Malaysian artist uses art to connect generations and start a conversatiom

by Carolyn Ray

In many cultures, jewelry is not just an ornament; it’s an essential part of the wedding ceremony, representing love, wealth, and status. In Malaysian artist Azzah Sultan’s latest exhibition, ‘Pengantin Baru’ (Newlyweds), she examines the cultural significance of jewelry and the connection to her heritage. Recently, I had an opportunity to visit with this talented and inspiring artist in New York.

“This specific series was inspired two years ago when I was back home in Malaysia,” Sultan says. “I was working on my third solo show, and my mom gave me these bangles and said, ‘I know you’re not married yet, but I want you to have these’. It really stuck with me, because I started thinking about ‘what does it mean being an unmarried woman — an unmarried Muslim woman?’ Then I started exploring this idea of weddings and marriages in Malaysia, and how to promote this idea of beauty through weddings. That’s where I fell in love with the idea of jewelry at weddings.”

Sultan explains that wearing jewelry at weddings is an honour; it shows who you are and where your heritage comes from. In Southeast Asian culture, jewelry has intergenerational importance. Passing jewelry from a mother to a daughter is an act of love and can help to create some financial stability for her. This is often done at the time of a young woman’s wedding.

“We’re living in an era where a lot of things are forgotten,” says Sultan. “As kids growing up in America with immigrant households, you tend to feel like you have to stray away from your culture and where you’re from. It only gets to a point where you start to get to a certain age where you realize you miss it and want to know more. For me, there are elements of culture and heritage that I think are very important to remember, and there are some elements that can be portrayed in a more positive light as well.”

Women’s jewelry as consequential pieces of material culture

In Sultan’s fourth solo exhibition, she explores Peranakan jewelry, which denotes a person of mixed Chinese and Malay/Indonesian heritage, and its significance in weddings and as objects of nostalgia. By combing through her family’s wedding albums, and reflecting on the role these objects play in many important rituals and life changes, Sultan examines the broader challenges of material culture, while sharing her understanding of what it means to be both Malaysian and Muslim.

“My parents always found ways to promote Malaysia and help us understand our heritage,” she says. “My mom would host these fashion shows where she would have her own collection of batik materials, traditional clothing, and my sister and I would perform Malaysian dancing. I’ve used my art as a way to share understanding between the younger and older generations, because I feel it’s important for us to understand our culture and our heritage and not lose track of that.”

Malaysian weddings are steeped in tradition

Steeped in centuries-old customs, Malaysian traditional weddings are a way to ensure this cultural legacy thrives for future generations. They are often large, inclusive gatherings that bring together extended families, friends, and neighbours—the definition of gratitude, hospitality, and community spirit central to Malay culture.

The main wedding celebration starts with the Akad Nikah, the religious ceremony where the couple is officially married, typically in a mosque or at the bride’s home. This is followed by the bersanding ceremony (sitting-in-state ceremony) where the newlyweds sit on a beautifully decorated dais (pelamin) like royalty, receiving blessings from family and guests. In her exhibition, Sultan explores these traditions, bringing new understanding to Malaysian culture and heritage.

A solo exhibition focused on the significance of jewelry

Each of the six pieces in Sultan’s exhibition has its own significance and story, with her parents’ own wedding jewelry as the inspiration.

In addition to a jewelry box, featured items include a hair pin (cucuk sanggul), brooch (kerosang), and dagger (kris) used in Malaysian wedding ceremonies. These colourful, three-dimensional pieces combine oil paint with hand-stitched fabric, buttons and lace embroidered along the border. Due to the complexity of the work, many of the paintings take months; she tends to work with three or four paintings at the same time.

Portrait 1: Pelamin (Wedding Dais)

Oil and hand-stiched fabric on canvas

The painting Pelamin (Wedding Dais), was inspired by her mother’s wedding.

“I had never seen any pictures of my mother at my parent’s wedding until I was back in Malaysia in 2023,” she recalls. “It was really nice to see my mother when she got married at the age of 30. I’m turning 29 soon, so we’re around the same age.”

In this piece, the bride’s face is covered with a fan, and she’s sitting on her throne. There’s also a tree with feathers, which lets people know there’s a wedding taking place. Weddings are typically community events, with hundreds of people attending. This piece uses batik fabrics, silk, a headpiece and highlights the wedding jewelry, including a brooch, two bangles and a ring.

Sultan highlights her decision not to show faces in her work.

“It’s a decision I made when I was in grad school,” she says. “One side of it is sort of my respect towards Islam, how there’s no representation of faces. It’s also my way of defeating the male gaze. I’ve noticed in the past, whenever I’ve done performance work or video work or I speak to faces, there’s sort of this sexualization of women. Being a woman of color as well, I can look a certain way, and someone will still find something to sexualize, even though I wear a hijab.”

Portrait 2: Akad Nikah (Marriage contract)

Oil and hand-stitched fabric and jewelry on canvas

The Akad Nikah ceremony signifies not only the couple’s legal union but also their commitment to building a life together based on faith, love, and mutual respect. In Akad Nikah (Marriage Contract), the bride and groom are now permitted to touch and are standing beside each other. Jewelry featured includes a ring, bracelets, brooches and fabric buttons.

“This is just a very celebratory piece,” she says. “The groom has the dagger to protect the bride. The bride is almost leaning into him, holding him for support. This fabric shown was originally worn by royals, and they would actually use metal silk or thread to weave it to create these garments. Now it’s something that a lot of people wear for their own weddings or for a special event like Eid.”

Portrait 4: In Cucuk Sanggul (Hair Pin)

Oil and hand-stitched buttons on canvas

The cultural significance of women’s jewelry in Malaysian and Southeast Asian culture is evidenced in its treatment of folklore and cultural norms. Traditionally, Peranakan women used a hair pin to avoid comparisons to a demon or vampiric spirit called the Pontianak, whose hair flowed wildly.

Portrait 6: I<3U

Oil and hand-stitched fabric on canvas

I<3U is a more playful piece, inspired by the female friendships in her life. The piece shows a heart locket with a picture of her parents on one side, and her roommate’s cat on the other, as a representation of both romantic and platonic relationships. The quote “and we created you in pairs” – وَخَلَقْنَاكُمْ أَزْوَاجًا is from the Quran, is used when people get engaged.

Disclaimer: This article is part of a series on Malaysian culture, supported by Visit Malaysia.

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