ART AND ALCHEMY- CHIEU SHUEY
ART AND ALCHEMY- CHIEU SHUEY
Chieu Shuey Fook was born in Singapore in 1934. A second-generation artist and NAFA alumnus, Chieu was influenced by pioneer artist and teacher Cheong Soo Pieng. In 1953, Chieu graduated with a Diploma in Western Painting. Prior to become becoming a full-time artist in 1983, he pursued a fulfilling career in advertising for over 20 years. This had a lifelong impact on his artistic endeavors, particularly his metal relief works for which he is most well-known today. Ever-experimental, the tenacious Chieu has sought out new techniques and employed base metals like zinc, aluminum, copper, incorporating various chemicals, self-derived mixtures of solutions and material combinations in his art-making.
NAFA is proud to organise this survey exhibition that showcases over 60 works featuring a selection of Chieu’s batik works, zinc etchings, metal relief as well as an original painted vintage car, a 1961 Morris Minor that was a commissioned work by the Community Chest of Singapore in 1990. Also on display is Chieu’s recent work, “Wow! Merlion,” characterised by whimsical imageries, solid lines, and geometric shapes with vivid coloured planes, forming an impressive triptych that measures about 5 five metres across. This exhibition documents the artist’s extensive research in his use of unconventional materials throughout his practice. Perhaps more importantly, it reveals the spirit of inventiveness and fearlessness in embracing the unknown, to find the ingenuous collision of science and great art.
Dancer 舞者, 2012, Metal Relief, 122 x 91 cm