100. miniature paintings by ernest chan. to travel home in a grain of sand

100 miniature paintings by ernest chan to travel home in a grain of sand

Is a miniature simply a small painting? In the traditional practice of miniature artists, the size of a miniature is typically 1/6 of the actual size of the subject, or within 6.5 inches at maximum when framed. Given the small dimensions, colour, and precision, a keen perceptiveness to details is key to the techniques of a miniature artist. Without the luxury of space, the artist needs to discern the elements of his subject, and etch these in a limited composition. Therefore, while miniatures are categorically smaller paintings, not all small paintings possess the dexterity to fall within this tradition. The portability of miniature paintings in 16th Century Europe enabled the ease of gifting during sojourns or long travels. Because of the sophistication in technique and the niche trade of miniature artists, these paintings are typically commissioned by royalty as a novelty, or inlaid into furniture as decorative fixtures. The paintings range from portraits of a prominent social figure, a child, a lover, or a close aide, to a landscape or proof of victory from battle. When commissioned as precious crucibles of memories, these images are held close to the owners in lockets or framed boxes, ready to be packed and transported throughout the lifetime of its owner, or passed down from generations, or to a trusted successor. It signifies the concretisation of the intangibility of memories, cradled in a moment in time. This tradition of miniature painting is the entry point to Ernest Chan’s oeuvre. The 100 miniature paintings presented in this exhibition document the travels Ernest Chan took during 1993 to 2019 primarily across the Swiss Alps, Mediterranean landscapes, and the waterfronts of the Pacific Ocean. These landscapes are at times strikingly familiar, and at times enmeshed with memories of sceneries he had once encountered or imagined. Engulfed by the sensuality of nature, Chan etches the textures of the piercing cold of winter, and the biting heat of summer, into careful, fine strokes of paint

onto organic slabs of manicured wood. To capture the expanse and presence of these vistas requires a montage of images, with a prolonged immersion of one’s memories into a plausible composition. These memories that Chan captured of the landscapes were extracted and distilled into dabs of paints, each stroke representing a ray of light, or a blade of grass that builds up to a distinct moment in time where he experienced the staggering power of nature’s beauty. Chan’s adept use of brushwork is immediately discernible in his condensation of vastness within spaces measuring 3 by 6 cm; significantly smaller in relation to the traditions of miniature painters of the 1500s. This requires not just a steady hand, but also an acumen in how a colour or a line could best be utilised. In this sense, Chan’s miniatures have no room for excess. His technique is also reminiscent of his training as a printmaker, where the engraving process of hatching (making short lines) and stippling (making dots) onto softwood, can be observed. Therefore, in some ways, these landscapes could also be read as templates for imprints to be made, and journeys to come. To Ernest Chan, his miniatures make up the world he had collected through his journeys. Because of these sojourns, home is perceived differently every time he returns, and each of these 100 memories leads him to the inmost recesses of beauty he will come to inhabit. The title of this exhibition references William Blake’s poem, Auguries of Innocence, where the grandeur of nature can be observed in the littlest detail, starting off with a mere grain of sand. Blake writes, To see the world in a grain of sand/and a heaven in a wild flower/Hold infinity in the palm of your hand/And eternity in an hour. In Ernest Chan’s miniature series, Blake’s lines are visualised through the distillation of Chan’s memories into art. Nuggets of beauty are created to be held in the palm of our hands, holding the weight of nature in the lightness of miniatures.



‘Gradually, I found how the grandeur of aesthetics is actually also possible in in the minute and the subtle. This led to the experimentation with miniatures in 2013. Now I enjoy the idea of “small is big”.’



Ernest Chan Tuck Yew is a full-time fine artist and educator who had received accolades locally and internationally. He has been exhibited at various institutions including the Singapore Art Museum’s President’s Young Talents Exhibition, The Esplanade, and the STPI - Creative Workshop and Gallery. Ernest holds a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts from Cheltenham & Gloucester College of Higher Education, a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts (Painting) from the University of Central England, Birmingham Institute of Arts and Designs, and a Diploma in Fine Art (Printmaking) from Lasalle College of the Arts, Singapore. Ernest lectured at Lasalle-SIA College of the Arts’ Fine Arts Faculty from 1999 to 2006, and was most recently a Teaching Artist under the Ministry of Education and National Arts Council’s partnership programme, the Artist Mentor Scheme. Under the scheme, Ernest guided visual arts teachers in both content and pedagogical knowledge necessary in a visual arts classroom. During his years as an educator in Lasalle-SIA, he was also the Vice-President and member of the Printmaking Society (Singapore). Ernest has exhibited widely and has spoken on international platforms. He was an invited guest speaker at the Fifth Australian Print Symposium at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra, and had also exhibited at the 8th International Printmaking Biennial of Douro 2016, Portugal. Ernest’s prints were selected for the Mondial De L’estampe Et De La Gravure Originale Triennale, and the De Chamalieres Printmaking Triennale in France in 2006; as well as in the 1st Macau Printmaking Triennial 2012. He had also been exhibited in Portugal, Poland, France, The U.K., The Philippines, Indonesia, Hong Kong, China, Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, Australia, and Japan.







































‘Both wood and glass are both sturdy yet vulnerable materials, very much like the co-existence of human strength and fragility that we are faced with, especially in times of adversity. In that way, my choice of materials are metaphors for life.’









The curvature of the glass also magnifies the miniature within. I hope to ignite curiosity within my audiences, and invite them to lift the glass cover, lean closer and study the work in depth. This intimacy through my artwork establishes a connection between me and my audiences.







Art work general details: Size and Medium Rectangle Landscape, 2018-2019 Oil on wood 3 (W) x 6 (L) x 1.4 (H) cm Rectangle Portrait, 2019 Oil on wood 6 (W) x 3 (L) x 1.4 (H) cm Square, 2019 Oil on wood 3 (W) x 3 (L) x 1.4 (H) cm Circular, glass jar, 2013-2019 Oil on wood, glassware, foliage cluster, scale variable 2.8 diameter x 3 (H) cm



SOLO EXHIBITION 2010 ‘Yuan Yuan’ Esplanade Tunnel, Singapore 2006 2004 ‘Drawing Exhibition’ Raffles Design Institute, Bangkok. Thailand ‘Private Views’ Sunjin Galleries, Workloft at Chip Bee, Singapore ‘CAPPED’, Mohd Sultan Road (Warehouse), Singapore. SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS 2019 ’New Findings’ One East Asia, Singapore 2018 5th International Enter into Art 2019. Germany 2017 2016 4th International ‘Enter into Art’ installions 2018, Germany. 2015 ‘The Allure of Mutliverses’ Art Seasons, Duo Galleria. Singapore. 2014 ‘You don’t need 100 editions’ Praxi Space, Lasalle college of the arts. Singapore. ‘From within’ Ion Gallery. Singapore 2010 3rd International ‘Enter into Art’ installions 2017, Germany. 4th international ‘Enter into Art’ installions 2017-2018, Germany. 8th International Printmaking Biennial of Douro 2016, Av Teixeira de Sousa, 15 5070-012 Alijo Portugal. “from within’ Ion Art, Singapore. 2nd GLOBALPRINT 2015 Bienal Do Douro /Global Print. Portugal ‘from within’ Alliance Franchaise UL. Poland. ‘Happiness is… finding the garden that lies within’ community wall, Esplanade, Singapore ‘These Sacred Things’ Jendela gallery, Esplanade, Singapore. ‘practice and perfection’ Nanyang Academy of Fines Arts, Gallery 1. Singapore. ‘Eyes to Think’ Sangkring Art Space. Indonesia. ‘尚上有约’新加坡德耀西安蔡小枫作品展。. Xi’an China. ‘connection’天朗美术馆。 Xi’an China ‘Eyes to Think’ Light and Space Contemporary Fort Victoria Building, Philippines ‘sense making’ ChinaHouse Gallery George Town, Penang, Malaysia ‘sense making’ 502-504 studio, Hong Kong ‘Du plus profound de soi…..’ salle Cascante, Castillon-la-Bataille, France ‘somethings that matter’ Jendela gallery, Esplanade, Singapore 1st Macau Printmaking Triennial. Macau ‘from within’ SG Private Gallery, Alliance Francaise de Singapour. Singapore ‘Qiao Qiao Kan 桥瞧看’Shanxi International Contemporary Art Exhibition Li Pont Art Gallery, Xi ‘An, China ‘1xSuitcase’ SG Private Gallery, Alliance Francaise de Singapour. Singapore ‘1xSuitcase’ Spamart Shanghai, China. ‘1xSuitcase’ Rope Space, Xi’an Textile City Art District, Xi’an, China ‘1xSuitcase’ Meta House, Phnom Phenh, Cambodia

2009 ‘1xSuitcase’ The Annexe Gallery Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2008 ‘1xSuitcase’ Chiang Mai University Art Center. Chiang Mai, Thailand 2007 ‘1xSuitcase’ SG Private Gallery, Alliance Francaise de Singapour. Singapore ‘Wolfnotes: 6 artists x 6 authors” The Old School, Singapore 2005 ‘Proof V’ SG Private Gallery, Printmaking Society (Singapore) Annual Exhibition, 2003 Alliance Francaise de Singapour. Singapore 2002 ‘limited/Unlimited’ STPI Gallery, Printmaking Society (Singapore) Annual Exhibition, 2000 Singapore Tyler Print Institute. ‘EXTRAordinary Tales of Skylarking’ Jendela gallery, Esplanade, Singapore ‘Click for Art Exhibition’ (The Substation fundraising 07) Millenia Walk, Singapore Mondial De L’estampe Et De La Gravure Originale Triennale De Chamalieres Printmaking Triennale, France. ‘Inspire by the King’. Playground, Bangkok, Thailand ‘Made in Singapore’ Art Seasons Gallery, Singapore ‘Obscurity’ Project Space, LASALLE-SIA College of the Arts, Singapore ‘time phase print’ Printmaking Society (Singaopre) 25th Anniversary Exhibition. Jendela, Esplanade Singapore ‘500 & below’ Plastic Kinetic Worm, Singapore ‘Animal Instinct’ Utterly Art, Singapore ‘Graphite Project Drawing Show’ organized by KYTV, Geothe Institut Singapore ‘Proof 2004’ STPI Gallery, Printmaking Society (Singapore) Annual Exhibition, Singapore Tyler Print Institute ‘Erotica’ Arts Season Gallery, Singapore ‘Red + White = Pink’ Utterly Art, Singapore ‘Fresh’ Arts Season Gallery, Singapore ‘READ THE SMALL PRINT’ Printmaking Society (Singapore) Annual Exhibition, Utterly Art Gallery, Singapore ‘The big small show’ Arts Season Gallery, Singapore ‘Portrait Reassessed’ Earl Lu Gallery, Singapore ‘With & Without You- Revisitation of art in the age of AIDS’ Ivan Dougherty Gallery. Sydney Australia ‘Small works’ 38 Spaces Gallery, Singapore ‘Borders’ Nokia Singapore Art 2001, Alliance Francaise. Singapore. ‘The 20th UOB Painting of the Year Exhibition’, UOB Plaza 1, Singapore. ‘President’s Young Talent Exhibition’, Singapore Art Museum. ‘Proof 3 ‘ Printmaking Society. Substation Gallery, Singapore. ‘ Arts against Aids ‘ Heeren, Singapore. Project 2 ‘Too 2’ Earl Lu Gallery, Singapore ‘Kacang Puteh’ Telok Kurau Gallery, Singapore ST Andrew Mission Hospital, Charity Art Exhibition. Singapore Tourism Board. ‘Between’, Earl Lu Gallery, Singapore Nokia Singapore Art, Singapore Art Museum



1999 The 18th UOB Painting of The Year, Singapore 1998 The Ida Branson Bequest Exhibition, Atkinson Gallery, Millfield, Sommerset. UK. . 1997 MA Fine & Media Arts Show, The Pittville Gallery, Cheltenham. UK 1996 1994 BA Fine Arts Show, The School of Arts, Birmingham. UK 1992 Custard Factory, Birmingham. UK. 1991 Tokyo Urban Art Competition, Kichijoji Parco, Japan. The 11th Painting of the Year Competition, Singapore National Museum. Singapore Festival of Arts Exhibition, Raffles City. Contemporary Printmaking Exhibition, Geothe Institute, Singapore Paces, Ramah Chantik Gallery, Singapore AWARDS 2017 Honouable Mention, 3rd international ‘Enter into Art’ installions 2017, Germany. 2005 Travelogue – Research. The Winston Oh Travel Award 2005 1999 Singapore President’s Young Talent 1994 Highly Commended Work, The 20th UOB Painting Of the Year Exhibition 1992 Highly Commended Work, The 18th UOB Painting of the Year Exhibition Certificate of Merit, Singapore Urban Art Competition Certificate of Commendation, The 11th Painting of the Year Competition EDUCATION 1997 - MA Fine and Media Arts (Painting) 1998 Cheltenham & Gloucester College of Higher Education. UK 1995 - BA (Hons) Fine Arts (Painting) 1997 University of Central England in Birmingham, Birmingham Institute of Arts and Designs. UK 1989 - Diploma in Fine Arts Printmaking LaSalle College of the Arts. Singapore 1992



Artist Contact Chan Tuck Yew, Ernest +(65) 9664 3565 [email protected] ernestchan.net

The exhibition is held at Unit 03-11, Herencia, 46 Kim Yam Road, Singapore 239351 SEED logo design by Julia Azron Catalogue design by Julia Azron in collaboration with artist, Ernest Chan

SEED the Art Space Ltd (SEED) is a non- For further enquiries, profit collaborative platform for artists at please contact: different stages of their careers to work with arts managers, educators, and researchers to Connie Wong launch, develop, or expand their repertoire. Director +65 9272 6048 Ivy Lam, Curator Ivy Lam 100 Director +65 9767 3176 miniature paintings by ernest chan to travel home in a grain of sand Lourdes Abela Samson Director Seed, The Art Space +65 9843 5650 [email protected] Tina Jailani Collaborator +65 9797 2907