A place for art

Media: The Edge

Section: News 

Returning for its third instalment, the three-month-long CIMB Artober aims to empower artists in Malaysia and give collectors, established and new, a space to explore expressive works by local talent.

This initiative, organised by CIMB Group, made its debut at the height of the pandemic, when numerous galleries and artists struggled to survive amid the lockdowns.

The event created a buzz at end-2020 and, with its success, has grown from strength to strength. "Artober reflects our ambition to promote creative industry, which will then enable economic empowerment that will lead to what we call 'community well-being," says Rafe Haneef, CEO of CIMB Foundation.

This year, 15 of the most reputable galleries in Malaysia are taking part and more than 600 curated new artworks will be available to the public.

“Our main objective is to bring all of them together to create that buzz, that excitement So, everyone in the art scene and the greater industry will look forward to the last three months of the year. 

CIMB is promoting this awareness and appreciation, and building a market place for artists and collectors and what we call 'aspiring art collectors'.

We are seeing more and more people collecting art with the exposure we have given, as well as having a better appreciation for it," he said.