Over the past four decades, Noor Mahnun, more widely known as Anum, has developed a painting practice grounded in observation, memory, and meticulous technique.

Her practice, largely figurative, comprises of domestic scenes and still life that fuses elements of realism, allegory and the whimsical. Everyday objects, interiors, and her environment are rendered in traditional European oil painting style—a lasting influence from her time doing at Hochschule für Bildende Künste, Braunschweig in Germany, where she completed her MFA in 1996. Carnations (2023) draws reference to Australian painter Clarice Beckett (1887-1935) and Anum’s penchant for Dutch floral paintings. While sunflowers (2025) is a nod to Vincent Van Gogh, who has inspired much of her interest in botanical drawings, still life and compositions.

Anum’s thoughtfully constructed compositions weave together domestic scenes and figures from memories and moments in her life. Meticulously executed, they are a reflection of the artist’s wry observations of people and objects in her daily life. A closer look at her painted interiors will reveal profuse geometric patterns, worked seamlessly as tiled floors, mats, wallpaper and shophouses—a reflection of her ongoing interest with architecture in Malaysia and the region, as well as from Europe. Under her hand, the ubiquitous transforms into symbols and vessels for nostalgia, drawn from narratives in her life. In Baju kurung (2025), Anum combines memories of past summers in Germany sewing her own summer dresses—a skill she had learnt from her grandmother, with her present interest in making her own ‘baju kurung’, a traditional attire in Malaysia. With outstretched arms, her figure projects a sense of surrender, teasing out the meaning of ‘kurung’, which translates to ‘enclosed’.

The exhibition’s title, “Anum” reflects the deeply autobiographical nature of the show. These mise-en-scènes, charged with personal anecdotes, are tended to with careful attention, often with a playful humour.

Within these compositions, Anum wields a unique visual language informed by the geographies that she has experienced. Elements from her life and surroundings populate her paintings and sketches—a vintage Bee’s Queen brand Chinese Honey glass (from Anum’s personal collection), Georgetown penang tiles, a Mahl stick from her studio, and more. Grand hotel (2025) recalls one of the abandoned buildings in Kuantan that had caught her eye as Anum became more conscious about selecting ‘painterly’ subjects. The rural landscapes of the east coast of Malaysia where she now resides, also quietly murmur in the background of several paintings, verdant and lush.

It is evident how the different geographies pervade the body of work that hangs on the gallery walls, which are painted a muted shade of terracotta—a nod to Singhora roof tiles. Singhora (or, Singgora) tiles are made from clay, kneaded and wedged by foot. A unique Malay heritage that is distinct to architectural features in the region, most commonly found in the east coast of the peninsula as well as Thailand.

At 60, Anum’s work continues to encompass a vibrant interplay of influences from Southeast Asia and the West—from painterly techniques to symbolic motifs, as informed by her personal experiences, and her wry observations of life. In turn they gesture towards broader commentary around femininity, labour and memory.

Marking her first solo presentation in Singapore, this show also commemorates her artistic debut at Video Diva, an artist-run space in Florence, Italy in 1985, 40 years on. For both the artist and the gallery, “Anum” marks a pivotal chapter in unfolding the story of Southeast Asian contemporary art—one that foregrounds the nuanced contributions of women artists whose practices have long developed outside the spotlight, yet resonate with remarkable clarity today.