Temu House will celebrate its second anniversary this month, and Augustman speaks to Sharmin Parameswaran, the art curator behind the many exhibitions held there.
The first time I’ve ever heard about Temu House was through a friend. It was only a brief mention and yet the name stuck in my mind. Upon further investigation, I learned that this house on a hill is owned by Lilian Tay, an architect who decided to deconstruct the house and make way for a new, potential space for exhibitions and events.
Despite constantly hearing about this mysterious yet magical venue, I’ve never paid it a visit. Until most recently, when I managed to secure a private interview session with Sharmin Parameswaran, an independent art curator who has been hosting art programmes at Temu House since its inception.
As the lady of the house, Sharmin has hosted around 40 exhibitions in the art space. Through her experience and with the help from Tay and Lina Tan – a curator for events – Temu House now thrives and gathers people who share a common love for art and connection.
How did you get into the art space?
I grew up around the art scene because my father was an art collector. I didn’t tap into art until 2012, when a friend of mine asked me why I wasn’t in the visual arts scene. That moved me to take a leap of faith by opening my first exhibition in that same year. I like contemporary works, so I did an exhibition called At First Glance at the WhiteBox in Publika. And at that time, my main objective was to sell.
Since then, I started doing more exhibitions. But I soon realised that there’s more to art than just selling. Hence, I decided to meet more artists and work with them. The process of putting an exhibition together and creating a space for art eventually made me fall in love with this line of work.
How I got involved with Temu House started with Lina Tan – who is a friend of mine – asking if I wanted to come in and curate art programmes at the house. Given that I live close by, and I love curating art, I said yes.
Every month, Temu changes its exhibitions. Can you share about the most recent exhibition, Kuala Lumpur International Photography Awards 2023 (KLPA): Portraits of Intimacy?
We recently celebrated KLPA’s 15th anniversary and how I got involved is when its founder, Steven Lee, approached me last year and asked me to be one of the juries for the awards. I’ve been part of the jury board since 2022. I’ve always loved photography and to me, it was a good opportunity to highlight pictures that move emotions.
KLPA 2023’s theme taps into the feelings of intimacy, and we shortlisted 30 images and selected three winners. All the submissions this round came from all over the world and so far, this might be one without any Malaysian work.
Last year, we held the exhibition at GMBB, but I felt the space was not as conducive and intimate. Hence, Steven and I discussed and decided to bring KLPA to Temu House this year.
How do you shortlist and select the winners?
This year’s theme was ‘intimacy’ and we had about 200 submissions this time. This meant that we had to go through several rounds of selection to shortlist it to 30. The process is tedious and takes a lot of decision making and teamwork amongst the jury.
The first thing that we look for is the visual impact of the image. An image that would evoke an emotion – uncomfortable or moving. But another criterion is the caption. Personally, I’d also ask myself what’s different about this photo and what am I learning from it.
Which image was your favourite portrait in this exhibition?
For me, it would be Hold Me Don’t Leave Me Alone by Matteo Rea from Italy. I personally feel that the elderly don’t get as much exposure as others in photography. The image and caption really moved me but as a jury, I had to consider my team’s opinions and we decided to select another. If I had the freedom to select, this portrait would be my first choice.
Can you share with me a little bit about the next exhibition that will be displayed at Temu?
The next exhibition that will be put up will be titled Bapaku Pulang, and it will be curated by Sarah Abu Bakar. She is working with me and Nazurah Rahime from A.P Art Gallery this time. The exhibition will open from 7 October to the end of the month, and it will be showcasing paintings that they have collected over the years. I would say the paintings will lean towards more modern to contemporary artworks.
Ali Mabuha – Egypt II Dzulkifli Buyong – Untitled (Kucing Hitam Putih) Eric Peris – Larut Mansion, Penang Maryam Abdullah – Kinabalu Tan Choon Ghee – Nagore Durgha Sheriff, Leboh Chulia Penang Yap Chin Hoe – Untitled I
How do you ensure that Temu House stays a safe space for both artists and visitors?
At Temu, we are open to new concepts but again, we have to be sensitive and sensible to what’s happening at that point in time and take precautions. Lina and I come from the media background. Hence, we know that the most sensitive content right in Malaysia has to do with religion and topics of LGBT.
For the June exhibition which highlighted the LGBT community, we proceeded, but of course, we were cautious. I wasn’t too worried about the artworks that would be displayed because art itself is subjective. I was more concerned about the artists’ transparent statements of their work. I would discuss and align with the artists and in case of trouble, we would go out as one voice.
We also talked to several lawyers, just to be sure because you can never be too prepared in this situation but I’m glad that the exhibition was a success, and it was refreshing to see many people visiting to show their support.
Is Temu House looking to change their direction as an art space?
Lina did go around scouting for a new place to relocate Temu. But the important thing about this current art space is the space itself because people have said that they feel welcome here. It’s easy to walk in and be comfortable to be yourself, and I like to think it’s because of the home setting that Temu House has. So, to answer your question, no. Temu House will continue to be here. Recently, we’ve been open to doing residencies for artists and we’re building an office space in the house.
Images by Temu House and Augustman Malaysia
