Image size: 32.0 x 39.0 cm
Hor Kwok Kin’s photographs are typified by geometric angles and tonal contrast in creating interesting focal points in his compositions. His subject matters are often quotidian scenes of urban life. Morning Read was taken with a Leica M3 using an aperture of f4 at a shutter speed of 1/60 second. This work candidly captures a moment of a man reading his morning newspaper, his figure outlined and accentuated by the backlit effect of the sunlight. The work won the first prize in a weekly photography contest organised by a national daily in 1971. Hor Kwok Kin was born in 1939 in Ipoh, Malaysia before he relocated to Singapore in 1958. Like many amateur photographer of that period, Hor Kwok Kin was active in various salons, receiving accolades and circulating locally and regionally between 1960s and 1980s. His photographs capture quotidian scenes of Singapore inflected by his working class sensibility. Hor was awarded the Associate Membership of the Photographic Society of Singapore (APPS) in 1985 and The Royal Photography Society (ARPS) in 1986. In 1992, Hor was awarded the Fellowship of the Royal Photographic Society (FRPS).
