WHEN the International Art Expo Malaysia (AEM) 2007 burst into the art landscape, it caught many by surprise – that it actually happened at all, although many would have been clued in on the buzz.
Reason was that Malaysia was still not known for having a great appreciation or even awareness of art, to respond to the sophistication of the fledgling art-fair and art-auction business. Government support was unheard of, while the big corporate boys were unlikely to open their chequebooks for something uncharted and unknown.
But Vincent Sim, the man behind AEM, is not someone easily deterred. After all, he had his dream come true when he headed the 1st, and only, Art Tourism Malaysia, at the Malacca International Trade Centre in Ayer Keroh, in 2006. For starters, most of the exhibitors were artists themselves, as many local galleries were skeptical that it would work. But the artists-run booths did have its advantages, for many collectors as well as the laymen got to talk to the artists about their works, their lives and their struggles.
Despite having to splashed out large sums of money and knowing that it was going to be a red-ink financial affair, Vincent Sim persevered, in his naive but challenging belief of bringing some of the best art and artists from all over the world to Kuala Lumpur, under one roof.
