Penang Architecture

Art deco hotel along the market.

Part of the charm of Penang is its architecture. The urban core of Georgetown preserves many more traditional Straits shophouses than can be seen in Singapore. Penang escaped World War II with much less destruction. Today the city is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Courtyard of a Chinese temple in Penang, looking towards the street.

The urban fabric also includes a number of Chinese and Buddhist  temples. We made sure to wander by a few of those on our long Saturday afternoon walk in the broiling sun. Here is a selection of some of the city's architectural gems. There are plenty of pictures after the jump break.

Penang Hotel

The facade of the Eastern and Oriental Hotel on Farquhar Street, Georgetown.

While visiting Penang the Passengers stayed at the Eastern & Oriental Hotel, a plush colonial pile dating back to 1885. In its heyday the E&O hosted luminaries like Somerset Maugham, Noel Coward, Charlie Chaplin, and Rita Hayworth. Eventually the place fell on hard times, but it has been restored to former splendor in recent years.

Overlooking a tropical paradise at the Eastern & Oriental Hotel.

We found our digs thoroughly enjoyable with a suite that had a balcony overlooking the pool and the sea.We had our own sitting room plus a deluxe bathroom entered through French doors with stained glass. Did I mention the outstanding breakfast, too? The hotel has an additional 17-story tower planned to augment the original historic building.

The view from our balcony at the Eastern & Oriental Hotel.

This hotel was one of the main reasons we chose to spend a weekend in Penang. The E&O in Malaysia peddles the colonial experience that is meticulously marketed by Raffles Hotel in Singapore, and was established by the same enterprising Sarkies brothers, but at less than half the price. High tea at Raffles: S$55 per person plus tax and tip. High tea at E&O's restaurant 1885: S$20 per person plus tax and tip. How do you know you've entered a colonial time warp? High tea.

Penang Market

The shophouses along the market streets of Georgetown, Pulau Pinang.

The Passengers have just returned from a weekend in Penang. We spent two days exploring with friends the multicultural Malaysian trading island in the Andaman Sea. The place has been a stopover point for traders from Southeast Asia, India, and China for many years, and it all combines into a potent mix.

Local coffeeshops sell food during the Saturday morning market.

For a bit of local flavor we spent Friday night sampling the hawker stalls along Gurney Drive. On Saturday morning we joined a batch of our traveling companions on a wander through the morning market in Georgetown, the island's main city. Here's a few photos from the day. We started at 8:00 AM, before the sun became nearly unbearable in the afternoon.

 Credit Passenger H with many of these photos. I was too busy looking at the Straits architecture. I'll try to do a separate post on that later in the week. There are more photos after the jump break. Click the link below left to see more of market life.

Nonstop Time Lapse

SF to Paris in Two Minutes from Beep Show on Vimeo.

Somebody, please put me on one of these time-lapse planes next time I have to cross the Pacific. Either that or get me a stasis pod.

Ai Weiwei: disappeared provocateur

Video from newyorker.com by Alison Klayman.

On or around 3 April 2011 the internationally known Chinese artist Ai Weiwei was detained by authorities in his home country. Ai was seized at Beijing's airport, and the crackdown also ransacked his Beijing studio and also detained his artist wife Lu Qing and assistants, though they were released quickly. As of writing, the prolific multimedia artist remains missing, though a state news service briefly published a story that he is under investigation for "economic crimes." China's foreign ministry insists this has nothing to do with his previous activism.

Ai Weiwei proffering ceramic sunflower seeds in the Turbine Hall of Tate Modern. Image from the Guardian.

The artist, most recently known in Britain for his stunning exhibition of 100 million hand-painted porcelain sunflower seeds spread across the Turbine Hall of Tate Modern, has been an agent provocateur both inside and outside of China. His art is rarely overtly political, more playful actually, but he has spoken out frequently against injustice in his home country. 

The public nature of Ai's protests against police brutality and his recruitment of citizen activists to investigate shoddy construction standards in Sichuan province, where countless school buildings tragically crumbled in a 2008 earthquake, have made Ai's disappearance a prominent international incident. For more on the artist, his work, and his opinions, see the profile published by Evan Osnos in the New Yorker last year. The video at top shows images of the studio and a contentious confrontation with local police.

Examples from Ai Weiwei's Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads. Image from NY Times.

 Update (5 May 2011): The artist remains in detention, and Chinese authorities have said little else about his imprisonment. However, a series of Ai Weiwei sculptures can be seen outside the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan, and they will be on display in the courtyard of Somerset House in Central London from 12 May. Several talks about the travails of artists working in China have been scheduled in conjunction with the London exhibition.

Art Trivia!

Detail of One Year by George Maciunas, 1973-74; Museum of Modern Art, New York. Image from PopRally website.

Several of my passions in life have finally collided. If I was still living in New York, I would definitely go to this next Tuesday at MoMA.

PopRally is pleased to present PopQuiz, an evening of art-related trivia held in conjunction with MoMA's Contemporary Art from the Collection exhibition. Teams of up to six people register upon check-in to participate in three rounds of art trivia and games, with winners taking home prizes such as MoMA memberships. Hosted by Ryan McNamara, whose work was recently featured in MoMA PS1's Greater New York exhibition, this event also features a DJ set by Tanlines.

Alas, I will console myself with my usual Singapore Tuesday trivia.

Peterhouse College, Cambridge

Facing the Peterhouse chapel. The formal hall is on the right.

I just finished attending a symposium at Cambridge University. I had a great time meeting fellow postgraduates in the history of art, and my paper was well received by Tuesday's audience. Of course, one of the highlights of being in Cambridge is the architectural scenery. The conference organizers put me up in a room in Peterhouse Collge, the university's oldest college.

The other side of the courtyard. The underpass in the center is known as "Noah's Ark."

The event included a formal hall dinner at Peterhouse, a day trip to nearby Ely Cathedral, and a good helping of many aspects of Cambridge life. One of my evenings included drinking sherry in the Pembroke College bar at £7.90 per bottle. It's an easy life here with stunning surroundings. More pictures of Peterhouse are after the jump; click on the link below left to see them. Soon I will be flying back to Singapore for more tropical adventures.