The Final Touch by Ysabel Loh
What if you never achieved your dream?
The Final Touch is an exhibition by Ysabel (Yzzy) Loh that contemplates the threshold between potential and realisation. It draws from the legend of Zhang Sengyou, the painter who refused to paint a dragon’s eyes for the Chinese emperor, fearing the artwork would come alive and fly away. In his restraint lies a quiet truth: some things remain dormant not because they lack power, but because we are not yet ready to witness them.
Visitors are invited to first sit with the artwork in its physical form. Contemplate the painting as it exists now, complete yet incomplete, holding its breath. You are welcome to add your own reflections to the piece, writing down your dreams and what keeps you from them.
The experience then unfolds into its “what if” form through virtual reality. In this liminal space, the painting awakens. Experience the canvas breaking open through the virtual reality headset as you encounter a dream space where scales shimmer, breath thunders, and the artwork takes flight.
This exhibition is a collaboration with Qing Huan Tea House. We encourage you to sit, order a tea, and let the ritual slow you down. Learn a little about the art of tea, of waiting, and of becoming.
The Final Touch asks you to consider: what would you create if you were bold enough to finish it?
The exhibition is open from 1pm to 9pm on Sunday October 18th , with the artist giving a talk about her work at 3pm.
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About the artist
Ysabel Loh is a multidisciplinary artist from Penang whose work blends local heritage with speculative and immersive technologies, including VR, interactive films, and video game prototypes. Though she was born in London and spent several years there, Ysabel’s works such as The Pulau I Call Home from Cahaya XR with Maitree House in George Town Festival 2022 and Exchanging Memoirs with the French Embassy of Penang in 2023, explore themes of memory, cultural identity, and belonging. You may also find her AR story ‘Story of the Railway Clock Tower’ on the CERITALAH app. As for performances, Ysabel also worked as a director, writer, and performer in Penang-based arts collective Dabble Dabble Jer Collective and in London. With her BA in English and Theatre Studies from University of Warwick and an MA in Digital Media Production in UCL, Ysabel’s practice reflects a belief that digital media is the next step in evolving traditional storytelling.