Beginning in February 2022, the artist residency at Bon Ton Langkawi is an initiative to activate a cultural hub
through creative collaborations. The artist residency also aims to provide a fresh new space to draw inspiration from
Langkawi’s distinctive and unique natural landscapes. CULT Gallery curates the art residency shows by selecting
emerging artists who need space and support to develop their artistic practice. The artists are chosen for their
versatility and resourcefulness that will enable them to create site-specific installations at Bon Ton and to handle
community art workshops.
Kimberley Boudville is our third artist in residence. A graduate from Singapore’s Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts,
Kimberley’s artistic practice embraces many different mediums, all of which provide comfort after having lost her
grandparents and father. After participating in multiple shows in Kuala Lumpur, Kimberley believes that her time at
Bon Ton has allowed her to reflect on her life as an artist after the loss of her close family members. Bon Ton’s
mangroves reminded Kimberley of her early practice, where she linked tree roots to ideas of stability and family in oil
paintings and ink drawings. Their sinuous roots inspired Kimberley to create sculptures and experiment with their
mysterious shapes and forms. In this way, Kimberley believes her practice has come back full circle, where the roots
she once drew have now materialised in physical form.
After experimenting with natural clay and ceramics, Kimberley chose to use recycled newspaper and cotton
bandages to create her sculptures. This allowed the sculptures to be “touched, handled, and played with,” contrary
to the fragility of her previous clay works. “Touch is a major love language with me and I’ve grown up in a family that
hugs,” she writes, “It is my way of expressing love, be it if these works represent itself as a passed loved one, or a
self reflection in the journey of growing up with grief.” In this series of works, Kimberley invites viewers to interact with
these dense and cushiony roots–to feel, touch, and to embrace them.
