to recap.....
...............we did SELF IDENTITY: what you think of yourself
.........we did SOCIAL IDENTITY: what you want others to see and think about you.
..and now.. RELATIONSHIPS: how you fit into your world; what role do you play, what role do you want to play, how do you get along with other people...
When we look at a portrait, we can learn a lot about the people (subjects) in the painting. Their details such as their facial expressions, how they are sitting, the composition and the background setting can tell us a story about the people and how they relate to one another.
We can also consider another relationship. And that is the tri-fold relationship, which is between the artist, the artwork and you the viewer.
This is discussed in Ways of Seeing, where art historian John Berger describes how ‘every image embodies a way of seeing, our perception of appreciation of an image depends also upon our own way of seeing.’ Our pre-conceptions and experiences shape the way we view things – not just artworks but everything around us. Factors such as our notions of beauty, social values or predispositions shape our reactions to artworks so that aesthetic and conceptual meanings translate into visual codes that speak directly to the viewer. This is what makes art so powerful. Because Art becomes a personal experience for each individual – everyone looks at it differently and everyone sees something that is important to themselves.
General Questions to think about when looking at these works:
1. What is the relationship between subjects in the painting?
2. How does the painting make you feel and what does it make you think?
3. What personal experiences or opinions shape your judgement?
Wong Hoy Cheong (Malaysia 1960 – present)
The Nouveau Riche, the Elephant, the Foreign Maid, or the Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Wall Installation Dimensions variable 1991
Collection of the Singapore Art Museum
The Artist
Wong Hoy Cheong is an internationally renowned artist who has exhibited in Asia, Australia and Europe. He has shown in prestigious events including the 50th Venice Biennale (2003). His solo shows toured around the United Kingdom. He has participated in artists’s residencies at Gasworks in London (2002), the Canberra Institute of Art (1992) and has been Visiting Fellow at Goldsmith’s College (1999) and Visiting Tutor at Central St Martins (1998).
The Artwork
This work draw from social concerns, historical events, literary information as well as documentary sources. The artist uses many different of materials such as drawing, photography and video to cow dung, plants and pulp bring intense feeling and enhances themes. In this installation work, Wong creates a traditional triptych with a mirror on each side of a central painting. The artist uses bright colours and the subjects are posed elegantly, dressed in formal western clothes, batik and kebaya. The society magazine Malaysian Tatler lies on the coffee table in the right foreground, its cover is a duplicate image of the painting. In the background there is a white elephant and a foreign maid with two children in her arms, revealing the underlying message of the increasing superficiality and material concerns of Malaysian society. The plastic flowers framing the painting and garlanding the mirrors are artificial and lack life, emphasising the insincerity of the smiles and contrived glamour of the celebrating people. The reflection of the visitor in the mirror becomes a part of the installation. As a viewer to this artwork, we become part of this depiction of elitism and shallowness. We are encouraged to debate on the nature of art – it is exclusive and inaccessible? Is it a visual language understood by all?
Wong intentionally presents this installation artwork in the format of a traditional triptych. Why did he choose this instead of painting on a single large canvas or board? During the Renaissance, the triptych, such as Jan Van Eyck’s Small Triptych was popular being used as an altar piece in a Christian church.
What are some symbols and metaphors used in art to depict wealth and/or materialism? Can you recognize some of them in this work?
Eng Hwee Chu (Malaysia 1967 – present)
Memory
Acrylic on canvas 153 x 111 cm 1994
Collection of the Singapore Art Museum
The Artist
Born in Batu Pahat in Johor, Eng received her diploma in fine art from the Malaysian Institute of Art. Having actively participated in exhibitions since 1986, Eng has shown in Japan, Singapore, England, Australia and the USA. The artist is well known for her surreal figurative paintings that draw from her personal life.
The Artwork
Painted a year after her grandmother’s death, Memory explores the artist's feeling about her loss. Assuming the role of a scarlet nude figure exposing her physical self and baring her emotional soul for viewing, Eng juxtaposes herself against her grandmother. Her grandmother is frail in her wheelchair and yet the epitome of traditional propriety in her sarong, scraped back hair and pearl earrings. On the left hand side of the painting, prayer papers and a white mourning lantern emphasis traditional Chinese practices and bring to mind filial piety. If we compare the two subjects in the painting – the grandmother is firmly placed in her role of nurturing mother while Eng herself appears to be a like a newborn child, trying to discover her way.
In the background, blooming white lotuses rise out of the mud. Buddhist symbols of mental clarity and spiritual purity, the open blossom signifies the attainment of enlightenment whilst the floating boat symbolises the grandmother’s journey into the afterlife. There are whimsical touches amidst the sombre subject of this painting – rocking horses float overhead. The depth and breadth of visual elements used evoke the innocence of childhood and the enormity of death. This may lead you, viewer to wonder about our existence, the mysterious journey through life and how our actions determine fate.
Redza Piyadasa (Malaysia 1939 – present)
The Haji Family
Mixed media 51 x 71.5 cm 1990
Collection of the Singapore Art Museum
The Artist
As a curator, writer, art historian and artist, Piyadasa has played a significant role in the development of Malaysian art history. One of the earliest Malaysian artists to be extensively trained abroad, Piyadasa studied sculpture in Hornsey College of Art, London from 1963 to 1967 and later earned his Master’s degree in Fine Arts from University of Hawaii in 1977. He is one of the first local artists to produce conceptual art in the late 1960s and he debated artistic conventions of the time through his art and writing. In 2001, the National Art Gallery Malaysia showed his extensive body of work comprising paintings, sculpture and installations in a major retrospective exhibition.
The Artwork
Piyadasa creates mixed media collages, combining photographic images and silkscreen iconic imagery of Malaysian identity such as the national flower bunga raya and batik print. In the Haji Family, a Malay family poses in still Western fashion, wearing a mixture of Western and traditional clothing. At the top there is a band of batik in a neutral palette contrasting strongly with the fluorescent highlights in the family portrait. This creates a sense of discord between traditionalism and modernity, as well as the determination of ethnic definitions and search for identity in present-day Malaysia.
Hendra Gunawan (Indonesia 1918 – 1983)
Family Portrait
Oil on canvas 200 x 147 cm 1968
Collection of the Singapore Art Museum
The Artist
Considered as one of the most important artists in the history of Indonesian art, Hendra Gunawan is a self-taught artist who has received national and international accolades. During the country’s struggle for independence from 1945 – 1949, Hendra was an active nationalist revolutionary who formed Peklukis Rakyat together with the equally renowned Affandi. Hendra had links with LEKRA and was also active politically, becoming a member of the Constituent Assembly. A teacher at the Indonesian Art Academy from 1950-1957, he was influential in popularizing the them of nationalism and ‘concrete humanity’.
The Artwork
With the downfall of the communists in 1965, Hendra and many of his fellow LEKRA members were imprisoned. He was incarcerated in Bandung’s Kebun Waru prison from 1967 – 1978 and this family portrait was painted in 1968 during a family day at the prison. His two sons and his wife Karmini surround him while on his far left is Hendra’s student Nuraeni. Nuraeni’s inclusion in this family portrait hints at Hendra’s intentions of marrying her, for she later became his second wife. In the background, there are crowds of families but this does not interfere in the intimate air between the subjects of this painting. The impression of close affection is further imparted by the departure from the artist’s usual dominance of strong defined brushstrokes. Instead the painting has whimsical details from the feathery brushstrokes of his wife Karmini’s sarong kebaya to the delicate softness of his son’ features. There is little dramatic exaggeration in this painting, Hendra painted this to near exacting realism hence conveying a depth of emotional sincerity.
Georgette Chen (China 1906 – Singapore 1993)
Family Portrait
Oil on Canvas 162 x 130.2 cm 1960-65
Collection of the Singapore Art Museum
The Artist
Considered one of Singapore’s pioneer artists, Georgette Chen was born into a family of wealth. She was exposed to Western culture and art in her early youth when her family left Shanghai in 1909. Educated in New York and Paris, Chen attended the Acadamie Colarossie, Academie Biloul and the Art Student’s League. While in Paris, she married Eugene Chan, Foreign Minister to the Republic of China. He was her second husband and an immense intellectual and passionate influence on her life. Following his demise in 1944, Chen settled in Singapore in 1954 and subsequently became a teacher at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts for 26 years. In recognition of her contribution to Singaporean art, the artist was awarded the Cultural Medallion in 1985.
The Artwork
In this casual but intimate portrait, a family relaxes on the settee. Each individual is in the midst of pursuing their own leisure activity – reading, knitting and playing – and their physical closesness is revealing of their emotional bonds. They gaze directly at the viewer with welcoming smiles on their faces, as if greeting a friend. Although this is an informal portrait, they are neat and well dressed, hinting at a comfortable affluence. The air of contentment and cosiness is reinforced further by the artist’s palette of creamy soft colours, there are no jarring bright shades nor dark shadows. In this painting, Chen practices her customary approaches of attention to composition – the gentle figure of mother and wife forms the central focus of the composition and the entire family is dressed in shades of blue, providing a subtle harmony in their physical appearance. The fluent use of thin brushstrokes and sweeps of overlaying colours create an atmosphere of conviviality, the artist expertly and beautifully conveys the warmth of a nurturing family.
Khalil Ibrahim (Malaysia 1934 – present)
Canangsari II
Acrylic on canvas 97 x 130 cm 1992
Collection of the Singapore Art Museum
The Artist
After attaining the National Design Diploma, Khalil Ibrahim was accorded a scholarship to study at the renowned St. Martin’s School of Art in London in the 1960s. . Khalil has always been fascinated by the aesthetic expressiveness of everyday life and the beauty of body movement. Nevertheless, Khalil is not stagnant in creativity, he experiments in different mediums such as ink drawing, watercolour, acrylic and oil painting. His style evolves to suit his themes – moving from figurative to the more abstract so as to suit the rhythm of his subjects.
The Artwork
Born in a coastal town on the east coast of Malaysia, Khalil has always been inspired by the sense of community and the convivial spirit of rural life. Fisherman drawing in their nets, ladies in brightly coloured sarongs taking in the catch of the day, figures chatting in the distance – all these are popular subjects that the artist has depicted time and time again, conveying the dynamism of life and the grace of the physical body. In this particular painting, a group of lithe figures dance across the canvas in a myriad of rainbow colours. The scene pulsates with energy as vibrant colours such as tangerine orange, fresh verdant green and sunny yellow contrast and complement to emphasise the contours of the female figures. There is a sense of conviviality as the figures sway back and forth in unison. The employment of tones rather than shadows creates an atmosphere of optimism. The facelessness of the figures and the two-dimensional figures allow us to relate to them on a generic level, they are without form and not rooted in reality. Hence the paintings remain timeless, expressions of community and the human spirit.
Liu Kang (China 1911 – Singapore 2004)
Artist and Model
Mixed media 84 x 124 cm 1954
Collection of the Singapore Art Museum
The Artist
Born in China and having lived in Malaysia during his youth, Liu Kang settled in Singapore during the Japanese Occupation. He is considered one of the country’s pioneer artists and he received his artistic training at the Xinhua Academy of Fine Arts in China and l’Ecole nationale superieure des Beaux Arts in Paris. One of the key creators of the Nanyang style, Liu was a founding member of the Singapore Art Society and an influential lecturer at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. He has played a pivotal role in Singaporean art history as a cultural commentator, artist and educator.
The Artwork
This artwork was most probably inspired by the famous Bali trip that Singapore masters Liu Kang, Cheong Soo Pieng, Chen Chong Swee and Chen Wen Hsi embarked upon in 1952. Their intention was to refine a Southeast Asian aesthetic and Nanyang style that would set them apart from Western and primitive art.
In this particular work, a naïve style of strong bright colours, lack of shadows and simplified form endow the painting with feelings of freshness and vitality. The white outlines imitate the wax outline of the batik technique, deepening the sense of the exoticness of the posing Balinese lady. The mountain range in the background and the triangular configuration of the chairs and table imbibe depth to Liu Kang’s composition. The astute use of colours such as the bright scarlet of the flower in the sitter’s hair, the tea set and the bag of painting materials serve to bring a sense of harmony into the highly detailed painting. This painting captures art making in its process. Fellow artist Chen Wan His and the model he is painting are the subject focus of Liu Kang’s work. The work calls to mind the colour palette of Matisse with its bright tropical hues, particularly the rich blues of the rolling mountains and flat colours which makes you think this is not a painting, but a paper collage. The viewer gains a sense of the vibrant energy and inspiration that Liu Kang enjoyed on his painting trip to Bali.
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