EVER passed by Upper Penang Road and wondered what a marble abstract sculpture was doing there?

Wonder no more as that sculpture is the work of a well-known Japanese sculptor Kikuchi Mitsuo.

Entitled ‘Under a Penang Sky’, the 3.4m-tall sculpture is made up of four fine marble slabs each weighing three tonnes.

Penang State Art Gallery chairman Datuk Tang Hon Yin said the sculpture was the fourth of its kind under the Penang Sculpture Trail project.

The other three are ‘Winds of Penang’ by Mukai Katsumi located at the junction of Penang Road and Magazine Road, ‘Celebration of the Blue Sky’ by Hitori Nakayama and ‘Rhythm of Life’ by Heng Eow Lin both situated at the Lebuh Sungai Pinang promenade.
Almost done: Mitsuo putting the final touches to his masterpiece at Upper Penang Road.
EVER passed by Upper Penang Road and wondered what a marble abstract sculpture was doing there?

Wonder no more as that sculpture is the work of a well-known Japanese sculptor Kikuchi Mitsuo.

Entitled ‘Under a Penang Sky’, the 3.4m-tall sculpture is made up of four fine marble slabs each weighing three tonnes.

Penang State Art Gallery chairman Datuk Tang Hon Yin said the sculpture was the fourth of its kind under the Penang Sculpture Trail project.

The other three are ‘Winds of Penang’ by Mukai Katsumi located at the junction of Penang Road and Magazine Road, ‘Celebration of the Blue Sky’ by Hitori Nakayama and ‘Rhythm of Life’ by Heng Eow Lin both situated at the Lebuh Sungai Pinang promenade.

One for the album: Mitsuo posing with his masterpiece after completion of his work.

Tang said Mitsuo, 64, took two years to complete the sculpture using St Nicholas Home for the Visually Impaired as his studio.

“The artist will be present on Thursday for the ‘unveiling’ of the sculpture by state Town and Country Planning, Housing and Arts Committee chairman Wong Hon Wai.

“His work is valued at RM600,000 but he will not be paid for the sculpture. It is his gift to the city.

“Ten people will look at the sculpture in 10 different ways, as the work is abstract. That is the beauty of it,” he told a press conference at a hotel in Penang on Thursday.

The sculpture that was completed towards the end of last year is facing the E&O Hotel on Farquhar Street.

Tang said the vision to turn Penang into a world class sculpture corridor showcasing the best of Asian sculptors is the brainchild of Nakayama, who has been residing in Penang for the past 21 years.

The implementation of the Penang Sculpture Trail of World Class Asian Sculpture is spearheaded by Friends of Penang and supported by the Penang Museum and Art Gallery and the Penang Municipal Council.

“The project aims to install five sculptures per year for the next 10 years. We are hoping to come up with 50 such world-class sculptures during the period.

“We are trying to follow a model after a small town not far away from Tokyo called Tachikawa that has over 100 sculptures from worldwide artists.

“Although we have a long way to go, we hope one day people will visit Penang for its wonderful sculptures,” he added.

Tang said the Penang Sculpture Trail was an example of the saying “There is no limit to what man can do if no one cares who takes the credit”.

“What matters is for like-minded people to do whatever they can to make Penang one of the most beautiful cities in the world,” he said.

Those interested to be involved in the community driven project as a sponsor or supporter can email Friends of Penang at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Tuesday February 2, 2010

The Star Online

By MANJIT KAUR