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Reading Modern Southeast Asian Art History Through Exhibitions

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This document is downloaded from DR‑NTU (https://dr.ntu.edu.sg) Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Reading modern Southeast Asian art history through exhibitions Hong, Grace Chu Yu 2019 Hong, G. C. Y. (2019). Reading modern Southeast Asian art history through exhibitions. Master's thesis, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. https://hdl.handle.net/10356/137352 https://doi.org/10.32657/10356/137352 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution‑NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY‑NC 4.0). Downloaded on 02 Oct 2021 18:29:21 SGT READING MODERN SOUTHEAST ASIAN ART HISTORY THROUGH EXHIBITIONS HONG CHU YU GRACE SCHOOL OF ART, DESIGN AND MEDIA 2019 READING MODERN SOUTHEAST ASIAN ART HISTORY THROUGH EXHIBITIONS HONG CHU YU GRACE School of Art, Design and Media A thesis submitted to the Nanyang Technological University in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Arts (Research) 2019 STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY I hereby certify that the work embodied in this thesis is the result of original research, is free of plagiarised materials, and has not been submitted for a higher degree to any other University or Institution. 31 December 2019 . Date Hong Chu Yu Grace i SUPERVISOR DECLARATION STATEMENT I have reviewed the content and presentation style of this thesis and declare it is free of plagiarism and of sufficient grammatical clarity to be examined. To the best of my knowledge, the research and writing are those of the candidate except as acknowledged in the Author Attribution Statement. I confirm that the investigations were conducted in accord with the ethics policies and integrity standards of Nanyang Technological University and that the research data are presented honestly and without prejudice. 31 December 2019 . Date Michelle Lim ii AUTHORSHIP ATTRIBUTION STATEMENT This thesis does not contain any materials from papers published in peer-reviewed journals or from papers accepted at conferences in which I am listed as an author. 31 December 2019 . Date Hong Chu Yu Grace iii ABSTRACT Exhibitions have been crucial to the construction of modern Southeast Asian art history since the first Southeast Asian art exhibition in 1957.1 They are a primary means for canon building through tangible displays of artworks and published writings. Established in 2015, the National Gallery Singapore (NGS) has quickly become the most influential institution for producing exhibitions of modern Southeast Asian art. The NGS’s exhibitions have been instrumental in shaping a new master narrative of modern Southeast Asian art history—one that has been posited as originating in nineteenth century colonialism and remains deeply informed by narratives of Western modernism. However, the role of the NGS’s exhibitions in the construction of a modern Southeast Asian art history has yet to be scrutinised beyond the museum’s publicised regional engagement—and in relation to the Singapore’s national agenda. This thesis examines the complexities and tensions of the NGS’s curatorial position through two significant exhibitions: Between Declarations and Dreams: Art of Southeast Asia Since the 19th Century (2015–2020), and Reframing Modernism: Painting from Southeast Asia, Europe and Beyond (2016). Through the close study of curatorial strategies and exhibition mechanics behind the display of artworks by two major Southeast Asian artists, Nguyen Gia Tri (b. 1908, Vietnam–d.1993, Vietnam) and Cheong Soo Pieng (b. 1917, China–d. 1983, Singapore),2 this study argues that the NGS’s exhibitions have cultivated a dominant narrative that ultimately suppresses the complexity and diversity of other Southeast Asian countries’ art histories towards the goal of positioning Singapore as the regional centre for Southeast Asia. 1 In 1957, the first Southeast Asia Art Conference and Competition was held in Manila, Philippines. 2 These two artists have been chosen due to the significant curatorial emphasis as evident in the catalogue essays and their hanging in the exhibition layout. Other important Southeast Asian artists who have been featured in both exhibitions include Carlos “Botong” Francisco (b. 1912, Philippines), Galo B. Ocampo (b. 1913, Philippines), Victorio C. Edades (b. 1895, Philippines), Emiria Sunassa (b. 1894, Indonesia), Affandi (b. 1907, Indonesia), S. Sudjojono (b. 1913, Indonesia), Ahmad Sadali (b. 1924, Indonesia), Hernando R. Ocampo (b. 1911, Philippines), Sompot Upa-in (b. 1934, Thailand), Latiff Mohidin (b. 1941, Malaysia) and Fernando Zobel (b. 1924, Philippines). iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my deep gratitude to Prof Michelle Lim, my research supervisor, for her patient guidance and useful critique of this research work. My dear friends and colleagues Muhammad Ridzal Abdul Hamid, Kenneth Tay, and Rie Ong have also been generous with their instrumental advice. I would also like to thank Prof Michael Walsh and Prof Andrea Nanetti for their historical knowledge and research skills imparted in their lessons. Advice given by Prof T.K. Sabapathy and Prof Yin Ker, as well as Dr Seng Yu Jin, have also been insightful in developing this research thesis. Finally, I wish to thank my husband Samuel for his endless encouragement and support throughout my study. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement of Originality i Supervisor Declaration Statement ii Authorship Attribution Statement iii Abstract iv Acknowledgements v List of Illustrations viii 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Modern Southeast Asian Art Through Exhibition History 5 1.2 Exhibitions as Sites for Producing Art Historical Narratives 14 1.3 Literature Review 21 1.4 Research Methodology: A Proposed Template for Reading Art 25 Exhibitions 2 National Gallery Singapore: A National Institution with Regional 30 Ambitions 2.1 Building the Canons of Southeast Asian Art: Nguyen Gia Tri (b. 1908, 36 Vietnam) and Cheong Soo Pieng (b. 1917, China) 2.2 Collecting and Exhibiting Regional Masterpieces: Nguyen Gia Tri’s 41 Landscape of Vietnam (c. 1940) and The Fairies (c. 1936) 2.3 Highlighting a National Icon: Cheong Soo Pieng’s Significant Paintings 52 3 A New Regional Narrative for Southeast Asian Art History 68 3.1 Locating the Origins of Modern Southeast Asian Art History in 74 Nineteenth Century Colonialism 3.2 Southeast Asia as a Homogenous Region? 87 3.3 Dominant Art-Historical Narrative with Singapore as the Centre 93 4 Constructing Modern Southeast Asian Art History Through Exhibitions 96 4.1 Art Historical Narratives by Other Key Institutions 97 4.2 Alternative Approaches to Curating Southeast Asian Art in the 101 Contemporary 4.3 Future Directions for the Study 109 4.4 Conclusion 112 Bibliography 115 vi Appendix A. Significant Modern and Contemporary Southeast Asian Art 122 Exhibitions from 2006–2016 Appendix B. Template for Reading Southeast Asian Art Exhibitions 124 vii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 1. Nguyen Gia Tri, Landscape of Vietnam, c. 1940. Lacquer on board, 159 x 119 cm. Collection of National Gallery Singapore. 2. Nguyen Gia Tri, The Fairies, c. 1936. Lacquer on board, 290 × 440 cm. Collection of Géraldine Galateau, Paris. 3. Cheong Soo Pieng, Goats, Figures, and Jugs, 1959. Gouache on paper, 89.8 x 39.7 cm. Collection of National Gallery Singapore. 4. Cheong Soo Pieng, Malay Woman, 1950. Oil on board, 49 x 39 cm. Collection of National Gallery Singapore. 5. Cheong Soo Pieng, Tend Cows, 1951. Oil on canvas, 40.5 x 71.2 cm. Donated by Singapore Totalisator Board, Collection of National Gallery Singapore. 6. Cheong Soo Pieng, Untitled (“Puppet Maker”), 1952. Oil on canvas, 80 x 65 cm. Donated by Loke Wan Tho, Collection of National Gallery Singapore. 7. Exhibition Layout of Reframing Modernism at the National Gallery Singapore, in Reframing Modernism: Painting from Southeast Asia, Europe and Beyond, edited by Sarah Lee and Sara Siew, 18. Singapore: National Gallery Singapore, 2016. viii Chapter One Introduction Since 1996, Singapore has played a leading role in the production of modern Southeast Asian art exhibitions.3 The newest state-funded art museum in the country, the National Gallery Singapore (NGS), is Singapore’s largest art and cultural institution, representing the culmination of the city-state’s cultural and nation-building policies years in the making. The NGS has played an active part in championing the research and scholarship of modern Southeast Asian art by staging large-scale group survey exhibitions of modern Southeast Asian art that have been accompanied by extensive catalogues and programmes such as academic conferences.4 Among the art institutions in Singapore and Southeast Asia, the NGS is especially noteworthy for launching blockbuster exhibitions and securing partnerships with large, reputable art museums overseas such as the Centre Pompidou, the Musée d'Orsay, and the Tate Britain which have resulted in joint, traveling exhibitions.5 In Southeast Asia, large-scale exhibitions are the primary platform through which modern Southeast Asian artworks are presented to the public. As a primary producer of such exhibitions, the NGS has played an important role in spearheading efforts to write an art history of the region, which spans a relatively shorter time period in comparison to those in 3 The opening of the Singapore Art Museum (SAM) in 1996 marked the region’s and Singapore’s first dedicated public collection of Southeast Asian art. During the ten years that preceded the announcement of Singapore’s plans to open the National Gallery Singapore (NGS) in 2006 at the first Singapore Biennale, SAM played a key role in cementing Singapore’s
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