The tropical scorching heat brings about serenity to the tropical garden. Humid and warm, residents seek refuge in the shade. Leaving the lush, layered and textured tropical landscape to glisten in the golden sun. The bronze tone brings out the colours of the tropical landscape. The breeze churns out seductive swaying.

It is precisely these scenes that local painter Tan Ai Ngin captures with her strokes. Graduating from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, she pursued her training in the Chinese style of painting in China. She then decided to return to the Western style, turning to Holland for inspiration, leading onto her Impressionist style of painting for Backyards and Botanics. Inspired by local settings, for example the space beyond her studio windows, she captures the reflections of the local tropical landscape basking in the golden sunlight.

It is refreshing to see local scenes painted in this manner. The empty ponds of the Botanical Gardens. The empty communal gardens of quaint old Tiong Bahru. Locally, the watercolour medium seems to be of preferred choice. Capturing the glow of the sun, the rich colours and fleeting instances on canvas in an impressionistic manner recreates the scene in new light.

Outreaching branches, the dance of leaves, fleeting reflections, empty inhabited spaces. Hints of an occupation. There are no people in sight. Their remains linger in the landscape. Pockets of green, dabs of red. Swirls of blue. The paintings lounge on the window sill of Utterly art exhibition space. The filtered light transports the viewer to the setting, as though one was truly in the heat, looking upon the greenery.

The domestic greenery never looked so beautiful. Framed through the impressionist eye, the fleeting moment is frozen. The only hint of the heat is perhaps the glow of the trees and the people hiding in the buildings.

Tan Ai Ngin “Backyards and Botanics”
Date: January 19th – 30th, 2005
Place: Utterly Art Exhibition Space
Address: 208 South Bridge Road, Singapore 058757
Tel: +65 6226 2605
http://utterlyart.com.sg