Frame size: 65 x 104.4 cm
Born in Amoy, Lim Hak Tai (1893-1963) graduated from Provincial Art Teachers' Training College in Fuzhou in 1916 and later taught at Amoy Academy of Art. The outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War in China led Lim to Singapore in 1937, and in 1938 he founded the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), with the support of the Society of Chinese Artists. One of the pioneer educators in Singapore, Lim may be considered as one of the first to articulate the notion of the Nanyang Style through his writings.Influenced by the ideology of the New Cultural Movement of the 20th century, Lim believed that art should serve a social cause. The time frame of ‘Riot’ suggests that the work is inspired by events of that time, namely the Chinese Student riot at Fort Canning Hill (1954) and Hock Lee Bus riot (1955). Similar to ‘Indian Workers Clearing the Jungle’, another painting of the same period, hints of abstraction can be detected.
