The arts are how beauty, truth, and meaning find expression in everyday life, shaping a society’s depth and resilience. Yet they endure only when they are truly valued — not as ornament, but as lived practice.
Hasanah’s work begins here, grounded in what it takes for the arts to sustain in real terms.
26,748 people experienced arts
initiatives via a variety of 95 public events nationwide
This means building ecosystems where artists can make a living from their craft, and recognising that creative excellence is sometimes rooted in places not traditionally seen as cultural centres — in homes, in communities, in practices passed quietly across generations.
Through support in platform creation and access to markets, these expressions are able to move beyond preservation into participation — translating skill, heritage, and identity into viable livelihoods.
In doing so, the arts are not set apart, but grow alongside society — remaining relevant, rooted, and a living force of continuity.
RM383,297 in ticket sales generated*
across 63 ArtsFAS events, supporting arts sustainability
* 25 of the ArtsFAS events were ticketed events
1,089 creative professionals engaged
as performers, trainers, and facilitators to various arts initiatives
126 art practitioners trained in textile skills
to strengthen livelihoods and drive innovation in preserving heritage textiles
35 practitioners increased their income
as a direct result of the programme
Feature Story
An Unlikely Place for Keringkam
Inside a youth detention centre, a heritage craft is shaping discipline, identity, and second chances.
Inside a classroom at Sekolah Henry Gurney in Sarawak, Nazhan (name changed), nearly 21 years old, sits cross-legged on the floor, a length of red gauze stretched taut across a wooden frame before him.