watercolour on paper
signed, lower right
72 x 52 cm
The rare portrait composition of this Singapore River watercolour piece highlights the distant yet imposing skyscrapers in the distance, a symbol of the approaching modernisation of the nation. In the foreground, a plethora of bumboats of various colours sit on the tranquil Singapore River, enacting a stillness befitting of what would soon be a relic of the past.
The almost sepia tonal quality underlying the ripples in the river, juxtaposed with the skyscrapers rendered in a refreshing cool tone— capturing how glass planes reflect the blue of the sky— further accentuates this anticipatory tension between impending modernity and the ways of the past.
Provenance: Gift from a corporate collection to Singapore Philatelic Museum
To be sold to support Children’s Museum Singapore*
*Singapore Philatelic Museum became a dedicated children’s museum in December 2022
