I visited two art museums in Singapore, the National Gallery and the Asian Civilisations Museum. Here are some highlights from the National Gallery. The artists shown are local unless otherwise noted.
“The Chinese character ‘Lion’ in running script” (1983) by Pan Shou (1911-’99).
“Singapore River” (1962) by Lim Cheng Hoe (1912–’79). Sorry for the reflections.
“Lonely Night” (1990) by Malaysian artist Yeow Siak Goon (1957-).
Self portrait (1934) by Georgette Chen (1906-’93).
“Eugene Chen” (1940) by Georgette Chen. Her husband and muse, he died in Shanghai, where they were both imprisoned by the Japanese, in 1944.
“Searching” (1951) by Lim Yew Kuan (1928-), a political allegory.
“Marketplace during Occupation” (1942) by Philippines artist Fernando Cueto Amorsolo (1892–1972). Note the Japanese soldier in the background on the left. Singapore and the Philippines both suffered under Japanese occupation, and a lot of the art on display (and history depicted at the National Museum) made this point.
“Ken Dedes” (1975) by Indonesian artist Jim Supangkat (1941-). She is a Javenese goddess.
“The Commandant” (1996) by Cambodian artist Vann Nath (1946-’91), who survived imprisonment during the Pol Pot era by painting portraits of the dictator for the prison warden, Duch.
“Contemplation & Desire” (1985) by Philippine artist Robert Chabet (1937-).
“Reflections” (1989) by Fatima Chik (1947-).
“Ruang Dapur (Kitchen Space)” (1970s) by Malaysian artist Zulkifli Mohd Dahlan (1952-’77).
What interested me about the National Gallery’s collection is its local and regional focus. In a city-state that, while admirably inclusionary, hasn’t always been tolerant of dissent in its various forms, the work on display was often provocative, and there was a reminder from history that art has a role to play in documenting and resisting tyrrany, whether it’s the vestiges of a colonial era or the ravages of invader. The day I visited, a special exhibit occupying half of floor’s worth of galleries hadn’t opened. I wished it was.
