Ipoh Mural Art Lane: Eric Lai's back-lane murals

Ipoh Mural Art Lane

In short: Ipoh Mural Art Lane is a back lane of murals in Ipoh Old Town. Local artist and art teacher Eric Lai began painting it in 2013, in the lane between Jalan Masjid and Jalan Sultan Iskandar (Hugh Low Street). It grew into a community programme of the state tourism and culture committee and Ipoh City Council, launched on 14 December 2014.

How the lane began

Eric Lai is an artist and art teacher who runs an art school, ArtGene Studio, in Bercham, Ipoh. In 2013 he painted seven murals in the lane between Jalan Masjid and Jalan Sultan Iskandar (Hugh Low Street). It is said he was inspired by Ernest Zacharevic’s wall art in Penang.

The work grew into Ipoh Mural Art Lane, a community programme run by the state tourism and culture committee and Ipoh City Council. It was launched on 14 December 2014 on Jalan Masjid.

What you will see

Lai’s two main themes are Malaysia’s many cultures and childhood. Along the lanes you will find Chinese opera, Thaipusam, Deepavali, Hari Raya, lion dances, dulang washers, rubber tappers and gamelan players, alongside hopscotch and other traditional games.

A lane that changes

Murals sit on walls that weather and change. By 2017 many of the back-lane murals had faded, and local businesses asked the city council to help repaint them, it was reported. Our guide to Ipoh street art tells the whole story, including the Art of OLDTOWN murals by Ernest Zacharevic.

Questions

Who painted Ipoh Mural Art Lane?

Mainly Eric Lai, an artist and art teacher who runs ArtGene Studio in Bercham, Ipoh. He painted seven murals in the lane in 2013, and other Malaysian artists added more over the years.

What do the murals show?

Eric Lai's two main themes are Malaysia's many cultures and childhood: Chinese opera, Thaipusam, Deepavali, Hari Raya, lion dances, dulang washers, rubber tappers and gamelan players, alongside hopscotch and other traditional games.

Facts on this page come from Aevum's researched stories, which list their sources. Details can change, so check before you travel. Sources: Malay Mail (2014, 2017); Ipoh Echo (2013, 2014); Ipoh Tourist Information Centre, Ipoh murals guide; Sin Chew Daily (2022, 2024); Oriental Daily (2017); myipoh.my (2022); Wikipedia, "Ernest Zacharevic" (cross-check only); Ipoh City Council (MBI), "Info Ipoh"; Ipoh World; Malay Mail (2014, 2015, 2018, 2023); Ipoh Echo (2014, 2023); Free Malaysia Today (2020); britishmalaya.home.blog (2019); Zakaria et al., Planning Malaysia (2022); SISMIM mosque registry (Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia); UiTM Perak symposium paper (2012); Bernama; J. M. Pladdet, Wageningen University (2019); Utusan Malaysia (2023); NUS Libraries (2022); Tourism Perak; Toh Teong Chuan, Malaysiakini column (2017); Tan Ai Boay, International Journal of Heritage, Art and Multimedia (2021); kaumaram.com (temple history); Marketing-Interactive (2014); New Straits Times (2022).

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Ipoh Mural Art Lane

How the lane began

What you will see

A lane that changes

Questions

Who painted Ipoh Mural Art Lane?

What do the murals show?

Also in this area

Read the full story

Ipoh Street Art, Explained: Who Painted the Old Town Murals?

What Makes Ipoh's Cultural Scene Worth Knowing

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