Anatomy of A Graphic Designer

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S H E R R Y B L A N K E N S H I P

K E N T A N

S I A N G C H Y E

Taylor’s Press

Anatomy of A Graphic Designer VINOD J. NAIR

“I feel you have contributed signiﬁcantly to the ﬁeld of graphic design in Malaysia.

Very little is known or written about the subject or its practitioners.”

— Associate Proffesor at Taylor’s University

“There are not many books on Malaysian graphic designers, certainly not many with Fahmi Reza’s proﬁle [...] To have one written on Fahmi’s development and the many risks he took to get to where he is, is in my opinion, inspiring. And required.

Certainly there are not many graphic designers like him, so to read his story is eye-opening.”

— Former Deputy Dean at Taylor’s University

VINOD J. NAIR

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Vinod J. Nair is an educator, designer and photographer based in Malaysia. He is a Senior Lecturer at The Design School, Taylor’s University. His interests in art and design involve politics, activism, typeface design and championing design awareness and solutions in and for governance. To this end, his previous publication, The Malaysian Number Plate: Typefaces Designed by Vinod J. Nair, focused on the need for a standardised typeface for for vehicle number plates in Malaysia.

Vinod has been an educator for over 18 years but he is also known for his photography work for publications like Elle, Cosmopolitan, Vox, Mens Review and Off The Edge. He is not only fascinated with history in general but also Malaysian/regional design history involving the present context. He believes more needs to be done to highlight, document and publish material on art and design in Malaysia and regionally. This is increasingly important in a globalised world where the majority of accessible content in the arts are ‘western’ centric. Therefore he believes it is incumbent on regional creatives to begin the process of highlighting content in the arts that reveal the uniqueness of this region and its people. Vinod is also part of the editing team at kreatifbeats.com — a regional Emagazine on art and design.

THE AUTHOR

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Vinod J. Nair

Anatomy of a Graphic Designer

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Fahmi Reza: Anatomy of A Graphic Designer

ISBN: 978-967-0173-69-6

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

All photos and images are used with permission from Fahmi Reza and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International. All artworks featured and documented herein remain the intellectual property of Fahmi Reza.

Fahmi Reza does not receive any monetary compensation from the publication of this book.

Every effort has been made to credit the artists and/or copyright holders whose work has been reproduced here. We apologise for any omission, which will be corrected in future editions, but hereby must disclaim any liability.

Foreword 01

Method

The use of interview The use of artefacts

The use of documentary evidence Conclusion

Background 07

Socio-economic background Departure

Course of action 17

University

University of punk Punk Music and design

Career path 27

Back home

Exploring different mediums Controversy

Belief 57

Reflection

Conclusion 63

References 106

CoNTENT

First published in Selangor D. E., Malaysia in 2020 by Taylor’s Press.

Block D, Level 2, No. 1, Jalan Taylor’s, 47500 Subang Jaya, Selangor D. E., Malaysia.

Tel: +6 03 5629 5453

Written and Designed by Vinod J Nair

[email protected]

Typeset in Merriweather Cover: 230 2S ArtCard Text pages: 105 Matt Art paper

Disclaimer: The artworks published in this book serves to provide context on the individual who is the focus of this book. It does not reflect the views or opinions of the publisher/institution/author, thus we hereby must disclaim any liability.

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I would like to state at the onset that this is not a research book even though I have employed such methods to obtain the data. The methods and protocols used herein were to ensure reasonable validity of the content or claims.

This project was conceived in June of 2014 after curating Fahmi Reza’s first-ever solo exhibition, Ten Years of Visual Disobedience:

100 Political Posters by Fahmi Reza at CoDA Gallery, Taylor’s University. It was The Design School’s first-ever graphic design- based exhibition by a professional not from the university. The exhibition was conducted in the hope of expanding design education in a different direction—one that would be selfless and aspire to the higher ideals of life, liberty and service. In addition to the exhibition, Fahmi held talks about his works and experiences on visual disobedience to students and staff. The exhibition was only publicised through Fahmi’s social media account but the location was never revealed in order to avoid adverse reactions. The then Deputy Dean of The Design School Ken Tan and I spent some sleepless nights during this period expecting possible controversy that the exhibition might cause.

To understand our anxiety, one has to be familiar with Fahmi’s work which advocates disobedience. After seeing the exhibition publicised on Fahmi’s Facebook page, other galleries proceeded to contact Fahmi to repeat the exhibition.

It was during and after the exhibition that the idea of a book began to germinate in my minds eye. Looking at the body of his work and recognising that Fahmi Reza is arguably the first and only graphic design activist in Malaysia whose sole focus is in using his skills for non-commercial purposes made him unique in the history of art and design in Malaysia. I then proposed the idea to Fahmi in June of that year. His first reaction was one of surprise. “Me! Why? You sure?” I explained to him that people in years to come would want to know how he came to be a social activist designer—specifically design students who may choose to take the activist route. This book would be a service to the graphic design profession and to graphic design history. It was also my hope that it could be used as a reference book for design students, and would someday occupy library shelves.

As time went on, I realised the potential of the idea as a series.

Design books on unique individuals in the design or creative

fields, and not limited to the profession but also include design education, pioneer or emerging graphic designers, successful designers in the commercial sector and so on. I envisioned that this book would be part of a larger series and the idea claimed real estate in my mind. It would be the first of its kind in Malaysia.

Even though I was unfamiliar with writing a book, I realised that it would take a couple of years for the process to unfold.

Also, teaching in a university with a demanding workload would slow the process even further. Finding time to formulate

a framework and to write didn’t come easily but because I had just completed my master’s degree in Teaching and Learning, I had some experience in research and case studies largely thanks to my lecturers Dr. Lim Chong Hin, Dr. Rajandaran Perumal, Dr.

Jasmine Anak Jain and Dr. Logendran Ponniah at the School of Education, Taylor’s University.

Method After several iterations I decided that I would attempt to address three major questions:

1. What sequence of events had led Fahmi Reza to realise his calling?

Fahmi Reza’s first-ever solo exhibition: Ten Years of Visual Disobedience: 100 Political Posters by Fahmi Reza at CoDA Gallery, Taylor’s University curated by Vinod J. Nair, June 2014.

FOREwoRD

1 Fahmi Reza: Anatomy of a Graphic Designer Fahmi Reza: Anatomy of a Graphic Designer 2

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Socio-economic Background Mohd Fahmi Reza, better known as Fahmi Reza was born in Jeram, Kuala Selangor, Malaysia, on the 7th of June 1977. The name Reza was chosen due to his parent’s fascination for the Shah of Iran, Reza Shah, and the fact that it sounded “cool”. He is the second of six children—all boys. His parents were government servants who separated while Fahmi was a very young boy approximately 7 years of age. Each of his parents would later remarry different individuals and have additional children.

His father was largely absent from his life and his mother, Musselmah Zainuddin became the sole caretaker. Muselmah was a court interpreter in Klang, Selangor but was later posted to Kuala Lumpur. Fahmi’s father, Mohd Zarin worked at the Jabatan Percetakan Negara (National Printing Department) in Kuala Lumpur, which was the reason for the move according to Faizal Reza, Fahmi’s eldest brother.

Fahmi Reza was approximately 3 years old when he came to live in Kuala Lumpur. Both Fahmi and Faizal aren’t very clear about the exact year or age when this move transpired and when the separation of their parents occurred. Fahmi’s father, according to Faizal, was creative. He loved the locally produced comics Gila-Gila (Mad), played the guitar, drew, collected music records and used to bring home artworks from the factory as keepsakes. Faizal attributes Gila-Gila comics as one of the main reason he became a graphic designer. Therefore, Fahmi’s childhood was surrounded by a father, and later a brother who was creatively inclined. It cannot be ascertained whether these were influencing factors on Fahmi’s life but it is undeniable that there are converging points in their respective interests namely music, records, guitar playing, drawing and design.

Fahmi considers himself a “KL boy”. All his memories of early childhood until his adult life were of his time in Kuala Lumpur.

The household Fahmi grew up in was not a tight-knit family unit. The centre of the family, his mother, was understandably preoccupied with providing for the family or addressing the basic needs of the younger children. In speaking to both Faizal and Fahmi, it is clear that she was a very accommodating and tolerant individual despite the mischief they would get into.

This would continue even with Fahmi’s troubles as an activist.

While growing up, Fahmi was largely left to his own devices.

BACKGROUND

1. Fahmi Reza’s mother, Muselmah Zainuddin in her youth. Image courtesy Fahmi Reza.

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Nothing came easily; everything was earned. Devoid of a father figure, he looked up to his elder brother with whom he shared a room in the now demolished government quarters in the Cochrane Road area. Everything was shared or handed down in the household. His clothing came from his elder brother as did the music he listened to at an early age. Music would later become an important catalyst in his life. This is something he has in common with his eldest brother and his father.

The lack of rules and regulations in the household nurtured an independent way of life for the young Fahmi. Interestingly, this kind of independence could easily have led to unhealthy activities, but this didn’t happen possibly due to the kind of community Fahmi lived in during his years in the Cochrane Road area. The government quarter’s area was known for its

“huge trees” and more importantly its “tight-knit community”

(Chan, 2007) which was, at that time, culturally diverse. Just as in ecology, land lacking in biodiversity tends to be more susceptible to pathogens or pests as opposed to a bio-diverse land. Hence, the intermingling and exchange that took place in school or at play may have offset the negatives of a single homogenous community or environment.

Fahmi Reza went to Pasar Road Primary School 1 (the morning session) in Pudu, Kuala Lumpur that was located roughly two kilometres from the government quarters at Cochrane. Unable to afford the school bus ride, he would walk these two kilometres with his eldest brother until he reached high school. Primary school was largely, in his own words, “unmemorable”. His only memories of that time consist of early morning assemblies with him sitting and making marks on the tarmac using loose gravel in the hot sun; the scouts’ association where he had a fascination with the uniform and interest in the activities that they conducted; and the games he would play with his fellow students during recess—police and thief, catching, and another game that entailed stepping on each other’s feet. Fahmi was academically a good student who always placed amongst the top of the class. In Malaysian schools, it was, and it still is, a practice to place students in classes according to their performance. As such, students who performed badly were placed in the lower performing classes and vice-versa. According to Fahmi, he equally disliked all the subjects taught in school including art.

Generally, he would go through the motions of doing what was needed, such as his homework or studies. According to Fahmi’s brother Faizal, Fahmi was a naturally gifted student; he was naturally smart.

Fahmi did his lower secondary schooling at Cochrane Road School. During this time he was once the head of class and was also the prefect for the library. The motivation underpinning the library position was that the lockers were available to these students. They were seen to be cool, especially in the context of popular American culture, largely aired in Malaysian television programmes, featuring American kids in school with their lockers.

During this time his best friends were largely of Chinese or Indians descent. In those days, race, in a national school wasn’t really a noticeable factor. It did not define who you were and you were not reminded of it. Fahmi, reflecting on this period, cherished the diversity in the friendships he experienced especially when compared to his post lower secondary school environment. He is quick to note that current generations are deprived of this healthy diversity in schools. Post-independence Malaya, unlike Singapore, decided to preserve vernacular schools in order to appease the various ethno-linguistic factions within and outside the ruling coalition. However, national schools were seen as better-funded and relatively heterogeneous in city centres until the mid-90s. Accusations of bias, and the entry of religion, coupled with the perceived drop in quality and diversity of faculty and administration in education caused an increase in admissions to vernacular schools. This now further contributes to the polarised atmosphere in which Fahmi finds himself.

Upon the completion of his lower secondary schooling at Cochrane Road School, Fahmi continued his O’ Levels (Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia) studies at Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah boarding school in Kuantan, Pahang for two years. Unlike the national school environment that had a diverse demographic, the boarding school was at the opposite end of the spectrum with just two non-Malays. Fahmi continued to keep in touch with his friends from Cochrane School, Ravin Raj from high school and his best friend Cheng Chean whom he would write to, and continue to do so even when he entered university.

2. Pasar Road School 1 badge. The motto reads “Tekun Belajar, Chergas Bermain”, it loosely translates as

“Study Diligently, Play Vigorously”.

3. Cochrane Road School was relocated in 2004 and has been renamed Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Cochrane (Cochrane National High School).

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Page 73–74 Book cover designs for Malaysian human rights NGO

‘SUARAM’(Suara Rakyat Malaysia) for 2003, 2009 and 2018.

Page 75 Book cover (front and back) for Amir Muhammad (top), 2009; for Farish Noor (bottom), 2008.

Page 76 Book covers for various authors: Lim Teck Ghee, 2017 (top left), Megat Hanis, 2015 (top right), Syed Hussin Ali, Arifin Omar, Jeyakumar Devaraj and Fahmi Reza, 2017 (bottom left), and Teo Cheng Hai, 2015.

Page 77–78 Occupy Dataran posters, 2011-2012. The poster on pg. 77 is presently part of the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) archive.

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Since the interview for this book Fahmi Reza has embarked on several projects worth noting here:

Page 103 On August 2018, Fahmi sent out a call to designers to create posters in support of the ‘Temiar’

aboriginal people of Gua Musang.

The Temiar folk were intending to protest at Putrajaya, Malaysia.

As many as forty six posters were submitted and handed over to the Temiar protestors.

Page 104 On September 2018, Fahmi conducted a workshop with eighteen girl guides from the Girl Guides Association of Malaysia on the subject of making protest posters. The eighteen girl guides would use the posters created to protest underage child marriages in front of the Malaysian parliament on the 13^th of November.

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Amnesty International (2016, March 11)). Malaysia: End unprecedented crackdown on hundreds of critics Retrieved from: https://www.amnesty.

org/en/press-releases/2016/03/malaysia-end-unprecedented- crackdown-on-hundreds-of-critics-through-sedition-act/

Al Jazeera (2018, May 10). Malaysia’s opposition pulls off shocking election win. Retrieved from: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/05/

malaysia-opposition-pulls-shocking-election-win-180509184811723.

html

Barnbrook, J., Kalman, T., Lupton, E., McCoy, K., Poynor, R., Miller, A., Roberts, L., Toorn, J., VanderLans, R., Wilkinson, B., Bell, N., Keedy, J., Licko, Z., Mevis, A., Howard, A., Helfand, J., Glaser, M., Blauvelt, A., Bockting, H., Boom, I., Bretteville, S. L., Bruinsma, M., Cook, S., Deursen, L., Dixon, C., Drenttel, W., Dumbar, G., Esterson, S., Frost, V., Garland, K.

and Spiekermann, E. (2000). First Things First. Eye Magazine, Issue 33., p 26-27.

Becker, H. S. (1998). Tricks of the trade: How to think about your research while you’re doing it. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Bucher, S. G. (2004). All Access: The Making of Thirty Extraordinary Graphic Designers. Gloucester, Massachusetts: Rockport Publishers Inc.

Chan, D. (2007, October 6). Memories linger on Jalan Cochrane. Retrieved from: https://www.thestar.com.my/news/community/2007/10/06/

memories-linger-on-jalan-cochrane/

Creswell, J. W. (2007). Qualitative Inquiry & Research Design: Choosing among five approaches – International Student Edition (2nd Ed.). London, UK: Sage Publications Inc.

Dean, B. (May 22, 2015). “Why government censorship [in no way at all]

carries greater risks than benefits”. The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on April 24, 2016. Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.

com/science/brain-flapping/2015/may/22/government-censorship- psychology-theresa-may

Guan, L. H. (2016). Malaysia’s Gallant School System in Need of an Overhaul. Retrieved from https://www.iseas.edu.sg/images/pdf/ISEAS_

Perspective_2016_60.pdf REFERENCE Page 105 On November 2019,

Fahmi organised a ‘Design For Activism: Poster Jam’ in Kuala Lumpur. The one day event would see fourteen graphic designers come together to collaboratively brainstorm and design posters protesting the land reclamation project on Penang island.