Lean Chew's Art Space

Grids and forms

2010-05-10T01:56:00.000-07:00

These works were made with acrylic on paper from April 2009 to February 2010.

Floating forms 1, 2010
30 x 30 cm

Floating forms 2, 2010
55 x 55 cm

Rising 1, 2010
38 x 37 cm

Rising 2, 2010
55 x 55 cm

Open vessel 1, 2010
25 x 25 cm

Open vessel 2, 2010
36 x 36 cm

Flow grid 1, 2010
30 x 30 cm

Flow grid 2, 2010
38 x 38 cm

Flow grid 4, 2010
38 x 38 cm

Just lines, 2010
35 x 35 cm

Forms

2010-05-10T01:06:00.000-07:00

These works were made from January to March 2010; they were done with acrylic on paper.

Forms (pewter) 1, 2010
42 x 30cm

Forms (pewter) 2, 2010
52 x 24 cm

Forms (pewter) 3, 2010
54 x 28 cm

Forms (pewter) 4, 2010
54 x 24 cm

Forms (emerald) 1, 2010
54 x 32 cm

Forms (emerald) 2, 2010
52 x 24 cm

Forms (coral) 3, 2010
54 x 40cm

Forms (coral) 4, 2010
54 x 40 cm

Mystic-garden works

2010-04-17T19:31:00.000-07:00

All works were made on fabric using mixed media such as pastel, wax, thread and fabric paint. Each work measures approximately 11 x 11 cm.

Mystic Garden #1

Mystic Garden #2

Mystic Garden #3

Mystic Garden #4

Mystic Garden #5

Vessel drawings 2010

2010-04-11T20:51:00.001-07:00

I think of vessels as metaphors for the soul.

These A4 size drawings were made with a tailor's tracing wheel on paper.
Most of these vessel-like forms are open at both ends, suggesting unimpeded flow of energy. The shape of each vessel was created by moving the tracing wheel freely and intuitively on the paper, rather than by referring to real vessels.

Vessel Drawing 01, 2010

Vessel Drawing 04, 2010

Vessel Drawing 05, 2010

Vessel Drawing 12, 2010

Vessel Drawing 13, 2010

Vessel Drawing 15, 2010

Vessel Drawing 16, 2010

Alas, how soon the hours are over

2010-04-03T03:55:00.000-07:00

Today I came across an 8-line poem 'Plays' by Walter Savage Landor and enjoyed it very much. Here is my interpretation of the poem through photographs which documented my installation work 'White Batik Man' (1997). The work incorporated a performance by my course mate Wilfred Soo.

Alas, how soon the hours are over,

Counted us out to play the lover!

And how much narrower is the stage,

Allotted us to play the sage!

But when we play the fool, how wide

The theatre expands! beside,

How long the audience sits before us!

How many prompters! What a chorus!

White Batik Man,
Performed by Wilfred Soo on 2 April 1997
BA Gallery, LaSalle-SIA College of the Arts
Singapore

Works of Mother

2010-03-26T16:37:00.001-07:00

My mother first became a fascinating subject in my visual studies in 1992 and remained so till her death in 2005 at the age of 89. Art works that were continually reworked and remain 'unresolved' (2 included below) are very much part of the process of trying to capture the person she was through the making of images.

Mum (Every moment), 2000
Mixed media
40 x 30 cm

Mum with ring around, 2001 (incomplete)
Oil on fabric mounted on wooden panel
60 x 45 cm

Mum with bird, 2000(?) (incomplete)
Oil on canvas
approx 40 x 50 cm

Mum (frontal), 1994
Pen and marker on paper
35 x 28 cm

Mum (after Daumier #1), 1994
Conte and watercolour on paper
50 x 35 cm

Mum (after Daumier #2), 1994
Conte and watercolour on paper
20 x 40 cm

Mum at balcony, 1994
Poster colour on board
79 x 57 cm
(collection of Peter Slifirski)

Nonya Lady,
Pencil
(collection of Doug and Lai Coates)

Mum (portrait 4)
Charcoal pencil
(collection of Josephine Yeo)

Mum (small painting), 1998
Oil on canvas,
12 x 10 inches

Mum in profile, 2000
Pencil
40 x 30 cm

Mum in wax pencil, 2000
Pencil
40 x 30 cm

Mum on rattan chair, 2001
Pencil
40 x 30 cm

Mum, 2002(?)
Pencil
50 x 36 cm

Works based on Mother

2010-03-25T17:07:00.000-07:00

Every Moment (Mum and Dad), 2000
Mixed media
55 x 35 cm
(collector unknown)

Blue Shadow, 1997
Mixed media
41 x 32 cm
(collection of the Singapore Art Museum)

Mum and Dad, collage #1, 1993
Mixed media on paper
30 x 21 cm
(collection of Art Focus Gallery, Singapore)

Seated woman with ikat leg, 1998
Mixed media on paper
44 x 36 cm
(collector unknown)

Mum as a young bride, 1993
mixed media on paper
(collector unknown)

Mum and Dad, collage #2, 1993
Mixed media on paper
(collector unknown)

Collage #3, 1993
Mixed media on paper
(collection of Wendy Page)

Choo-chiak (Cooking)
Acrylic on canvas
90 x 120 cm

Mum as a young bride
Acrylic on canvas
90 x 60 cm

She know all
Acrylic on canvas
90 x 130 cm
(collection of C.Chan)

Mindscape series

2010-03-21T11:52:00.001-07:00

All works were made with acrylic on paper.

Mindscape AF
13 x 32 cm
(collection of M.Lamy)

Mindcsape #1
20 x 30 cm

Mindscape #2
20 x 28 cm

Mindscape #3
12 x 28cm

Mindscape #5
30 x 21 cm

Canvas studies - quotes from Agnes Martin

2010-03-14T17:27:00.000-07:00

Canadian-born Agnes Martin (1912-2004), famous for her meditative 6 feet x 6 feet grid paintings, has been a constant source of inspiration to me. Here are a few quotes from her writings:

With little trouble and no goal...

Canvas study #01, 2010
Acrylic on canvas
17 x 30 cm

The wind leaning this way and that...

Canvas study #02, 2010
Acrylic on canvas
30 x 30 cm

We flow and grow...

Canvas study #03, 2010
Acrylic on canvas
22 x 30 cm

Sometimes there are moments of perfection...

Canvas Study #04, 2010
Acrylic on canvas
30 x 30 cm

Go in there and rest...

Canvas study #05, 2010
Acrylic on canvas
29.5 x 40 cm

Square paintings [30 x 30 Series]

2010-03-06T14:24:00.000-08:00

Some works have been photographed at an angle to show their slight depth. All works measure 30 x 30 x 1.8 cm .

Light Diptych #1, 2005 [30 x 30 series]
Acrylic on canvas mounted on stretcher

Light Diptych #2, 2005 [30 x 30 series]

Acrylic on canvas mounted on stretcher
(Collection of Teh Thien Yew, Singapore)

Study #2, 2005 [30 x 30 series]
Acrylic on canvas mounted on stretcher

Study #1, 2005 [30 x 30 series]
Acrylic on canvas mounted on stretcher

Study #8, 2005 [30 x 30 series]

Acrylic on canvas mounted on stretcher

Study #5, 2005 [30 x 30 series]
Acrylic on canvas mounted on stretcher

Dark diptych #2 [30 x 30 series]
Acrylic on canvas mounted on stretcher

Dark diptych #1 [30 x 30 series]
Acrylic on canvas mounted on stretcher

(Collection of Teh Thien Yew, Singapore)

Square paintings [20 x 20 Series]

2010-03-03T22:53:00.000-08:00

These paintings were done in acrylic on paper and then mounted on canvas stretcher. They measure 20 x 20 x 1.8 cm.

Study #7[20x20 series]

Study #9 [20x20 series]

Study #2 [20x20 series]

Study #4 [20 x 20 Series]

Study #1(Desire) [20x20 series]

Study #2 (Water) [20x20 series]

Study #5 [20x20 series]

Square paintings [22 x 22 Series]

2010-03-03T22:23:00.000-08:00

These paintings were done in acrylic on paper and mounted on canvas stretcher. They measure 22 x 22 1.8 cm .

Study #11 [22 x 22 series], 2007

Study #9 [22 x 22 series], 2007

Study #3a [22 x 22 Series], 2006

Study #8 [22 x 22 Series], 2007

Study #1 [22 x 22 Series], 2006

Study #2 [22 x 22 Series], 2007

Study #4 [22 x 22 Series], 2006

Study #6 [22 x 22 Series], 2007

Study #7 [22 x 22 Series], 2006

Study #5 [22 x 22 Series], 2007
24.5 x 24.5 x 4 cm (including frame)

Study #9 [22 x 22 Series], 2006

Study #10 (Mimpi/Dream)
[22 x 22 Series]

Recent works

2010-01-25T11:42:00.000-08:00

Forms #6, 2010,
Embossed and incised lines on paper, 28 x 37 cm

Forms #4, 2010
Embossed and incised lines on paper, 25.5 x 36 cm

Single form #9, 2010
Embossed and incised lines on paper, 28 x 19 cm

Single form #4, 2010
Embossed and incised lines on paper, 28 x 19 cm

Single form #8, 2010
Embossed and incised lines on paper, 28 x 19 cm

Diamond Series

2010-01-17T22:49:00.001-08:00

Diamond with blue tip, 2007

Acrylic on paper mounted on stretcher,
37 x 37 x 1.8 cm Vertical axis 69 cm

Diamond (wood), 2007,
Acrylic on paper mounted on stretcher,
37 x 37 x 1.8 cm Vertical axis 69 cm

Diamond (grey grid), 2006

Acrylic on paper mounted on stretcher,
29 x 29 x 1.8 cm Vertical axis 47 cm

Diamond Series #3, 2006
Acrylic on paper mounted on stretcher,
Each panel: 22 x 22 x 1.8 cm Vertical axis 31 cm

Diamond Series #2, 2006

Acrylic on paper mounted on stretcher,
Each panel: 22 x 22 x 1.8 cm Vertical axis 31 cm
(collection of Heather Chapman, Canberra)

Artist's statement

2010-01-15T21:02:00.000-08:00

Over the years, a world view drawing on certain Eastern philosophical traditions has helped me to negotiate questions of how the universe works and how best to live in it. I try to express this world view in my art practice.

I explore various methods and materials to make a line ‘effortlessly’, without strain. This means being receptive to ‘chance’ playing a part in the making of the work. It also entails an attitude free from anxiety or aggression.

Once a mark is ‘found’, it is replicated in rows on a support. I incise and emboss lines on paper with household implements and customized tools.

The process of filling the blank support through repeated rendering of the mark makes my mind calm and clear. There is stillness, silence and ease.

I am engaged by the natural, rhythmic marks produced by hand movement and although I am unable to analyse it, I recognize when a work is successful. Viewing it, something within me is sustained.

2009-08-03T01:48:00.000-07:00

The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and science.

Albert Einstein, ‘What I Believe’, 1930

'Mimpi' (Dream), 2009,

Acrylic on paper mounted on stretcher,

22 x 22 x1.8cm

The woods are lovely, dark and deep...

2009-07-28T06:06:00.000-07:00

This work was made in 2004 but mounted on a canvas stretcher only a week ago. It is an abstract painting but the vertical columns also remind me of tree trunks standing closely together and I thought how well the work would go with these well-known lines by Robert Frost:

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,

And miles to go before I sleep.

(from the poem 'Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening' 1923)

Rahsia (Secret), 2009,Acrylic on paper mounted on stretcher, 28 x 28 x 1.8cm

'FORGET' - The key to making good art

2009-06-15T05:43:00.000-07:00

From 'CHUANG TZU, Basic Writings' translated by Burton Watson.

Artisan Ch'ui could draw as true as a compass or a T square because his fingers changed along with things and he didn't let his mind get in the way. Therefore his Spirit Tower (a Taoist term for the mind) remained unifed and unobstructed.

You forget your feet when the shoes are comfortable. You forget your waist when the belt is comfortable. Understanding forgets right and wrong when the mind is comfortable. There is no change in what is inside, no following what is outside, when the adjustment to events is comfortable. You begin with what is comfortable and never experience what is uncomfortable when you know the comfort of forgetting what is comfortable.

Drawing faces

2009-04-16T20:04:00.000-07:00

These lines best describe my experience of drawing people:

When drawing a face, any face, it is as if curtain after curtain, mask after mask, falls away…until a final mask remains, one that can no longer be removed, reduced….The eye does not judge, moralize , criticize. It accepts the masks in gratitude...

Frederick Franck, 'The Zen of Seeing - Seeing/drawing as meditation'

Pat, 2001, pencil, approx 60 x 40 cm

Cleaner at Arcadia, 1998, pencil, approx 40 x 30 cm

Trish, 1992, pencil, approx 21 x 15 cm

Elderly lady with hairband, 1994,
pencil, approx 21 x 15 cm

Peter, 1994, pencil , approx 21 x 15 cm

Kim, 2000, conte, approx 60 x 40 cm

Gardener at Arcadia, 1998,

wax pencil, approx 40 x 30 cm

Figures on Cloth (1998-2001)

2009-04-14T00:32:00.000-07:00

I would like to introduce 'Figures on Cloth' with the observations made on two of the works by Doug Coates, former IT consultant and architect and the guest-of-honour at my exhibition 'The Language of Feeling' in 2001, Melbourne.

In the paint and fabric collages, a particular point that interests me is the use of pattern in the reversal of figure and ground – where the figure is a patterned fabric shape set into a plainer ground, sometimes with drawn figures in silhouette or lightly sketched in. It produces a floating effect that is sometimes ghostly.

Batik man on cloth 01, 1998
Fabric, stitching and colour pencil , 35 x 25 cm

In one work, the figure is a light silhouette stepping out of a highly patterned ground. In terms of originality I can’t think of another artist using figure ground reversal in quite that way.

Figure on cloth 15, 2000
Fabric, paint , 35 x 25cm

Figure on cloth 06, 1998,

Mixed media, approx 35 x 24 cm

Figure on cloth 02, 1998
Mixed media, 35 x 25 cm

2 Figures on cloth (orange & blue), 1998
Mixed media, approx 46 x 14 cm

Worried man 06, 2001

Mixed media on fabric , approx 35 x 28 cm

2 Figures on cloth 01, 1998
Mixed media, approx 44 x 14 cm

Worried man 03 , 2001
Mixed media, approx 28 x 20 cm

Worried man 04, 2001

Mixed media, approx 28 x 20 cm

Worried man 01, 2001

Mixed media on fabric, approx 28 x 20 cm

'Heaven and Earth'

2009-03-30T00:30:00.000-07:00

According to ancient Chinese belief, heaven was represented by a circle and earth by a square. The union between heaven and earth was symbolized in Chinese coins, which were circular with a square hole in the centre. Amazed that such a profound idea could be captured so graphically, I made some works based on the square within a circle.

Heaven and Earth 06, 2001
Stitching and colour pencil on fabric , 11.5 x 11.5 cm

Heaven and Earth 26, 2001
Thread, wax, pastel and acrylic on fabric , 21 x 19 cm

Heaven and Earth diptych 1, 2001
Wax, pastel and thread on fabric,
Right panel 10 x 10 cm

Heaven and Earth diptych 1, 2001
Wax, pastel and stitching on fabric,
Left panel 10 x 10 cm

Heaven and Earth diptych 2, 2001
Wax, pastel and metallic thread on paper,
Bottom : 8 x 11 cm

Heaven and Earth 28, 2001
Thread, wax and pastel on fabric , 19 x 21 cm

Heaven and Earth 02, 2001
Stitching, wax and pastel on fabric ,14 x 13 cm

Heaven and Earth 08, 2001
Thread, stitching and mixed media on fabric , 12 x 14 cm

Heaven and Earth 09, 2001
Thread, shell fragments, pastel, paint and pencil on fabric ,
16 x 16 cm

Heaven and Earth 11, 2001
Thread, wax and pastel on fabric , 15 x 17 cm

Heaven and Earth 10, 2001
Thread, shell fragment and mixed media on crushed fabric ,
14 x 14 cm

Heaven and Earth 12, 2001
Wax and pastel on fabric , 16.5 x 16.5cm

Selected works 2008

2009-03-23T13:05:00.001-07:00

Brunei paradise, 2008
Acrylic on paper, 10 x 27 cm

Brunei paradise #1, 2008
Acrylic on paper, 12 x 24 cm

Desire, 2008,

Acrylic on paper mounted on stretcher, 20 x 20 x 1.8cm

Children are delightful (part 1)

2009-03-22T18:24:00.001-07:00

In 1994, I had the priviledge to visit a child care centre in Marine Parade, Singapore with permission to sketch the children. The easiest subjects were the children who were taking a nap and that was where I started.

Wei Ting(2)

toddler napping

child napping (1)

child napping

curly-haired child napping

Each drawing is A5 or 20 x 14 cm.

To view the rest of the drawings, please click: http://picasaweb.google.com/leanim.chew/ChildrenAreDelightfulPart1#

Children are delightful (part 2)

2009-03-22T18:00:00.000-07:00

…However some of the waking children were keen to have their portraits done and I can still remember how eagerly they raised their hands when I asked for volunteers to be my subjects. The children were wonderfully cooperative with each sitter keeping as still and quiet as a mouse as I drew their faces, while their peers, in hushed silence, stood in a queue, patiently waiting for their turn.

Each drawing is A5 size or 21 x 14 cm and took approximately 20 minutes.

Petrina

Tan Sun

Rao Jian Yan

Nicholas Loy

Gregory Tan

Elizabeth Leong

Elin

Cheng Cherg Lin

Asheta

Perforated works

2009-03-21T00:17:00.000-07:00

All works were made with acrylic on paper. The textures were produced by scraping thin layers
paint over lines that were incised or embossed on the paper support.

Within the veil, 28 x 28 cm

No distinction, 28 x 28 cm

Tribute to Klee, 30 x 30 x 1.8cm

Copper Stripes, 34 x 34 cm

To view other works, please click: http://picasaweb.google.com/leanim.chew/Works2005#

Exhibitions

2009-03-06T17:33:00.001-08:00

Poster for my exhibition Mindscapes in 2005

Alliance Francaise Brunei quarterly programme, 2005

Leaflet for group exhibition [x?] artists - one boat at the Empire Hotel Brunei in 2005.

Invitation to Art Forum an exhibition of works by Bruneian and international artists at the Brunei Museum in 2004

Advertisement for my exhibition The Language of Feeling in 2001

Exhibition at the Sebel Suites, Melbourne in 2002

2009-03-02T16:07:00.000-08:00

Work displayed at the entrance to the exhibition space.

My work from the series 'Batik man on cloth' at the Citro Bar and Restaurant, Sebel Suites, Melbourne

The Citro Bar and Restaurant, St Kilda Road, Melbourne

Mum as a young bride (study), 1994 (sold)
Mixed media on paper
73 x 46 cm

Untitled (Seated Chinese lady with shell fragments), 2000, (sold)
Ink and wash with shell fragments on paper,
22 x 15 inches (including frame )

Press release

2009-03-02T13:57:00.001-08:00

Borneo Bulletin, 27 March 2005: Lean's solo exhibition, Mindscapes at Alliance Francaise, Brunei

Borneo Bulletin, March 25 2005: Lean's solo exhibition, Mindcsapes at Alliance Francaise, Brunei

Straits Times, October 1997, President's Charity Art Exhibition, Singapore

Brunei inspiration paintings 2004-2006

2009-02-28T17:53:00.000-08:00

Gongxi Brunei, 2004
Acrylic on paper, 20 x 35 cm
(collection of Betty Fleury)

Reverie, 2004
Acrylic on paper, 18 x 52 cm
(collection of Jose Freitas Cruz)

Berjaya (succeed), 2004
Acrylic on paper, 28.5 x 18.5 cm

Selamat #1, 2004
Acrylic on paper, each panel 20 x 9 cm
(collection of Betty Fleury)

Brunei inspiration drawings 2003

2009-02-25T22:49:00.001-08:00

Circle Drawing 6, 2003
Pen and graphite on paper
30 x 30 cm

Drawing 13, 2003,
Graphite on tracing paper layered over ink on paper
75 x 55 cm

Study #02, 2003
Pen on tracing paper
20 x 20 cm

Circle Study #01, 2003
Graphite on layered tracing paper
26 x 26 cm

Plastic Study Series #01 , 2003
Pen on plastic against natural light
15 x 15 cm

To view other Brunei inspiration drawings, go to
http://picasaweb.google.com/leanim.chew/BruneiInspirationDrawings2003#

Artist's statement

2009-02-25T11:48:00.000-08:00

I find that when my mind is calm and clear, the strokes and marks that I make on the paper surface are light and natural. The work that is composed in this way tends to be simple but may have an unexpectedly pleasing or striking effect.

I don’t have a fixed or detailed plan as to how a drawing or painting will turn out. When I am making a work, I reflect on a particular feeling or state of mind and let my senses and judgement be guided by my drawing and painting tools, support ( ie paper,board, fabric) and art material. This intuitive approach to making artwork is influenced by the ancient Chinese belief in change as a fundamental reality in the world.

Pencil man, 2001,

pencil on canvas, 31 x 21 cm

Emerging, 2001
Paint on layered fabric, 28 x 18 cm

Lindsay Anderson on 'Workers'

2009-02-21T11:36:00.000-08:00

Lindsay Anderson was the gallery director of Art Affairs Gallery in Carlton, Melbourne. He wrote this article for Lean’s first solo exhibition in Melbourne , ‘Kindred Spirits’ held at Art Affairs Gallery from 28 June to 9 July 2000.

‘Workers’ pay homage to ‘all those who make an honest living with their hands’. The subjects are local to a specific area in Singapore, coincidentally known as Arcadia. Much has changed in Singapore but, in this enclave, something remains of the Singapore that was.

It is obvious that Lean is fascinated by the hooded grasscutters that scythe their way through lush parklands, the street sweepers that swish with tufted brooms and gardeners that blend so well with the foliage that surrounds them – their crusted hands at one with the soil. There is great dignity to all the workers she has chosen to record in charcoal, paint and wax pencil.

With her grasscutters she has expressed visually what the poet Robert Frost has so sensitively put into words…

I went to turn the grass once after one
Who mowed it in the dew before the sun.

The dew was gone that made the blade so keen
Before I cam to view the leveled scene.

But he had gone his way, the grass all mown,
And I must be, as he had been – alone,

“As all must be,” I said within my heart,
“Whether they work together or apart.” RF

Sweeper #2, 1998, Oil on canvas,30 x 25 cm. Sold

Sweeper#3, 1998, Oil on canvas,
30x25cm. Sold

Both Lean and Robert Frost are fascinated by grasscutters and in them, they have found kindred spirits to their own. There is certainly a common bond that links the grasscutter, sweeper, gardener and this could extend to include painter and poet.

Another poem by Robert Frost, that is written in dialogue form, speaks of a worker who deals skillfully with wood. One of the participants wants to classify this man as a carpenter, joiner or cabinet-maker. The poet says no to this notion and ends the poem by saying…

“And I think he is just a man, expressing himself.” RF

Gardener at Hillcrest Arcadia, 1997

Wax pencil. Sold

It may be possible for us all to contribute some measure of dignity to the various jobs we do – to express ourselves in ways that are uniquely ours. Lean’s grasscutters and sweepers, gardener and cleaner, achieve this.

Lindsay Anderson
June 2000

To view other drawings and paintings of 'Workers', go to:

http://picasaweb.google.com/leanim.chew/Workers#

More Samples of my work

2009-02-21T09:23:00.000-08:00

please click to view more photographs of my work :

http://picasaweb.google.com/leanim.chew/MoreSamples#

Catherine Lim, 'About Mother'

2009-02-20T23:52:00.000-08:00

Image: Mum (after Daumier), 1994, conte and wash, 50x35cm

This short article was written by my sister, Catherine for my exhibition ‘Facets of a Woman’ in Singapore 1995.

A simple housewife in a small town, who brought up fourteen children, Mother was remarkable for her creativity. This was evident in her capacity for creating and telling stories. Mother made story- telling an art. Children in the neighbourhood gathered to hear her spin her dazzling yarns of gods, goddesses, emperors and ordinary village people, tales often underlain by much folk wisdom. For a while, Mother even began to write stories, turning out family sagas on cheap, lined copybooks, in the best tradition of Hong Kong movies. Here she was severely handicapped by an incomplete education, a limitation that must have been most frustrating to her creative energies. They remain alive, however, in her old age, and there is nothing mother enjoys more than yarn with family and friends.

Catherine Lim

April 1995

A best-selling Singaporean fiction author, Catherine Lim has published more than 10 collections of short stories, five novels, two poetry collections and numerous political commentaries. She was awarded the Honorary Doctorate in Literature from Murdoch University and Southeast Asia Write Award.

T.K.Sabapathy on Lean's exhibition 'Facets of a Woman' in 1995

2009-02-20T20:29:00.000-08:00

T.K. Sabapathy is an art historian and art critic in Singapore. He has researched and published extensively on art in Southeast Asia, providing important foundations for the study of art in the region. He co-edited the book ‘Eye of the Beholder : Reception, Audience , And Practice of Modern Asian Art' (2007) and is the author of ‘Configuring the Body : Form and Tenor in Ng Eng Teng's Art’ (2003), ‘Past, Present, Beyond : Re-Nascence of an Art Collection’ (2002); 'Modernity and Beyond : Themes in Southeast Asian Art' (1996), 'Vision and Idea : Relooking Modern Malaysian Art' (1994) and 'Sculpture in Singapore : National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore, 16 November-15 December 1991'.

She Knows All, 1994, Oil on canvas,120x90cm.
Collection of Channie Chan, Canada

Portraits bring into relief complex relationships and high expectations. Firstly, there is the reference or allusion to an original, to the artist’s intention to portray someone. Such aims lead to queries such as: What is the nature of the connection between the artist and the person portrayed? Or, for that matter, what forces prompt, instigate and sustain this connection? Questions such as these do have to do with ways by which relationships between the self and the other are negotiated and fixed at any moment or for any occasion.

Secondly, portraits come into existence along the terrain where art and social life intersect or collide with each other; the force of social norms affect the artist and the subject as both are enmeshed in the value systems of their society. In this sense, portraits vividly exemplify conventions or codes by which who a person is and how a person appears, are developed and crystallized. For, to be an artist is to assume a public presence and appear in public.

Thirdly, there is the fascinating yet enormously difficult task of conveying personhood. A portrait is not just an aggregate of social codes; nor is it only a social artifact. That is to say, when encountering a portrait, viewers expect artists to express an individual’s personality and identity. And however implausible it may seem, it is expected that a sense of inner character or soul be somehow revealed or demonstrated in portraits.

Chew Lean Im’s series of paintings and drawings, all of which are portraits of her mother, can be read as touching all these three bases, namely: the relationship between the artist and her subject, conventions by which a person is presented to the public, and conveying or expressing the personality of her mother. Conceptually and formally, she has made promising beginnings.

A wedding photograph is the spur for her development. Taken in 1932, it features her mother (a bride at the age of seventeen), seated in a deep, curved chair with her head slightly bowed and staring in a fixed manner; her right hand is crossed over her abdomen, while her left is placed above her knee; her feet point inwards. If her mother appears dimunitive or tentative, then her father stands upright and looks out of the picture confidently and strikes a commanding presence.

Mum as a young bride, 1994

Acrylic on canvas, 90x60cm

This photographic image of her mother is the source for a number of compositions (her father appears infrequently, and when he does, only partially). In these pictures, she is presented formally, placed at a distance and appears inaccessible – an impression conveyed by the mask-like rendering of the face.

Lean Im also portrays her mother in distinct environments or surroundings, seeking to symbolically represent her interests and involvements in the social and cultural fields. In them, her mother is presented frontally and at close range, with attributes signalling her interest in opera, and in ascertaining character by reading a person’s face and palm. In these compositions, Lean Im projects her mother as a person with a forceful presence, able to deal with and shape her surroundings on her own terms.

Mum, 1993, Pen 40 x 30 cm

There are also a number of intimate and scrutinizing disclosures; these are particularly vivid and concrete in her drawings. Lean Im comes face to face with her mother, and holds her stance without flinching. Drawing is a medium she should develop as it can be a powerful means for fixing and expressing highly-charged, emotional states.

T.K.Sabapathy
April 1995

My inspiration for making artwork

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This parable from the Taoist text 'Chuang Tzu' has always been my inspiration:

Woodworker Ch’ing[1] carved a piece of wood and made a bell stand, and when it was finished, everyone who saw it marveled, for it seemed to be the work of gods or spirits. When the marquis of Lu saw it, he asked, “What art is it you have?”

Ch’ing replied, “I am only a craftsman – how would I have any art? There is one thing , however. When I am going to make a bell stand, I never let it wear out my energy. I always fast in order to still my mind. When I have fasted for three days, I no longer have any thought of congratulations or rewards, of titles or stipends. When I have fasted for five days, I no longer have any thought of praise or blame, of skill or clumsiness. And when I have fasted for seven days, I am so still that I forget I have four limbs and a form and a body. By that time, the ruler and his court no longer exist for me. My skill is concentrated and all outside distractions fade away. After that, I go into the mountain forest and examine the heavenly nature of the trees. If I find one of superlative form, and I see a bell stand there, I put my hand to the job of carving; if not, I let it go. This way, I am simply matching up ‘Heaven’ with ‘Heaven’[2]. That’s probably the reason that people wonder if the results were not made by spirits.”

Source: Chuang Tzu, Basic Writings, translated by Burton Watson, Columbia University Press, 1964

[1] A carpenter of Lu, mentioned in the Tso chuan under Duke Hsiang 4th year (569 B.C.)
[2] That is, matching up his own innate nature with that of the tree.

Artist profile

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LEAN CHEW

Born in Kedah, Malaysia in 1957

Education
1981 B.A.Hons (English), University of Singapore
1984 Dip.Ed (English), Singapore
1994 Diploma in Fine Art, LaSalle-SIA College of the Arts, Singapore
1997 B.A.(Fine Art), Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology
2007 Master of Visual Art, La Trobe University, Australia

Professional experience
1995 -1999 Art instructor, Very Special Arts, Singapore
1998– 2003 Sessional lecturer; practising artist, Singapore and Australia
2001 Workshop presenter, ‘Buddhism with Batik’, Art Education Victoria Annual Conference
2001 Portrait artist, Women with ‘Getupandgo’, Bowling Club Studios,Melbourne
2002 Life-Drawing Demonstrator, Opening of Ballroom Event, SOFITEL Hotel. Melbourne
2003- 2008 School teacher; practising artist, Brunei
2009 -2010 Artist in Residence, Arts Academy, University of Ballarat, Victoria Australia

Individual Exhibitions
2006 Visual Arts Centre, La Trobe University, Bendigo
2005 Mindscapes, Alliance Francaise, Brunei
2002 Artworks 9 Gallery, Melbourne
2001 Language of Feeling, Art Affairs Gallery, Melbourne
2001 Citro Restaurant, Sebel Hotel, Melbourne
2000 Kindred Spirits, Art Affairs Gallery, Melbourne
1995 Facets of a Woman, Raffles Centre, Singapore

Selected Group Exhibitions
2005 [x?] artists – one boat, The Empire Hotel, Brunei
2004 A taste of Brunei, The Empire Hotel, Brunei
2004 Art Forum, Brunei Museum Art Gallery
2002 Yering Station Sculpture Exhibition, Victoria, Australia
2002 St Kilda Bowling Club Studios Exhibition, Melbourne
2002 Art 2 Gallery end of year exhibition, Singapore
2001 Women with Getupandgo, St Kilda Town Hall, Melbourne
2000 Gallery 4A, Sydney
2000 Y2K Australian Association of Chinese Artists show,Melbourne
1998 Praxis, Staff Exhibition, Lasalle-SIA College of the Arts, Singapore
1997 President’s Charity Art Exhibition, Earl Lu Gallery, Singapore
1993 Art In Asia, World Trade Centre, Singapore
1992 Phillippe Charriol Contemporary Art Exhibition, Singapore

Collections
Singapore Art Museum, Singapore Armed Forces, Singapore Police Force, Art Focus Gallery Singapore; private collections: Australia, Canada, UK, Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei

Commissions
2002 Painting (collaboration with Shao), Dr Tan Su Ming, Singapore
1998 Portrait of Mother, Catherine Lim, Singapore
1995 Portrait, Great Eastern Life Insurance, Singapore
1995 Book illustrator for Joy Cowley’s Readers, Stories of Asia, Heinemann
1994 Corporate calendar, Birds of Asia, Jurong Engineering Ltd, Singapore

Awards

2001 Acquisitional Award, Yarra Valley Art Show, Melbourne

1996 National Arts Council Bursary, Singapore

1992 Merit Award, Anti-pickpocket Poster Competition, Singapore Police Force
1992 Distinction, Phillippe Charriol Contemporary Art Competition, Singapore

1985 Outstanding Performance in Teaching Practice, Institute of Education, Singapore

1975 Asean Scholarship, Singapore

samples of Lean's work

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Night Meditation, 1992

Oil on canvas, 3 x 4 feet
Collection of Heather Chapman, Australia

Woman with ikat leg, 1998

Mixed media on paper, 44 x 36 cm

Thread woman 3, 2000

Mixed media on fabric, 37 x 24 cm

Alcina at balcony, 1998

Wax pencil, 24 x 19 cm

Links #1, 2002,
fabric paint on fabric,76x73cm

Diamond Marine #3b, 2007,

acrylic on paper mounted on stretcher,

22x22x1.8 cm, vertical axis 31cm