Chua Mia Tee
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Chua Mia Tee (; born 25 November 1931) is a
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
-born
Singaporean Singaporeans, or the Singaporean people, refers to citizens or people who identify with the sovereign island city-state of Singapore. Singapore is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-lingual country. Singaporeans of Chinese, Malay, Ind ...
artist known for his
social realist Social realism is the term used for work produced by painters, printmakers, photographers, writers and filmmakers that aims to draw attention to the real socio-political conditions of the working class as a means to critique the power structure ...
oil painting Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...
s capturing the social and political conditions of
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
and Malaya in the 1950s and 60s. Chua was involved in the
Equator Art Society The Equator Art Society was an artists' group founded in 1956 in Singapore, known for promoting Social realism, social realist art. The Equator Art Society sought to represent the realities and struggles of the masses, depicting Singapore's work ...
, an artist group founded in 1956 whose social realist works sought to instil a distinct Malayan consciousness by representing the realities and struggles of the masses. For his contributions to the visual arts in Singapore, Chua was awarded the
Cultural Medallion The Cultural Medallion is a cultural award in Singapore conferred to those who have achieved artistic excellence in dance, theatre, literature, music, photography, art and film. It is widely recognized as Singapore's pinnacle arts award. Histo ...
in 2015. Chua is also known for his depictions of historic events and
portrait A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. For this r ...
paintings of prominent Singaporeans and political figures, such as the nation's presidents and ministers. This includes, for instance, a sculpted bust of composer
Zubir Said Zubir Said (22 July 1907 – 16 November 1987) was a Singaporean composer most notable for composing the national anthem of his country, "Majulah Singapura" – "Onward Singapore". A self-taught musician, Zubir also worked as a score arrang ...
, and Chua's 1998 portrait of Singapore's first president
Yusof Ishak Yusof bin Ishak (12 August 191023 November 1970) was a Singaporean politician and journalist who served as the first president of Singapore from 1965 until his death in 1970. Prior to becoming head of state, Yusof was a well-known journalis ...
, which can be found reproduced on Singapore's currency notes. His work has been exhibited internationally in countries such as Australia,
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,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
,
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, and
Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
, and his paintings are in the collection of the
National Gallery Singapore ms, Galeri Kebangsaan Singapura ta, சிங்கப்பூர் தேசிய கலைக்கூடம் , logo = National_Gallery_Singapore_logo.svg , image = Interior_of_the_National_Gallery_Singapore.jpg , caption = Interior of ...
, including his most notable work, '' National Language Class'' (1959).


Personal life and education

Chua was born in 1931 in Shantou,
Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...
, China. In 1937, at the age of six, Chua and his family fled the Sino-Japanese War in China, coming to Singapore. For his primary education, he attended the Shuqun School and subsequently Tuan Mong School. His studies would be temporarily interrupted by the Japanese occupation of Singapore, with his family moving to
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
until 1945, when he returned to Singapore with the end of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
and completed his primary school studies at Tuan Mong School in 1946. While growing up, Chua would watch his father, a self-taught painter who was a businessman, draw portraits of his grandparents, leading to Chua's discovery of his own interest in sketching and painting. While Chua enrolled in Chung Cheng High School for secondary education in 1947, he left midway to pursue a formal arts education at the
Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA); (Standard Chinese: 南洋艺术学院; ms, Akademi Seni Halus Nanyang; ta, நன்யாங் அகாடமி ஆஃப் ஃபைன் ஆர்ட்ஸ்) is a publicly-funded post-secondary ar ...
(NAFA), Singapore, encouraged by his father. There, academy director
Lim Hak Tai Lim Hak Tai, (; 28 May 1893 – 14 February 1963) was one of Singapore's pioneer artist at the turn of the 20th century, and was the person who inspired the Nanyang School of art form, to reflect the ' Nanyang' (South-east Asia) region, both i ...
and artists Cheong Soo Pieng, Koh Tong Leong and See Hiang To would be some of his teachers. Chua graduated from NAFA in 1952 and taught there as a full-time teacher for two years before returning to Chung Cheng High School to complete his secondary education. He would then return to NAFA as an art teacher once again.


Career

In 1956, an art association comprising students from local Chinese middle schools, the Singapore Chinese Middle Schools' Graduates of 1953 Arts Association (SCMSGAA), held a travelling fundraising exhibition. Raising funds for building Singapore's only Chinese-language private university, Nantah (later merged to become the present-day National University of Singapore), the association first exhibited at the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Singapore, and later in
Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...
and Penang. At this travelling exhibition, Chua would present his now well-known oil painting, ''Epic Poem of Malaya'' (1955)'','' a work that embodies the desire to inculcate a distinct Malayan nationalism in the younger generation. However, the SCMSGAA would be dissolved after the travelling exhibition due to their perceived left-leaning politics and anti-colonial sentiment, and a new group called the
Equator Art Society The Equator Art Society was an artists' group founded in 1956 in Singapore, known for promoting Social realism, social realist art. The Equator Art Society sought to represent the realities and struggles of the masses, depicting Singapore's work ...
would be registered the same year in 1956. Comprising many of the members of the SCMSGAA, the Equator Art Society was an artist group promoting the use of realist-style painting and socially-engaged practices that commented on social issues in 1950s and 60s Singapore and Malaya. Chua would be involved in the Equator Art Society's exhibitions, presenting paintings such as ''National Language Class'' (1959), for example, at the group's 1960 exhibition. By the society's de-registering on 11 January 1974, the EAS had held 6 exhibitions at locations including the Victoria Memorial Hall, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, and its premises at 56 Lorong 32 in Geylang. Chua would simultaneously develop his practice through his involvement with commercial art, becoming an illustrator at the Shanghai Book Company from 1957 and later working as a designer with Grant Advertising International from 1960. Afterwards from 1965, Chua would work as a book designer and illustrator the Times Organisation's Federal Publication. In 1974, Chua held his first solo exhibition of his social realist paintings at the Rising Art Gallery, with the attention garnered leading to his decision to be a full-time artist at the age of 43. In 1979, Chua would be commissioned to create 36 sketches of
members of parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
and ministers during parliamentary meetings. He would continue to be commissioned to paint political figures such as then Senior Minister
Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...
in 1991 as a May Day gift from the
National Trades Union Congress The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), also known as the Singapore National Trades Union Congress (SNTUC) internationally, is the sole national trade union centre in Singapore. NTUC is at the heart of the Labour Movement which comprises 5 ...
, and historic events such as ''The Opening of the 8th Parliament'' for the Parliament of Singapore in 1992. Chua's 1998 portrait of Singapore's first president
Yusof Ishak Yusof bin Ishak (12 August 191023 November 1970) was a Singaporean politician and journalist who served as the first president of Singapore from 1965 until his death in 1970. Prior to becoming head of state, Yusof was a well-known journalis ...
, for instance, can be found reproduced on Singapore's currency notes. Chua would show his work in solo and group shows from the 1980s onwards, also holding joint exhibitions in 1980 and 1990 with oil painter Lee Boon Ngan, his wife. In 1996, with the inauguration of the
Singapore Art Museum The Singapore Art Museum (Abbreviation: SAM) is an art museum is located in the Downtown Core district of Singapore. It is the first fully dedicated contemporary visual arts museum in Singapore with one of the world’s most important public co ...
, Chua's work would also be historicised in ''Channels & Confluences: A History of Singapore Art'', a publication produced alongside the museum's opening. In 2007, the exhibition ''From Words to Pictures: Art During the Emergency'' would be held at the Singapore Art Museum, a show examining social realist artworks in Singapore through the historical frame of the Malayan Emergency, including works by Chua. In 2013, the former members of EAS held the exhibition ''137km North of the Equator: A Story of the Equator Art Society and Realist Artists in Singapore'' at the Artcommune Gallery. With the opening of the
National Gallery Singapore ms, Galeri Kebangsaan Singapura ta, சிங்கப்பூர் தேசிய கலைக்கூடம் , logo = National_Gallery_Singapore_logo.svg , image = Interior_of_the_National_Gallery_Singapore.jpg , caption = Interior of ...
in 2015, Chua's work would be featured in and inspire the title of the inaugural exhibition at the Singapore Gallery, ''Siapa Nama Kamu? Art in Singapore since the 19th Century'', its name taking from a detail in his oil painting, ''National Language Class'' (1959). In 2015, Chua was awarded the
Cultural Medallion The Cultural Medallion is a cultural award in Singapore conferred to those who have achieved artistic excellence in dance, theatre, literature, music, photography, art and film. It is widely recognized as Singapore's pinnacle arts award. Histo ...
for his contributions to the visual arts in Singapore.


Art

Chua's oil painting, ''National Language Class'' (1959), has been interpreted as reflecting an emerging nationalist Malayan identity, with
Malay language Malay (; ms, Bahasa Melayu, links=no, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , Rejang script, Rencong: ) is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language that is an official language of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, and that is also spo ...
uniting the various ethnic communities. The painting depicts Singaporeans of different ethnicities attempting to free themselves from English, the language of their colonial masters, by learning Malay, the national language of Singapore, Malaya, and the Malay World. They are seated at a round table, a symbol of equality, with the Malay teacher posing two simple questions to his students: ''Siapa nama kamu? Di-mana awak tinggal?'' (What is your name? Where do you live?). These seemingly simple questions are loaded with political symbolism, illustrating the dynamics of the late 1950s and early 1960s, when the Malay language was a social bridge and major medium of communication in Singapore. Then, left-wing Chinese school students demanded that the study of Malay replace English in their Chinese medium schools in preparation for merger with Malaya.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chua, Mia Tee 1931 births Living people People from Shantou Singaporean people of Teochew descent Chinese emigrants to Singapore Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts alumni Singaporean painters Singaporean artists