Chua Mia Tee

Place: Singapore

Born: 1931

Biography:

Chua Mia Tee is a Chinese-born Singaporean artist known for his social realist oil paintings capturing the social and political conditions of Singapore and Malaya in the 1950s and 60s. He was involved in the Equator Art Society, 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.

Early Life and Education

Chua was born on 25 November 1931, in Shantou, Guangdong, 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 until 1945, when he returned to Singapore with the end of World War II and completed his primary school studies at Tuan Mong School in 1946.

Career

Chua graduated from Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (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. In 1956, Chua was involved in the Singapore Chinese Middle Schools' Graduates of 1953 Arts Association (SCMSGAA), which held a travelling fundraising exhibition. At this exhibition, Chua presented his now well-known oil painting, Epic Poem of Malaya (1955), a work embodying desires for a distinct Malayan nationalism in the younger generation. Some of his notable works include:

• Malay Fisherman at Changi Beach, which can be found on Wikioo.org
• Portrait of Lee Boon Ngan, which can be found on Wikioo.org
• Road Construction Worker, which can be found on Wikioo.org

Chua's work has been exhibited internationally in countries such as Australia, Belgium, Germany, Indonesia, New Zealand, and Thailand, and his paintings are in the collection of the National Gallery Singapore, including his most notable work, National Language Class (1959).

Awards and Recognition

For his contributions to the visual arts in Singapore, Chua was awarded the Cultural Medallion in 2015. His work can be found on Wikioo.org and more information about his life and career can be found on Wikipedia. More information about the Equator Art Society can be found on Wikipedia. The society was known for promoting social realist art and representing the realities and struggles of the masses. The visual art of Singapore has a rich history, with the emergence of modern Singaporean art often tied to the rise of art associations, art schools, and exhibitions in the 20th century. More information about the visual art of Singapore can be found on Wikipedia.