Hisyamuddin Abdullah

b. 1989, Malaysia

Born in Terengganu, Hisyamuddin Abdullah received his bachelor’s degree in Fine Art from UiTM Malaysia in 2012. During his years of study, he was exposed to life in the metropolitan city of Kuala Lumpur. For Hisyamuddin, being far away from the familiarity of home and having to navigate his life around a city was emotionally and mentally taxing – he considers this period a crucial part of his creative journey. He is currently based in Kuala Lumpur.

Based in pop realism, Hisyamuddin describes his creations as “painting-drawing”, working with charcoal and acrylic in most of his pieces. With an air of magical realism, his artwork can be distinguished by its notes of serenity, as well as tension. Opting for a more realistic approach, he sometimes experiments with the boundaries, adopting a more cartoon-like style to create quirky and dramatic illustrations. With a creative perspective grounded in satire, humor, and sarcasm, his self-portrait series comments on his personal beliefs about the current socio-political climate of modern-day Malaysia. Inspired by different phases of his life, his work has evolved from revolving around a longing for home to an emphasis on current social issues in Malaysia as he has started to transition into living a life of his own.

To date, Hisyamuddin has participated in numerous group exhibitions in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. In 2014, Hisyamuddin had a solo exhibition with TAKSU Kuala Lumpur titled, “SArKAs”, followed by his highly anticipated second solo exhibition in TAKSU Kuala Lumpur titled, “KOTA(k) MAGIS”, in July 2021. In 2013 he attended two art residencies – one in Bali, Indonesia, and the other in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. That same year he also placed 3rd in the Drawing for the Tanjong Heritage National Level Art Competition. Hisyamuddin’s works have been collected by private clients across Malaysia and Singapore.