Samsui Women

Born in China, Chua Mia Tee (1931) migrated to Singapore in 1937. A graduate from Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts in 1957, Chua is a highly regarded master of portrait painting. Chua has painted portraitures of prominent public figures, including presidents and prime ministers of Singapore. Besides portraitures, Chua also paints nationalistic and local scenes of Singapore, which serve as historical documentations of the nation's changing landscape. 'Samsui Women' is a composite of photographs. In reality, the Samsui women were working on different parts of a front lawn. The strength of Chua's practice is revealed in the anatomical details. The hunched over postures of the figures are well-executed, the sinewy limbs and lean muscles of the old Samsui women are accentuated to highlight their many years of physical labour and at the same time evocative of the strength of their quiet dignity.