Frame size: 55 x 65.3 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.The work captures the atmosphere of Singapore River when bumboats plied the waterway in the1950s. A feeling of bustling activity is conveyed through the manner the boats and godowns are packed into the small pictorial surface. Texture and expressive form are achieved through impasto and robust brushstrokes.
