THE ROLE OF TRADITIONAL ISLAMIC MALAY FORMATIONS IN DEVELOPMENT CONTEMPORARY ISLAMIC FORMATIONS-BASED LOCAL IDENTITY

Abstract

The main idea of this project is to highlight the important role that is traditional Malay art plays to establishment contemporary Islamic formations based on local Malay identity. Despite the multiplicity of artistic modern and postmodern trends, traditional Malay arts have proved very important role in establishing contemporary Islamic formations. The strange thing is that, the contemporary Islamic formations carry the same artistic and aesthetic values that reflect to local Malay identity. Although, the modern and postmodern principles created difficulties to understand the artistic and aesthetic concepts of contemporary Islamic Malaysian elements as well as determine the style of artwork itself. However, the artistic principles of traditional Malay art provided and played a major role in terms of the realization of Malay identity, traditional principles, and artistic characteristics like wood carving, Songket fabric, and Batik. Therefore, the Muslim Malay artist could gather aesthetically between traditional characteristics and contemporary ideas and principles. at same time, he could create several advantages of art and make Islamic Malay artworks more important in the post-modern stage. This paper aim to examine and analyze the aesthetic and artistic values of contemporary Islamic Malaysian art and identify the importance of traditional Malaysian arts in creating contemporary formations in Malaysia. This study developed method that is based new theory. How does local identity of traditional Malay art play important role to establishment contemporary Islamic formations? What are aesthetic values of the contemporary Islamic Malaysian artworks? In order to answer these questions, this study used descriptive study method based on novel theoretical framework to analyze selected samples of two contemporary Islamic Malaysian artworks from two Muslim Malaysian artists.