By William K.C. Kee
After achieving fame as a top model, Sheena Liam now experiments with embroidery art. Her works were showcased in a recent solo exhibition in Paris.
In 2014, Sheena Liam made history by becoming the first – and thus far, only – Malaysian to win popular reality competition series Asia’s Next Top Model. But she has not rested on her laurels, instead achieving fame in another industry: the arts.
Over the past few years, Liam has made a name for herself as an embroidery artist. Using the moniker Times New Romance, her contemporary embroidery works have won her acclaim and new fans.
According to the 27-year-old beauty, Times New Romance is a body of figurative work exploring moments from her personal life.
Based on photographs of herself, Liam recreates subtle compositions in her signature dark green thread. The combination of secure and loose fibres creates an almost sculptural aesthetic as her static figures contrast the dynamic movement of each strand of hair.
As a child, Liam learnt the basics of embroidery from her mother and found herself revisiting the medium time and time again as means of self-expression between travelling and modelling.
The release of her first pieces garnered wide media attention which has escalated as her practice has evolved. She is drawn to figurative art and models for many of her own pieces.
“In a strange way, modelling parallels my art in the sense I often have to use body language as means of expressing a certain sort of mood. It’s no different from my embroideries,” explained Liam, who is presently based in the United States.
After the visual release of her images via social media in 2017, Liam cultivated an impressive online following which continues to gain momentum. (Presently, the Instagram account @times.new.romance has over 240,000 followers.)
Recently, Liam held her first solo exhibition at Item Gallery in Paris. “This the first time I´ve showcased my full body of work to the public. It is a curation of all my smaller studio works that I worked on as I travelled, mused Liam.
From her early minimal works in 2016 through to her later more complex designs, Liam bared her artistic soul to the public for the first time and chose to collaborate with Item Gallery Paris. The gallery is a contemporary art space closely connected with fine art printing house Idem Paris; past exhibitions include displays from William Kentridge, Paul McCarthy and renowned director David Lynch.
Asked about the feedback from gallery visitors, Liam enthused: “It´s been lovely! There are people who travelled from abroad to see the pieces and even people who showed me the tattoos they’ve gotten based on my work. Everyone seems to relate to it in their own way.”
She added that all of the pieces felt personal to her as “I´ve travelled with them in my suitcase everywhere I go.”
In regard to her most favourite, she said: “Maybe Girl In Front Of Mirror as this was the biggest most detailed piece I worked on.”
What was the most ambitious piece she has done? “I´ve made pieces as big as 5×5 feet which was fully hand embroidered for an installation in Singapore. I probably spent two months on that,” said Liam, who admires the works of China-born figurative artist Chen Yifei.
Liam, who married renowned Lithuanian artist Ernest Zacharevic this past year, has this to say about her husband: “Ernest has always been very supportive of everything I do.
“When I was offered to show, I initially refused, but it took convincing from Ernest and friends to see that this is not an opportunity that is offered to everyone.” For the uninitiated, Zacharevic, 31, achieved global fame in 2012 for creating street art murals in Penang, including Children On A Bicycle and Boy On A Bike.
For the exhibition, it took Liam two years to put everything together. She is enthusiastic about the idea of one day showing in her native country.
“I would love to, if presented the proper space and opportunity. I want to work on an even bigger scale which I believe is possible, especially in Malaysia with all the local craftsmen I can engage with,” said Liam.
As for her plans for 2019, Liam answered: “The past year has been a crux of everything: my marriage and my solo exhibition. I want 2019 to be a fresh start, to work on more diverse projects.
