Although we now live in a highly technological age and yield to emails for ease of local and international communications, the use of stamps and sending of letters and parcels by post remain relevant and necessary. Often, the designs on stamps depict social, political and even geological landscape of its origins. As a result, stamps have been used in the study of history and anthropology. In this series, Chong Kim Chiew deals with issues of legacy, identity and history through his re-connections with various old stamps from colonised Malaysia. Malaysia was one of the countries colonised by the British in the 1800s. Along with it, many changes took effect particularly in respect to the country’s future, economy, political make-up and the place of nobility within society and government. By erasing the faces of Sultans, inserting the map of Britain to replace the Malaysian map and obliterating identities, the artist reminds us of the roles colonial masters play in the formation of our destinies and identities. Chong uses his paintings to explore and question the arbitrary demarcations of national borders and to explore concepts of identity, belonging and, nation-building.
