Victor Chin

His Story

Victor Chin

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b. 1949 – d. 2022

Kajang, Selangor

Artist, writer, designer, photographer, film-maker, activist

EDUCATION

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• Anglo-Chinese School, Malacca (Class of 1967)

• 1969 – 1972, Harrow School of Art

EXPERIENCE AND CONTRIBUTIONS

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• Produced TV graphics for the BBC

• Designer at the University of Malaya

• Founded Rupa Design in the late 1970s

• Opened Rupa Gallery in 1982

• Championed for heritage preservation through art and documentation

• Most notable for his oeuvre featuring 64 water colour paintings of shophouses

• Founding member of Rakan KL since 2012

• Founded Rakan Mantin in 2013

• And many more…

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BRIEF BIOGRAPHY

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Born in Kajang, Selangor in 1949, Victor Chin is regarded as a pioneer in preserving the country’s architectural heritage through art and he had inspired many others to venture into this art and documentary form.

To survive as an artist in the late 1970s, he founded Rupa Design, where he continued to produce his own art and prints, while keeping afloat with educational design and commercial graphics projects.

In 1982, Victor Chin opened the Rupa Gallery in KL where he made a living selling prints and other souvenirs created out of his line drawing of building facades and the city's built heritage.

Victor Chin, a well-respected artist and printmaker who extended his career in fields of heritage conservation, cultural activism, documentary filmmaking and writing, passed away in a hospital in Kuala Lumpur on Nov 14 2022. He was 73.

In a poignant Facebook post last year, Chin wrote: "Thinking, talking, painting, filming, exhibiting and walking about in the older Malaysian streets and communities had kept me alive all these 70 over years ... it is about finding my roots and wanting to remember and to share our common early heritages."

Extracted from: Victor Chin, a well-respected artist and heritage activist, dies at 73: https://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/culture/2022/11/14/victor-chin-a-well-respected-artist-and-heritage-activist-has-died-aged-73

FOUNDING OF RAKAN KL

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Rakan KL was formed in 2012 as a gathering of concerned citizens and civil society advocates who were inspired to form this group due to two major controversies related to urban planning, heritage destruction and land-use policies in Kuala Lumpur. These were namely:

1.       the construction of the Merdeka 118 (formerly known as Menara Warisan Merdeka) on the site of the demolished Tunku Park, in the middle of the historic landmarks Chin Woo Stadium, Stadium Merdeka and Stadium Negara; and

2.       the construction of the MRT line which poses potential damage and destruction of heritage buildings on Jalan Sultan.

OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION

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Rakan KL's first event was the "Merdeka Festival: Goodbye KL" festival at 51 Jalan Sultan which saw 2 days of celebrations on the vanishing cultural heritage of Kuala Lumpur over the Merdeka 2012.  Activities included bike tours, walking tours, urban sketching and artistic activities, talks by local experts, films and cultural performances. This festival was well-attended and received an outpouring of response from members of the public from all walks of life. Attendance was estimated at 2,000 people over a 2-day period.

• Rakan KL’s 1st meeting 29/9/2012 @ Wisma Methodist KL. VC gave an illustrated talk about the KL map 1995 that will be proposed to DBKL planning for the KL structural plans for the future.

• Rakan KL Merdeka Walks were conducted from 2012 to 2016.

• And many more…

• Link to Rakan KL’s Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/387842804619901

FOUNDING OF RAKAN MANTIN

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The Rakan Mantin is a community initiative to activate the public to join in solidarity with the Mantin villagers, who have been there for over 5 generations, with the aim to stop the demolition of their traditional homes by private developers. The successful walk was held on 19/10/2013. By 31/10/2013, many of the important heritage buildings were demolished by the developer without proper court orders.

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OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION

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• Kg Hakka CNY Open House on 1/3/2015 (with 6 generations of villagers), 20/2/2016 and 11/2/2017

• Cemetery Walk on 25/4/2015 in conjunction with Qing Ming festival, Good Friday and Easter – walk-through of the Chinese, Muslim & Christian grave sites around Kg Hakka, Mantin. Another one was held on 22/4/2017.

• Moon Light Lantern Walk on 26/9/2015

• Mantin Kitchen & Heritage Walk on 4/10/2015

• And many more…

• Link to Rakan Mantin’s Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/584879164905751

SELECTED VIDEO WORKS

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Memory As Resistance - Grandma Kong fighting to keep her ancestral home

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“Grandma Kong Sook Koon (1927-2022) was the oldest resident of this early Chinese settlement, in the 1900s, in Kampong Hakka Mantin, south of Kuala Lumpur and just before Seremban, at the beginning of the tin and rubber industries. All the villagers had helped to develop the country's early economy. Grandma Kong has a six -generation family living and working in this village. Due to questionable land acquisition deals recently, she and many families had been fighting against forced eviction by the authorities and private developer.”

Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JaUHOa9WqU

Dato' LK Lai Living with Art

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Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g79n9Rdm6cI

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Five Tigers

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“This is a personal story of three former women members of the Malayan Labour Party in the 1960s in Penang, Malaysia. At that time, 1950s-1960s, there was worldwide opposition against colonial exploitation after WW2. The locals were demanding Independence and also better labour wages and working conditions. For that, these women and their male colleagues regularly took part in street demonstrations and strikes. The ruling government at that time used brutal police force against them. Their early example of showing courage and determination to fight for basic political and social justice is still relevant today.”

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Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLNxVOfPdJk

More here: https://www.youtube.com/@vicchinav/videos

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Compiled by: Judy Lam and Dennis Ong

Photos courtesy of: Rakan KL, Poh Lin, Shafiq Kassim and Johannes Widodo

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