Awang Damit

Born in Kuala Penyu, Sabah, Malaysia in 1956, Awang Damit Ahmad has been active on the art scene since the 1970s. He started his life as a farmer in his village of Kuala Penyu, Sabah, and later worked as a technician for Telecom in Malacca. Eventually, Awang found his calling as an artist. His interest and talent developed in Malacca, the land of history, after watching artists painting in the open-air at St. Paul Hill. It was then that he realised he was born to paint.

Eventually, Awang resigned from his job and enrolled in Fine Arts at Institut Teknologi MARA in 1979. He graduated in 1983 and furthered his studies in painting at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., where he obtained a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts in 1990. He then returned to Malaysia where he taught Fine Arts in the Faculty of Art and Design at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) until his retirement in 2011. Awang is currently a full-time artist, working in his studio located in Sijangkang, Telok Panglima Garang, Selangor.

In the early stages, Awang was inspired by the works of famous local artists such as Syed Ahmad Jamal and Abdul Latiff Mohidin, especially in terms of the abstract and semi-abstract treatment of subjects.

Education:

• Diploma in Art and Design: Institut Teknologi Mara, Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
• Master of Fine Art (Painting): Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C., USA

Awards:

• 1983: Best Student Award (Fine Art), Mara Institute of Technology, Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
• 1985: Minor Award (The Young Contemporary Art Competition), National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur
• 1988: 2nd Prize (Painting Competition organised by Malaysian Bank Association), Kuala Lumpur
• 1991/92: Major and Consolation Award for “Art Salon Malaysia”, Nasional Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• 2012: Gold Medal as Honorary Ambassador (1st ECOREA JEONBUK BIENNALE 2012), Korea
• 2012: Gold Medal (Olympic Fine Art, London)

Professional Experience:

• Full-Time Artist: July 1983 to May 1985
• Fine Art Instructor: June 1985 to December 1988
• Art Curator: January 1993 to December 1994
• Lecturer: September 1990 to December 1993
• Senior Lecturer: January 1994 to December 1999
• Fine Art Head of Department: September 1997 until September 1998
• Associate Professor: January 2000 to May 2011
• Retired and became a full-time painter: May 2011 until present