The Art of Khik Weng Keat

Frenchise , acrylic on canvas, 2023. 18" X 26" The painting depicts several symbols which represent the country of France. The title of the painting is a combination of the words French and franchise (which can be simply explained as a recognizable business because their signs and colors are the same). The word franchise almost resembles the French word for French, Français . The Eiffel Tower in Paris is the most recognizable landmark and the tallest building in the French capital. Built from wrought iron in the late 1880s, it has since become a global cultural icon of France and one of the most famous structures in the world. The rose is a symbol of romance, and the pink rose in the painting is said to be the Rosa 'La France', a hybrid rose cultivar found in France in 1867. A pink rose is also a symbol of elegance and admiration. Three roses are in the painting, conveying that one would fall in love in the country's romantic atmosphere, and reflects Paris's n...

  Legendary Pearl Guardian , acrylic on canvas, 2023. 23" X 18" The weedy sea dragon ( Phyllopteryx taeniolatus ), also called the common sea dragon, inhabits the waters off south and east Australia. This superbly camouflaged fish is usually found in kelp-covered rocky reefs. Compared to the leafy sea dragon, weedy sea dragons have less flamboyant projections and are usually reddish in color with yellow spots. Like its close cousin, the seahorse, the weedy sea dragon is an awkward swimmer and instead will often swirl and drift with the current like a blade of seaweed. As with seahorses, male sea dragons are responsible for childbearing. But instead of a pouch, like seahorses have, male sea dragons have a spongy brood patch on the underside of the tail where females deposit up to 250 bright-pink, pearl-like eggs during mating. The eggs are fertilized during the transfer from the female to the male. The males then incubate the eggs and carry them to term, releasing miniature se...