Pangrok Sulap
Pangrok Sulap is an Indigenous artist collective comprised of members from the Dusun and Murut clans of Malaysian Borneo. Pangrok means ‘punk rock’ and Sulap means ‘hut’, which colloquially refers to a resting place for farmers in Sabah, Borneo. The collective includes visual artists, musicians, and social activists who employ DIY strategies and spirit to provide local rural and disenfranchised communities with the tools to enact resilience and resistance. Their slogan is Jangan Beli, Bikin Sendiri or ‘Don’t Buy, Do-it-yourself’.
Initially established in 2010 by Rizo Leong, Jirum Manjat, and Mc Feddy, the group worked to assist marginalized groups through charity means. With growing membership since 2012, the collective uses print-making techniques in a collaborative effort with their local communities, spreading the power of large-scale prints as a means of activating social agency in a part of Malaysia that is of little familiarity with contemporary art.
Since 2013, their primary medium has been woodcut prints that incorporate performative and process-oriented production. Typically their prints are cut by the collective, while the actual printing of the image is a community effort. The collective often invites audiences to dance on top of the woodcut blocks to imprint the ink on the canvas, while local bands play music. Committed to the need for education, the collective also raises awareness of locally-relevant social and political issues such as illegal logging, corruption, and the mining of historical memories.
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Resources
Interview with MAAP x Pangrok Sulap: 2025
Interviews:
Adi Helmi Jaini. “Sabah creative collective Pangrok Sulap is enriching its art with social activism.” Options, by Dian Pasquinal Kaur, 7 August 2024, www.optionstheedge.com/topic/culture/sabah-creative-collective-pangrok-sulap-enriching-its-art-social-activism.
Rizo Leong. “Giving back to the community – via art.” Daily Express, By Iffah Dilaney, 13 October 2019, www.dailyexpress.com.my/news/141627/giving-back-to-the-community-via-art/.
Rizo Leong. “Mesej tersirat dalam karya seni [Implicit messages in artwork].” METROTV, By Olivia Miwil, 20 September 2020, www.hmetro.com.my/mutakhir/2020/09/622786/mesej-tersirat-dalam-karya-seni-metrotv.
Books:
Joko, Eko Prayitno, et al. Pangrok Sulap: Sedekad Seni Merakyat [A Decade of Popular Art]. Kota Kinabalu, Pangrok Sulap, 2023.
Ong, Emelia. Living Art: The inspired lives of 14 Malaysian artists & their art practice. Areca Books, 2020.
Articles:
Lin, Rouwen. “Pangrok Sulap mobilises art and community to bring light to rural Sabah village.” The Star, 27 January 2023, www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/culture/2023/01/27/pangrok-sulap-mobilises-art-and-community-to-bring-light-to-rural-sabah-village.
Lin, Rouwen. “Sabah’s Pangrok Sulap delivers woodcut prints with Covid-19 messages.” The Star, 31 March 2020, www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/culture/2020/03/31/sabah039s-pangrok-sulap-delivers-woodcut-prints-with-covid-19-messages.
“Pangrok Sulap.” Kadist, kadist.org/people/pangrok-sulap/.
Videos:
Pangrok Sulap and Valerie Coffin Price. “Between Two Continents Openbook Go Digital.” YouTube, uploaded by The Godown, 7 October 2021, youtu.be/dLokD-2G2B0?feature=shared.
“Making of an Artwork | Pangrok Sulap.” YouTube, uploaded by Kochi-Muziris Biennale, 7 December 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=7af4V_vPGys.
More Information
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