeen

Syed Thajudeen Shaik Abu Talib was born in 1943 in Alagan Kulam, a village not too far from the temple city of Madurai, South India, where his Malaysian-born parents lived during the Second World War. He joined his family in Penang when he was eleven years old but later went back to India to pursue a course in art at the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Madras (1967-1974).

Without doubt, Syed's unique style and aesthetic sense draw inspiration from his personal Indian background and Indian traditional painting styles fused with Malay cultural elements. Syed's studies at Madras College of Arts and Crafts also informed and influenced his sense of aesthetics.

A distinctive stylisation, romantic treatment of subject matter and the rich colours as in the Ajanta cave paintings of Maharasthra and of the Mughal (enriched from the wealth of Indian mythology) are apparent in his works. This, together with the traditional visual arts' integral connection with literature, music, dance, sculpture and philosophy, helped shape Syed's early works. His works, as individualistic as they are, attempt to evoke a state of rasa, or heightened mood that belongs to a larger tapestry and sensibility of Asian artistic traditions. In many instanc...

Government College of Arts and Crafts, Madras '74

SOLO EXHIBITON
1975 - 1st Solo Exhibition, Museum and Gallery, Penang
1975 - 2nd Solo Exhibition, Samat Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
1997 - 3rd Solo Exhibition, Pelita Hati Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
2002 - Seroja: an exhibition of oil paintings and ink drawings by Syed Thajudeen, Sutra Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
2004 - Love and its Many Splendoured Images -paintings by Syed Thajudeen, Sutra Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
2006 - Cinta Tercipta... (And there is Love…): a solo exhibition by Syed Thajudeen, National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
2007 - Cinta Tercipta… and There is Love, Pelita Hati, Kuala Lumpur
2007 - Women in Kebaya : A Tribute to Datin Paduka Seri Endon Mahmood, Tanjung Art Gallery Penang

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
1970-74 - Annual Shows, Government College of Arts and Crafts, Madras, India
1978 - Malaysian Art 1965-78, Commonwealth Institute, London, UK
1979 - Salon Malaysia, National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
1982 - ASEAN Mobile Exhibition, Kuala Lumpur/ Singapore/ Jakarta/ Manila/ Bangkok
1983 - 2nd Art Biennale, Bangladesh
1985 - 12 Malaysian Artist Exhibition, Taiwan
1988 - Contemporary painting of Malaysia, Pacific Asia Museum, Pasadena, California, USA
1989 - 1st ASEAN travelling exhibition of painti...