Title: Jalan Singapura 4 - A new beginning
Year:2021
Size:122x152 cm
Technique: Acrylic on canvas

A sense of anticipation and renewal fills in the air. The row of wooden houses fronting the road have already been replaced with taller concrete apartments. The families of the last two village houses are seen moving out. The former farm areas further in are now construction sites for government-built flats.
This was the Singapore in the 1970s and 1980s that went through rapid and drastic infrastructure changes. I am reminded of my family’s resettlement in 1983 from our dilapidated house in old Chinatown, to the government flat perched on the 25th floor. I was just 14 years old, but was already excited and anxious about our new beginning.