The winds blowing from China and Japan to the northern part of Borneo are neither cold nor chilly. They are hot, sweltering and even the sea surface water is hot. What fish would brave to swim in the upper regions this February and March, the cruellest months? "Over the South China Sea, the monsoons are generated by the low-pressure troughs in the intertropical convergence one which moves North or South following the sun through the seas." Reference: www.travelcentre.com Awang Damit Ahmad, who grew up experiencing all the hardships of an inclement weather in Kuala Penyu in Sabah before he becomes a famous artist, captures this episode of life of farmer and fisherman in his series, Iraga, roughly from 2003 to 2011. Iraga, in the Bruneian Malay language, means 'North Easterly'. Dry, desiccated land, starved of water and parched from the hot winds. Great expanse of white like blisters on farmland. The fishermen, out at sea, sweating profusely from the coarse long-sleeved clothings he have to keep on, to shield from the 'chill' and yet to prevent sun-burnt. A relatively late starter in art, at the age of 27, Awang Damit studied for his BFA at the Universiti ITM, winning the Best Student Award in 1983. He was selected for the major Contemporary Paintings of Malaysia exhibition at the Asia-Pacific Museum in Pasadena, Los Angeles, in 1988, with all the Who's Who in Malaysian Art. In 1988, he won the 2nd Prize in the Malaysian Bank Association art competition. He obtained his Master's in Fine Art at the Catholic University in Washington, USA, 1989-1990. He won Malaysia's biggest art prize, the 1st Prize in the Salon Malaysia III organised by the National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, for his work, Nyanyian Petani Gunung (now in Petronas Collection).