Featuring work by Chua Chin Hon and How Hwee Young

Chapel Gallery, Objectifs
21 Jun to 22 Jul 2018
Tues to Sat, 12pm to 7pm / Sun 12pm to 4pm
Free admission

Opening Reception: Wednesday 20 Jun, 7pm
Artist Talk: Saturday 23 Jun, 2pm

Read a recap of Chua Chin Hon and How Hwee Young’s artist talks here.

The rise of China is one of the most contentious stories of our times. The complex changes involved – from the drastic renewal of the country’s cities and the countryside, to Beijing’s new-found technological prowess and its assertiveness on the global stage – defy easy explanation, and have often divided global opinion. This exhibition gives a perspective from the ground up, as seen by two Singaporean photographers who have witnessed China’s transformation over the past 15 years.

In their first major showing in Singapore, Chua Chin Hon and How Hwee Young focus on the changing lives of the ordinary Chinese caught up in this wave of change. Their photographs also showcase the remarkable transformation of the country’s landscape, which has been reshaped by rapid urbanisation, ambitious engineering projects and global showcases like the Beijing Olympics.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the 2008 summer Games, a timely occasion to look back on China’s meteoric rise in recent years and ponder the future impact of its re-emergence on the global stage.

Supported by

 

 

About the artists

Chua Chin Hon is currently an editor at TODAY, where he oversees the newsroom’s online coverage and digital transition. Prior to returning to Singapore in 2013, he spent a decade in Beijing and Washington DC as a foreign correspondent.
As an independent documentary photographer, he published his first monograph, 08.08.08: Beijing’s Road To The Olympics in 2008, which featured photographs made during his stint in China. His series “Ghost Towns of Singapore” was published in +50: This is Singapore, and showcased in a group slideshow at the Obscura Photo Festival in 2016. His accolades include the Judges’ Special Recognition in the “Global Vision Award” for the 2009 Pictures of the Year International Contest.

How Hwee Young is currently the Chief Photographer for China region with epa, based in Beijing. She began her career as a photojournalist in Singapore with The Straits Times in 2001, before joining the european pressphoto agency (epa) to cover Singapore and Southeast Asia in 2004. In 2010, she relocated to Beijing to join the agency’s China bureau.

She has covered world events such as the 2013 earthquake in Lushan, China, political protests in Thailand, the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, and the 2008 Summer Olympics in Bejing. Her images have been published in major publications, including Time Magazine, New York Times, The Guardian, International Herald Tribune and Le Monde. Her accolades include a POYi 2014 Award of Excellence in the Science and Natural history category and an Award of Excellence from Communication Arts 46th annual photography exhibition in 2005 for her work on the Asia Tsunami in Thailand. She was a jury member of the 58th World Press Photo contest in 2015.