T'was a chain of art!

An event waited with anticipation that ended with another anticipation for the next one.

Simply said, RANtai was the main reason why I happened to be parking at KLCC for five consecutive days, and of course, forcefully visiting the mall itself repetitively for hours at different times of the day from as early in the morning to the late night.

Considering that I don't work there and my house is obviously not a breeze away, it immediately became one of the dumbest thing I've done this year. It was so frequent, I always ended up guessing the parking rates right at the end of the day - and it was always disastrously overpriced.

I was talking about the KLCC part, of course. For those who came and witnessed the event, they would immediately know how the MIA Arthouse - the red bungalow behind Pelita - would be just a walk away from KLCC. Last year RANtai was held at a place relatively unknown, so basically this year the organisers scored quickly in choosing the right venue.

RANtai makes every ends in the local art scene meet. The effort was vibrant and enthusiasm was visible everywhere. These also came along with simplicity - the venue itself was by right not the fanciest. It either shows humility over materialism, or simply the guys don't have that much of money to stage the stuff at anywhere 'proper' to some eyes. Seriously though, I don't give a damn. The event knocked our hearts out of the planet.

Mainly indie in content, RANtai at its core did a good job in highlighting many shining talents in the local art scene, and we're talking about music, photography, fashion, films and many other form of art. At its peak, crowds hurled to the many fashion booths outside catering many independent clothing lines while the various performers made their scene at the nearby moderate stage. Inside the two-story red bungalow, lively forms of artworks were being displayed much to the awe of the viewers, and the nights are filled with acoustic performances, poem recitals, and movie screenings.

Basically RANtai was not solely a gig or one of those events that posers would flock and escape alive. RANtai was to be shared, of course, but it also has to be appreciated. Troublemakers that came for nothing just left a scar that I believe the organisers themselves would not even dreamed of.

But then again it's free, so yeah, everybody likes something that is free.

My personal favourite would be Supernab's and 84cube's display. Sue Anna Joe's was pretty much an open display of vanity. I liked Safuraa Razak's travel shots, and of course, Udey Ismail's. There is a lot to be highlighted, really, but I lost count the names. And heck, this is not a magazine. However none of the displays seem to fail. Art booths were definitely a success - names like Bangkit, Kurasaraksasa, I Heart KL, Jiwakosongart and other clothing lines are a must-catch the next time they are selling out their products.

Because Topshop T-shirts are so a thing of yesterday. God knows how overrated the T-shirts are becoming - everybody seems to be wearing one. You don't want to get caught up with somebody else wearing the same T's, do you? Unless of course if it's a uniform of some type. But that's about the printed T-shirts lah, other stuffs are still OK lah kot, kan? Wait, I think that sweater is familiar!

Heh, newbies.

Well RANtai was an event worth coming everyday, but next time, I would rather allow some gap in between, if you know what I mean. It's an effort worth the pain, if there is any pain. So before anybody would start a countdown to the next year's, I better start to buckle up and brush up my already wacky art and photo skills. Like who knows, right? Orang dalam pun dah ada, haha. RANtai was a success and missing it would be missing a part of the year. I'm glad I didn't.

For more pictures (yet not so many), go Flickr!

PICTURE View of the crowd from the top floor of the bungalow MORE at Myspace.com/Rantai and Rantai at Blogspot. SEE ALSO Click a Child, an initiative program to help children in need and 10 Tahun Sebelum Merdeka, an excellent, no-nonsense documentary that was shown at RANtai, by Fahmi Reza.