Tajuk : My Father and The Astronaut

Pelukis : Ibrahim Hussein

Media : Ibrahim Hussein Teknik campuran , Catan , Catakkan Saring

Question 1a: Using what you know, why do YOU think that Ibrahim Hussein has
juxtaposed the image of his father with an astronaut? What is the relationship between
the two (also think about the title)?
Personal Response: I think Ibrahim Hussein has juxtaposed the image of his father with
the astronaut, to compare the asian and western lifestyles, on how they are different in
a sense that the asian lifestyle is more to the simple side, and the western lifestyle has
a few more complicated things involved. This links to how Ibrahim Hussein father led a
simple, as they were a poor family, judging from the appearance of the father portrayed
in the artwork, compared to how the astronaut looks like in a very well-dressed suit,
which represents partially the greater amount of wealth an astronaut has.
Question 1b: Why do you think that the text that is placed between the figures relates to
the artist's birth? Where does the relation lie between this and the rest of the work?
Personal Response: The words nearer to Ibrahim Husseins father, describes the life the
artist is probably leading, and narrates the type of environment he grew up in. While the
words nearer to the astronaut, are far beyond the current life he is leading. The vast
difference between the two sides of words, in a point of view, could be seen as the artist
trying to tell us how he aspires to embark on a new and brighter journey. As seen from
the brighter and a little more vibrant background around the astronaut, compared to the
dull background around Ibrahim Husseins father, which probably represents his poor
status.
Question 2: DESCRIBE the mixed-media artwork:
The artwork is an image of Ibrahim Husseins father (on the left), dressed with only a
piece of cloth tied around his waist, and seems to be looking depressed, unhappy and
weary. Beside him (on the right) is a well-dressed astronaut, who is more properly
dressed, geared and accessorized than Ibrahim Husseins father
Dull colours are used for the general overall background. Slightly towards the
background of Ibrahim Husseins father, the background is darker, compared to the
background towards the astronaut, which is slightly brighter, and less gloomy. The

astronaut is depicted such that it stands out more in the artwork, with the use of bright
colours like blue and a tinge of green in the background colours surrounding him.
Whereas for the background of Ibrahim Husseins father, the colours are of the same
colour as the overall background, therefore making Ibrahim Husseins father less
outstanding and obvious.
The artist has chosen to portray his image such that his subjects of the painting, face
the front. He also did not closely pay attention to the dimension of the subjects of the
painting, therefore the artwork is more 2-Dimensional than 3-Dimensional.
The materials used for this piece of artwork are basically just acrylic. The artist way of
painting the image help creates a slightly blur effect on the painting, making the artwork
look more blur at the edges of the subjects. Partially to omit the background and put
the main focus on Ibrahim Husseins father and the astronaut instead.