#ThrowbackThursday: Singapore in the 1900s in watercolour and black and white photographs

Colour me pretty

Text: Adibah Isa

Image: Courtesy of National Gallery Singapore,
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National Gallery Singapore's new exhibition, 'Lim Cheng Hoe: Painting Singapore', sheds light on a medium that's often overlooked in the art world. Bonus: See the black and white photographs we dug up that showed vintage Singapore

Just how hard is it to watercolour?

Answer: Pretty damn complicated, and we're not talking about your artistic pursuits in primary school. National Gallery Singapore's exhibition on pioneer watercolour artist Lim Cheng Hoe is a long time coming — his last solo exhibition dates back to more than 30 years. The late China-born artist (1912 - 1979) was a founding member of the Singapore Watercolour Society and is celebrated by how complex and multi-dimensional he was as an artist. Watercolour itself is a difficult art to master, with liquid colours bleeding and blending in unpredictable ways. Mistakes are often difficult to erase once the watercolour dries, with the medium demanding an assured hand and the ability to work in precision.

The exhibition celebrates Singapore just as much as it celebrates Lim as an artist, with his bold brushstrokes and colour washes mirroring our country's rise as a modern city-state.

'Lim Cheng Hoe: Painting Singapore' runs at the National Gallery Singapore till 9 June 2019.