KAYLEIGH GOH
ARTIST
PAINTING | INSTALLATION
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Image courtesy - HGallery https://www.hgallery.com.my/
ARTIST STATEMENT
Interested in the psychological and emotional healing qualities in paintings and spatial experiences,
Kayleigh's art practice draws on poetic, meditative, auto-ethnographic reflections of urban architectural environments.
Biography
(b.1993, Johor Bahru, Malaysia)
Currently based in Naarm Melbourne, Singapore, and Johor, Malaysia.
Kayleigh is a graduate of VCA, the University of Melbourne with a Master of Contemporary Art 2021
and received her BA (Fine Arts) from Singapore Lasalle College of the Arts in 2016.
She had her solo debut in 2018 with Singapore Gajah Gallery
and has since actively shown in solo and group shows around the region.
EXHIBITIONS
Salutogenesis - Gajah Gallery, 2023
Cement, cement strengthener, acrylic paint, gesso on wood
TimeOut Interview: Artist Kayleigh Goh artist uses cement and wood to create contemplative spaces in her paintings (timeout.com)
"Salutogenesis represents wanting the core of my art practice to revolve around questioning how visual arts, particularly paintings, can contribute to a person's health." - Kayleigh Goh
In recent years, art has become increasingly linked to healing, therapy, and overall well-being. Undoubtedly, engaging with art, whether through observation or creation, provides effective stress relief and an enjoyable experience. Scientific studies have also demonstrated that art can stimulate the brain's reward pathways, leading to reduced stress, decreased anxiety levels, and an enhancement of our overall mood.
Singapore Melbourne-based artist Kayleigh Goh’s third solo exhibition, Salutogenesis, explores just that. In our conversation with her, we delve into the inspirations driving her artistic focus, the meditative quality her work offers not only to the audience but also to herself during the creative process, her initial encounter with unconventional materials in her paintings, and other intriguing aspects of her artistic journey.
by - Mingli Seet
S.E.A FOCUS - Gajah Gallery, 2023
KAO SHAN 靠山
Cement, cement strengthener, acrylic paint, gesso on wood
Kayleigh Goh’s signature cement on wood paintings contain quiet, imagined spaces for audiences to escape amidst chaotic urban life. Through the combination of exposed wood and cement, Goh strives for balance – the warmth of the wood and the coldness of the concrete work together to achieve a dissonant, yet comfortable sense of harmony.
Goh views cement as a homely material. To her, the concrete jungle has become so infused in our lives that its negative reputation no longer holds relevance. The hard lines present in her work similarly challenge the general impression that geometric designs hold no emotion. The 90-degree angles in urban design, the flat color of our walls, and the abundance of cement have all become elements of familiarity to the city-goer. Her works thus protest against long-held notions and instead, embraces the city as her space for healing.
In these pieces, for the first time, Goh incorporates serene mountainous landscapes within her architectural spaces – capturing the healing, comforting qualities of the distant outdoors against these cold, grey structures.“
- S.E.A FOCUS Kayleigh Goh – S.E.A. Focus (seafocus.sg)
GLOSSOLALIA, 2022-2023 Group show
by NOTFAIR + Conpendium Gallery
with stories by
Bernhard Sachs, Talitha Kennedy, Shanrah Austin, Ash Coates, Darren Tanny Tan,
Donna Kendrigan, Rowan E. Cassidy, Trinh Linh Chi and Kayleigh Goh.
Editors: Tony Lloyd, Sam Leach, Ashley Crawford
Images courtesy - Simon Strong ( Images 4th-8th )
"Kayleigh Goh’s paintings, sculptures and installations are poetic meditations on architecture and urban environments. For her the physical nature of the constructed world is rich with panpsychic agency. In Goh’s work, objects participate in the process of art making and her installations reveal a less human-centric perspective on reality. The forms are recognisably architectural and yet they have an intriguing strangeness, reminiscent of Borges’ short story The Immortal where a man explores a labyrinthine city which was seemingly not built with humans in mind."
