China-born Chua Ek Kay (1947-2008) was one of Singapore’s foremost contemporary Chinese ink painters. Known for his paintings of Singapore street scenes, lotuses and abstract compositions, he studied Chinese ink painting under Fan Chang Tien (1907-1987) but was also influenced by Australian aboriginal art and Western artists. In 1991 and 1998, Chua won the Grand Prize in the 10th UOB Painting of the Year Competition and the Philip Morris ASEAN Arts Award (Juror's Choice) in Singapore respectively. In 1999, he was honoured with the Cultural Medallion Award by the Singapore government.Chua’s distinctive use of Chinese calligraphic strokes in his paintings can be seen in ‘After the Rain’, a work from the Water Village series which is based on his trips to the Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces between 2002 and 2003. The thick and heavy renderings of ink in huge slabs and expressive brushwork embody Chua’s deep sense of apprehension and anxiety at the transition of the 20th century to the 21st century.
