Singaporean Artist
Image of Chua Mia
Tee. (Chua Mia Tee picture, n.d.).
History
Chua Mia Tee was born in Shantou, Guangdong province, China
in 1931 but he fled along with his family to Singapore in 1937 because of the
Japanese invasion of their homeland. In 1947, he attended Chung Cheng High School
but withdrew halfway to pursue formal arts education in the Nanyang Academy of
Fine Arts (NAFA) (Pereira, n.d.). He taught in NAFA after his education and
went on to succeed as an artist both traditionally and commercially.
Artistic Education & Influence
The National Library Board’s (NLB) Infopedia quotes that “[h]e received training in drawing,
sketching with watercolour and painting, both with oils on canvas and with
Chinese ink and colours on paper from NAFA director Lim Hak Tai and artists
Cheong Soo Pieng, Koh Tong Leong and See Hiang To” (Omar, n.d.). Chua is a realist painter and one of
the most prominent in his field locally. His portfolio includes artowrks
depicting the dying historical scenes and traditional infrastructure of the 1960s
– 1980s period. One of his more well-known artworks would be National Language
Class (1959).
Key Accomplishments & Exhibitions
1974
- Became a full-time artist after success of first solo exhibition at the Rising Art Gallery
1979
- Commissioned to make 36 sketches of Ministers and Members of Parliament during meetings. Also painted the former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew on his return from London after the "Merdeka Talks"
1980
- Art Exhibition of Mr and Mrs Chua Mia Tee, Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry
1984
- National Day painting on "The 25th Year of Nation Building" appeared on the front page of The Straits Times
1988
- Participated in the 50th Painting Exhibition of R. Basoeki Abdullah R.A.N. in Jakarta, Indonesia
1990
- Designed Singapore's new $50 to commemorate Singapores 25th anniversary
1997
- Designed the One Million Dollars Commemorative Note, a souvenir note to mark the handover of Hong Kong to China
For more information about Chua’s accomplishments and history,
please visit this the National Library’s Infopedia site: http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_1010_2008-07-30.html
References
Chua Mia Tee
picture [Image] (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.sagg.com.sg/page/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=693
Omar, M. (n.d.). Chua Mia Tee. Retrieved from http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_1010_2008-07-30.html
Pereira, J.C.
(n.d.). Chua Mia Tee: Painter of the
common man. Retrieved from http://www.sagg.com.sg/page/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=693