Never Forgetting Balik Pulau – exploring an alluring, rustic village in Penang across time
Josephine Choo
Photography, design and layout by Adrian Cheah
"Never Forgetting Balik Pulau" is part memoir, part guide. The author, after spending her entire youth in the village, accumulated a bagful of tales. Exploratory trips back gave credence to past memories but gradually, a comprehensive guide with maps to the village evolved.
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Enjoying the book "Never forgetting Balik Pulau"
Book review by Lillian Cheah
12 December 2020
A book was printed yesterday. Straight from the printers, the very first copy was delivered to me so that I could read and critique it.
Titled “Never Forgetting Balik Pulau”, this 176-page book is physically eye-catching, peppered very generously throughout with beautiful photographs many of which almost breathe life.
I was privy to the journey undertaken by the collaborators of the book – Josephine Choo and Adrian Cheah.
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In the Best of Company: Postcards from the Hajj
Mike Gibby
Design and layout by Adrian Cheah, ACEK Creative Solutions
Muslim pilgrims have been travelling for Hajj for more than fourteen centuries. How similar, how different have their experiences been? In our changing world, how has the safety and convenience of air travel changed the experience of Hajj?
Gathered here are the thoughts and concerns of Hajjis travelling over the last thousand years by trains, boats and planes, by camel, car or on foot – compared with the experiences of a recent pilgrim to Makkah.
This small book is an attempt to have a conversation with earlier generations of Hajjis, and attempts to answer questions about the changing nature of Hajj.
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Fraser’s Hill and Lewis J. Fraser of Singapore
R. H. Hale
Design and layout by Adrian Cheah, ACEK Creative Solutions
When the name Fraser is mentioned in Singapore, most people ask ‘you mean Fraser & Neave?’ In this case, the answer is ‘No’.
The author’s rigorous historical research and superb narrative skills bring to life the fascinating story of the relatively unknown pioneer, Lewis J. Fraser. Born in Singapore in 1841, Fraser became a well-known and popular businessman there. But fickle markets and financial difficulties in the early 1880s resulted in a high-profile court case that brought his commercial downfall. Fraser was sentenced to two years of rigorous imprisonment.
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The Armenians of Penang
Nadia H. Wright
Design and layout by Adrian Cheah, ACEK Creative Solutions
Why is there an Armenian Street in Penang? This quaint, narrow street draws visitors from around the world but there is little to explain the legacy of Penang’s small, bygone Armenian population, after which it was named.
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Energy Revolution: Evolution or End of Humanity
N Gunananthan
Design and layout by Adrian Cheah
Our only limited resource in life is time
Possible extinction events are around the corner and we need technology and a greater understanding of energy to overcome extinction. But fortunately, just around the corner too, will be the greatest revolution ever for humanity, where energy will become free and opportunities will open up everywhere.
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Ireland ~ Penang: Bridging Friendships
Maggie Territt and Barry Leddy
Design, layout and photographs by Adrian Cheah
They came, as long ago as the mid-nineteenth century from all parts of Ireland, the Emerald Isle, with exotic names like Clare, Laois, Cork, Mayo, Mallow, Antrim and Tipperary. They numbered among Penang’s first overseas settlers and during long voyages by sea, suffered untold hardships. Some came for fame and fortune, some simply for the adventure, but many did so, fired by their desire to help open up unknown parts of the “new world” and to impart both their knowledge and faith.
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Designing “Just for the love of it: Popular Music in Penang, 1930s–1960s”
Imagine the process of laying out a magazine and preparing the artwork for printing without desktop publishing capabilities. Everything was not at your fingertips and the world of graphic design involved Letraset font catalogues, Pantone charts, typesetting services, bromides, set squares, Cow Gum, paste-up work and films. Those were the good olde days of graphic design before the digital era took over.
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Regimes, diets and joys of life: A fatman’s journey to becoming an Ironman
N Gunananthan
Design and layout by Adrian Cheah
Just like my journey towards financial freedom, my goal of getting healthy was not without its fair share of pitfalls. Through it all, as trite as it may sound, determination and goal-setting played a lead role in my success and they continue to assist me in my daily life. One of the reasons for this book is to address all the different emotions and thinking processes that took me through the several stages to getting healthy. I spent a lot of time in introspection, thinking about it, convincing myself; it took months, if not years.
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Galle Fort, World Heritage Site – a visitor's guide and illustrated walking tour
By Mark Thompson and Karl Steinberg
Design and layout by Adrian Cheah
Galle Fort is one of Sri Lanka’s most glorious World Heritage Sites, and it promises to retain its charms and beauty for centuries more under the careful watch of its custodians. The challenges of development and mass tourism will be great but Galle Fort has faced many dramatic changes in its history: invasions, battles, colonisation, terrorist attacks, plague and even the most devastating tsunami since Krakatoa.
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