2007 marked the 50th anniversary of Merdeka, Malaysia’s independence from British rule. To celebrate this, the government declared 2007 the year of “Visit Malaysia”, a year for the world to come and discover Malaysia but, similarly, a year for Malaysians to take a good hard look at themselves in the mirror. As such, Selamat Datang ke Malaysia was a cultural expo of sorts, an exhibition of contemporary Malaysian artists on Malaysia.

The ten artists, all born in post-Independence Malaysia, attempted to explore different facets of “Malaysia”, from celebrations of the melting pot of Malaysian people, to tensions within religious and ethnic identity, to explorations of how Malaysians have sought to establish “Malaysia” on the world stage, including the delusions of grandeur inherent in doing so.

The exhibition opened at the Asia-Australia Arts Centre in Sydney, Australia, before travelling to Valentine Willie Fine Art in Kuala Lumpur.