YSDAF 2026 Satellite is set to take place for one day only on 5 April 2026 on The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre’s (klpac) grounds.
The upcoming satellite is a bite-sized offshoot from the biennial Yayasan Sime Darby Arts Festival (YSDAF) with two main events – “Synesthetic Symphony of Sound & Sight” and “Handyzone”.
Inclusive and collaborative art-making
Last year, the festival celebrated 10 years of arts and community with a 10-stop tour around Peninsular Malaysia. One work that caught the attention of festival goers back then was a group of visual artists painting live as a soothing tune filled the space.
Some were using their hands, while others, brushes. It became apparent that each station for each artist was identical – the order in which the paint jars were arranged along with other tools. This was in fact intentional as the artists, who were either blind or had low vision.
This inclusive arts initiative was the winner of the YSDAF 2025 Pitch Start grant and a groundbreaking collaboration between the Malaysian Association for the Blind led by Dato’ George Thomas, Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris led by Dr. Rosyida binti Mohd Rozlan and Persatuan Hearts Symphony led by Wong Siew Ngan to explore synesthesia in the visually impaired and the connection between art, tactile and sound sensations.
At the upcoming YSDAF 2026 Satellite, members of the public will have two opportunities to experience this multi-sensory performance at 11.00am and 2.00pm at Pentas 2.
Seven newly trained artists alongside two former members will paint live as an ensemble of musicians and singers comprising blind individuals as well as children from marginalised communities perform Wong Siew Ngan’s “Colours of My Heart” under the baton of Frederick Chaw. Additionally, two songs “The Monkey” and “The Tiger” in the Jahai language will be performed.
During this 30-minute experiential journey, audiences can sit back to enjoy the performance or wander up close to witness how the artists’ creations unfold. They can even bring their own materials to create their own art on the side.
One of the key innovations from the project is the tactile paint co-designed with the artists. Different materials were integrated in the paint so they could easily identify the different colours such as green beans in green paint, cocopeat for purple and perlite for white.
Building on the success of this pilot project, the team aims to enable more individuals who are blind or have low vision to experience painting. The Arti.Sense Tactile Paint Kits to be distributed to special schools will be launched during the event as well.
After the second performance, there will also be a forum and Q&A session where the facilitators will share more about their process and members of the public can ask questions.
The initiative perfectly encapsulated YSDAF 2025’s theme of Community: Side by Side and Pitch Start’s aim to encourage collaboration not only within the community of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) but between PWDs and other communities.
Hands-on art-making
Apart from the performance, there will be a Handyzone from 11.00am to 4.00pm with eight booths where you can pick up a new skill or learn to make your own masterpiece through their hands-on activities.
The participating vendors include Precious Plastic Malaysia, Some Fun Enterprise, Nellevate, Fun4Kids, Keynote Minds, Baiduren, S’Perience and Terrarium Garden Malaysia.
While the workshops have limited capacity and pre-registration is required, those who did not snag a spot can try the walk-in queue on the day or just drop by for other all-day activities at each booth.
One can also create your very own YSDAF custom souvenir by bringing your own cotton T-shirt or tote bag to screen print a custom-designed YSDAF print.
Presented by Yayasan Sime Darby and klpac, YSDAF 2026 Satellite is supported by Sime Darby Berhad, SD Guthrie Berhad, Sime Darby Property Berhad, and for the first time, the MADANI Government under Belanjawan 2025.
Admission is free for both events but pre-registration is required for the performance as well as workshops via CloudJoi.
