Cluster Stop: Still Lifes

Do you notice anything in common amongst these still life paintings? Is there any one object that ties them together? One recurring prop is the humble basket. But it is never the same basket—Chen painted different baskets holding and containing tropical fruits, in her still life arrangements. Observe the detail and care Chen took in rendering the various basket weaves, from the open weave in Sweet Rambutans on the left wall to the closed, criss-cross weave of the basket holding the coconut in Coconut and Chillies, on your extreme right. These still life paintings were produced over the many years after Chen settled in Singapore. Chen continually experimented with composition and texture to bring out the best qualities of her chosen subjects. In Sweet Rambutans, Chen uses short, quick brush strokes to highlight the bristles of the rambutan shells. In contrast, she uses flat, smooth strokes to effectively portray the glistening white rambutan flesh. Chen’s work on still lifes comes to grand fruition in Lotus Symphony, which is the work on the wall to your right. It is the only work she painted in this panoramic format. Take some time to absorb the details of this stunning painting. Do you notice the different stages of the lotuses’ blooming, from fully closed to wide open? There is also a bee at the centre, flitting about an open lotus flower. Chen was enamoured with the curious forms and sheer number of the lotuses she saw in a friend’s garden, and spent several weeks immersed in this “lotus paradise” where she painted en plein air or outdoors.