A word from Narelle...

Well, we tried, but no way could we beat a competitor that put on 3,500 votes in three days… We voted in what we believe was the good old fashioned way and in the spirit of  the competition. The team around LASSie were superb. Jerome our volunteer worked tirelessly updating constantly Facebook, Twitter and blogs and even got us on YouTube! Alison and all Bon Ton and LASSie staff worked hard at it daily. Robert even took the computer round to each table to gather votes in ChinaHouse, Penang. Outside shelters came to our support – AnimalCare, SPCA Selangor and Penang and many others we didn’t know about, including one in the US. Devi in Penang who we never met, but who has always been a great supporter worked the whole month to find voters for us. Dr Geetha who is our co-founder in Singapore worked the Singaporean animal lovers for votes.

Thanks to all these people, and also to friends (including all our fans & followers!), family and guests who voted for us. Sorry for so many follow-up emails! A big thank you to Mark Batros who nominated us and Megaa who was his main support for his dream. The only regret is we can’t have the list of the people who did vote for LASSie. We can never thank them individually and might never know who they are. But please accept this as a big thank you.

A little note… The cute puppy on our first flier… His name is Chubby Chups, and he and his sister Storm were found in Beach St Penang, in a burnt building just down from our ChinaHouse food & arts centre. We had a few people that wanted to adopt Chubby as he was cute. But no one wanted Storm as she was not pretty. But the rule was they went together as they were so happy together. In the end we had no choice but to bring them to Langkawi… courtesy of Malaysia Airlines!! They are now 6 months old, inseparable and enjoy LASSie's seabreezes, lawn and space to play. Thanks Chubby for being our pin up boy!!

Narelle

LASSie on SunSuper Dreams

LASSie, the Langkawi Animal Shelter & Sanctuary foundation, has just been nominated on the SunSuper Dreams website, which gives us a chance to win a much-needed AUS$5,000 grant for the shelter. Here’s a message by Narelle McMurtrie, owner of Brand Bon Ton and founder of LASSie:

“To all our friends, we have been nominated by one of our guests for his wish/dream to help the stray animals of Langkawi. Bon Ton Resort, Temple Tree Resort, Straits Collection and ChinaHouse Penang, all under the Bon Ton group, operate LASSie, the Langkawi Animal Shelter and Sanctuary. Not only do we provide shelter for the strays on the island but we also operate our own charity animal clinic to sterilize all the strays. In this way we hope to control the stray population. It is a huge job. Please record your vote for us, as we may be lucky enough to win AUS$ 5,000. And we need all the help we can get. Many thanks for your support, Narelle”.

If you wish to support LASSie's cause and cast your vote for our furry friends, go to the SunSuper Dreams website. Just click “Vote”, fill in your first name, email address and captcha verification code, and click on the confirmation link sent to your inbox. All in all, it’s free and takes less than one minute to complete. There are only worthy causes on SunSuper Dreams and you may cast your vote for three of them in total. We do hope that you will consider registering one of these three votes for LASSie before the deadline on February 29, 2012.

Thanks everyone for your support. And thank you to all the people and organizations that will be sharing our voting link with their friends and followers. And most of all, thank you to our guest who registered on SunSuper Dreams in the first place. Do check our LASSie website to learn more about the foundation, the island animal clinic and how to donate to the foundation.

Transience, Open Salon Exhibition in ChinaHouse

We are delighted to announce that ChinaHouse is currently hosting the Photography Open Salon exhibition, in partnership with the Arles Photography Open Salon and the Alliance Française in Penang.  

With 100 photographers from 32 countries from Arles (France), the celebrated 'capital' of international photography, to George Town, the UNESCO heart of Penang (Malaysia), this selection of ‘open call’ winning images from the 2011 Photography Open Salon showcases cutting-edge and emerging photography from around the world. Thought-provoking, visually exciting, the exhibition - featuring over 100 artists from 32 countries - culminates in 'The Poverty Line' project of overall winners Stefen Chow and HY Lin. All of this year's Photography Open Salon 2011 artists from Arles will be represented with at least one piece of artwork. Exhibited prints are for sale.

The Arles installation will be divided between ChinaHouse and Alliance Française. The exhibition dates and opening times are as follows:

ChinaHouse
Vernissage opening on 12 Jan 6.30pm
Exhibition dates:  12 Jan – 11 Feb 2012

Alliance Française de Penang
Vernissage opening on 18 Jan 7.30pm
Exhibition dates: 18 Jan – 8 Feb 2012

For more information on this exceptional exhibition, visit our website or feel free to get in touch.

ChinaHouse
153-155 Beach Street, 10300 Georgetown, Penang
T 04 263 7299   E info@straitscollection.com.my

Alliance Française de Penang
46, Jalan Phuah Hin Leong,10050 Georgetown, Penang
T 04 227 6008   E pedagopenang@alliancefrancaise.org.my

Currently ongoing @Studio and @ChinaHouse...

With the opening of ChinaHouse on Beach Street, Brand Bon Ton is now blessed with enough room space to hold more than just one exhibition at once. As our main gallery, Studio at Straits is now proudly exhibiting a collection of contemporary ceramics by Alex Tan and Cheah Yeow Seng. Come and be enthralled by the design and colors of these masterful art pieces, some reminiscent of old Chinese ceramics but truly in a league of their own. This exhibition will be held until December 18, so make sure to make some room in your busy schedules to follow Tan's and Cheah's footsteps in the wonderland of pottery.

As for ChinaHouse, two exhibitions are concurrently being held. The first one, entitled Faces of Expression, are paintings from Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines by the artist collective House of Matahati. Here's the introduction to this extremely evocative exhibition, to be held until December 26 at Art Space I :

"Being one of the largest means of human communication, expression has always been the trait that defined us the most. Self representation comes after expression, as a conscious choice of individuals on how they wish for others to perceive themselves. The back and forth of emotions and their messages form a collective negotiation that is a constant everyday struggle. This dynamics of expression is expressed and suggested in the paintings, and presented for the inspection and appreciation by the viewer".

The second exhibition, beautifully named Equilibration and Expiration, is a photographic essay by Malaysian artist Fauzi Husin :

"According to Jean Piaget, a cognitive psychologist, when external reality does not match with the logical internal mental structures, Equilibration occurs as an effort to bring balance as the person adapts more sophisticated mental structures. On the other hand, like products display on the shelves of a supermarket, Fauzi Husin sees Expiration as something that revolves around life, existence, mortality and the process of aging and decay. These two series are the photographer's exploration of Equilibration and Expiration."

Equilibration and Expiration will be held until December 26 in ChinaHouse's Art Space II.

For more information on our exhibition, visit our website or feel free to get in touch. 

Studio at Straits

86 Armenian Street, 10200 Georgetown, Penang

T 04 262 7299  E info@straitscollection.com.my

ChinaHouse
153-155 Beach Street, 10300 Georgetown, Penang
T 04 263 7299  E info@straitscollection.com.my

Symphony & Oppression, by Louise Low

From October 22nd to November 15th, come and visit our brand-new exhibition at Studio : Symphony and Oppression, by talented Malaysian artist Louise Low Seok Loo. Louise has dedicated her artistic search to the representations of orchids, these exotic flowers well known to all living in or familiar with Malaysia. Here's what she has to say about her exciting exhibition and her irresistible attraction to orchids:

"The very representation of love, beauty and strength, orchids have always fascinated me. In my first series, Symphony of Life, the flower is my maestro in exploring the relationship between life and tradition while the colours portray instruments strung by my heart. Within my search for a sense of belonging within my own culture, my paintings surface as a visual and lyrical garden, alive through the juxtaposition of exotic orchids interlocking with traditional batik impressions".

Come and admire the colourful compositions of Louise Low Seok Loo, only until November 15th at Studio at Straits. For more information, visit our website. 

Studio at Straits

86 Armenian Street, 10200 Georgetown, Penang

T 04 262 7299  E info@straitscollection.com.my