It can be an ill wind that blows no good with the Northerly Winds (Iraga) sweeping China towards Sabah. Crops are destroyed and the fishermen have to stay inshore, resulting in a great loss of income and productivity. This, partly, is the gist of Iraga, Awang Damit Ahmad’s field of works from 2003-2011. It somewhat echoes the concept of Predestination in Islam, and a Malay Muslim’s relationship with Allah. But Iraga is not about whining, it’s a doa of thanks for all the small mercies and protection from the vagaries of the weather, of which Man has absolutely no control of despite measures like ‘cloud-seeding,.’ A relative late-starter in Art, Awang Damit Ahmad (ADA) took up late when he was already 27, though he was chosen Best Student when he studied for his BFA at the University ITM. He furthered his studies by obtaining his Masters at the Catholic University in Washington DC in 1989-1990. He was selected for the major Contemporary Paintings of Malaysia exhibition at the Asia-Pacific Museum in Pasadena, Los Angeles, in 1988. He won the biggest Malaysian art prize in a decade, the 1st Prize (and also a Consolation Prize) in the Salon Malaysia III organised by the National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, for his work, Nyanyian Petani Gunung (now in Petronas Collection). In 1988, he also won 2nd Prize in the Malaysian Bank Association art competition. He taught Art from 1985-1988, and 1990 to May 2011, when he retired to go fulltime into Art, during which time he headed the Fine Art Department (Sept 1977-Sept 1998) and was made Associate Professor (Jan 2000 to May 2011).