Marking the End of Life: Rituals Across Malaysia
10 min read
Death may arrive suddenly, but it is never endured in isolation. What follows depends on your race, religion and family background.
Threads of Change: Weaving Waste Into Art
7 min read
Kelsey Merreck Wagner was trained in printmaking and ceramics. Since the very beginning, her art has been deeply tied to environmental concerns close to her heart. It wasn’t until 2017 that she decided she wanted to weave.
Taking Penang's Street Food Global
12 min read
The Michelin Guide started listing Penang food establishments in 2023. Since then, two Penang restaurants have been awarded one star, 32 are listed as Bib Gourmand Restaurants and another 35 as Michelin Selected.
A Personal Journey to Imbibe Offal, One Organ at a Time
5 min read
If I were to locate the exact point in time when I became serious about food, it would have to be upon reading Anthony Bourdain’s essay in The New Yorker, “Don’t Eat Before Reading This” and his later book, Kitchen Confidential.
Joachim Bergström: On Using Universal Values to Drive Diplomacy
12 min read
As his tenure comes to an end, Penang Monthly sits down with Joachim Bergström to talk about his team’s efforts in introducing these universal values to the country, and how these can strengthen the bilateral relationship between Sweden and Malaysia.
Penang’s Operatic Past: A Legacy of Passion and Dedication
6 min read
For a man of his accomplishments and social stature, Konishi is relatively low-profile; but his private residence in Taman Jesselton, an exquisite Italian villa-styled mansion called Villa Primavera, is widely admired and talked about.
Do Nothing and It Shall Be Done: Placemaking in Balik Pulau
6 min read
Jerry, the owner, co-founder and cook extraordinaire at Nada Natural Farming, believes in the dolce far niente—the sweetness of doing nothing. This philosophy has spilled over to the entire conception of Nada, from how it is run, to what it is meant to be.
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Ernest Zacharevic’s Decade of Art, Rubbish and Transformation
9 min read
At his studio in Lebuh Melayu, surrounded by his stunning works of art, some completed, others still in progress, we talk to Ernest about his journey as an artist and what art means to him.
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The Post-Covid Crisis: Rising Food Prices
10 min read
Cooking used to be a fun passion project, but with rising food costs, it’s now a careful act of budgeting. This piece explores how inflation is reshaping how Malaysians eat, shop and survive.
Penang Monthly Has Fun With AI Art
3 min read
What better way is there to talk about generating art with AI than to just show you? Penang Monthly uses Gencraft, a platform that creates images and videos based on text descriptions for this month's photo essay.
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Are You Reading This?
10 min read
In two studies published in 2006 and 2009, Mar et al. found that fiction readers empathise with people, understand them and can see the world from another person’s perspective better.
What Are the Penang Monthly Editors Reading?
6 min read
In between books and wondering what to read next? Here are the books Penang Monthly’s Editor and Assistant Editors are currently reading.
