Of Fingerbowls & Hankies: Chris Yap voyeurs through the Baba House

[Photo © Chris Yap, Singapore]

Date: 24 Jun 2009 - 4 Aug 2010
Venue: Baba House, 157 Neil Road

Visits to the exhibition are by appointment only.
Please contact 6227 5731 or email babahouse@nus.edu.sg.

Artist and photographer Chris Yap explores what it means to be ‘Peranakan’ in our contemporary world. Whilst developments within the community have been habitually analysed as a Southeast Asian-Sino-Anglo amalgamation, Yap’s works prompt us to reflect on whether this hybridization has intensified, changed or evolved through interactions with global flows and contemporary culture. Using portraiture and still-life photography, aspects of the Peranakan as are commonly represented are juxtaposed against daily life and experiences. The histories of traditional Peranakan objects are considered, drawing attention to interesting and varied opportunities. What continues to be traditionally and exclusively Peranakan and what possibilities unfold moving forward?