Artists

Behind the Brush.

Learn about the wonderful and talented artists behind this celebration of 18 years of WE CARE.

Yen Phang

Born to a geneticist and an agriculturist, Yen is attuned to the biological. Working in the mediums of painting, installation, and performance, he reflects on nature as interface, and the negotiation between sense phenomena and systemic understandings. He was a recipient of the Winston Oh Grant (2016), Winston Oh Travel Research Award (2016), and was awarded the Cliftons Art Prize (2015) and the UNSW Julius Stone Prize (2006). His work has been collected by the Singapore High Commission in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Singapore), British Airways for their Terminal 1 Lounge at Changi Airport, Singapore. He has also initiated projects such as “I.D. (The Body’s Still Warm)” (2018), “Displacements: 13 Wilkie Terrace” (2013), “The Peony And the Crow” (2016), and “Repurposing Nostalgia” (2016) under the Displacements banner.

Kam Kwai Lin

I'm an amateur painter. My paintings include oil paintings and Chinese colour ink paintings. The style of painting is mainly realistic, and I especially like to paint natural scenes. In addition to painting, I also love Chinese calligraphy. Colour ink painting and Chinese calligraphy have a complementary relationship, and only when they match each other can it be called a complete work.

我是个业余绘画爱好者。我的画作包括有西洋油画和中国彩墨画。写画的風格以写实为主, 我尤其喜欢画大自然的景物。除画画之外我也爱好中国书法。彩墨画跟中国书法有着相輔相成的关系, 互相配答才能稱为一幅完整作品。(Art ID: A-18)

Sheila Teo

Sheila Teo is a Singapore artist who favours Watercolour. She loves to paint both plein air and indoors in her small studio. Her love for Watercolour started many years ago and she has since exhibited in international exhibitions such as IWS Hong Kong 2020, IWS Singapore 2021, International Watercolour Exhibition Niigata Japan 2021. Her painting “Full Moon” has won her the Excellence Award in The International Pyrenees Watercolour Contest & Exhibition 2021, France. (Art ID: A-24)

Jean Yeo

Jean Yeo has completed her Advanced Certificate in Watercolour Painting from Nanyang Academy Of Fine Arts in the year of 2020. She has also exhibited her artworks internationally in the following countries : 2022 “Magnificence Once More”FASS Singapore Women Artists 2022 “FabrianoInAcquarelle” 13th International Watercolour Bologna, Italy 2021 1st IWS International Watercolour Singapore 2021 Tirana International Watercolour Biennale, Albania 2020 Albi Exposition Internationale D’Aquarelle, France 2019 Watercolour Art Zurich (A-26)

Nie Jie Yi

As an artist, I view art as a personal expression of oneself, drawing inspiration from life, people and all around. My lifelong goal is to continue exploring, experimenting and challenging myself, and hope that my artwork will touch and delight. A member of the Singapore Watercolour Society, participated in various local & international exhibitions:- * 2019 IWS Singapore (Nominees Award), IWS Malaysia, IWS Kosovo * 2019 & 2021 IWS Indonesia * 2020, 2021 & 2022 Fabriano Acquarello Italy. (Art ID: A-27)

Bonnie Pun

Bonnie enjoys painting watercolors; and flowers are her favourite subjects. What keeps her enthusiasm up however is her private group of fellow painters who would go out to different parts of Singapore to paint “plein-air”. The friendship and fellowship play a major role in her continuous interest persuing this hobby. The exchange of knowledge, the camaraderie, the support and encouragement echo the kampong spirits. (Art ID: A-31, A-33, A-36, A-43, A-51, A-53)

Reymon Chin

55, former bank employee, currently semi-retired. “I took up Chinese painting some 15 years ago as a company’s initiative to promote work-life balance for its staff. The fluid and fine brush strokes that Chinese painting bring to life has always captivated me. It provides a platform for me to discover inner peace and tranquility amid the sometimes chaotic working world, and teaches me to appreciate the little things around me. Apart from painting, I also enjoy jogging, cycling and swimming to maintain an active and healthy lifestyle”. (Art ID: A-68, A-69, A-70, A-71, A-72)

Anonymous

The artist studied Art Education and pedagogy and English Linguistics at NTU and graduated with a B.A. (Second Upper Honours). He has exhibited locally and abroad (in permanent collection at the Xu Bei Hong Research Museum, Nanjing) and has donated a painting to a women suffrage charity group.He wants to express his gratitude to WE CARE and staff for giving him and many other beneficiaries a space for Art and for keeping him alive, literally. (Art ID: A-73)

Min

Min is a poet, filmmaker, photographer and visual artist based in Singapore. Min started the journey of writing as a way to express complications of emotions and is currently pursuing a Diploma in Broadcast Media with LASALLE College of the Arts, hoping to go further into the filmmaking endeavours.

Marla Bendini

A cross-disciplinary artist and trans woman working in painting, text, sound and performance to articulate the infinitely faceted transgender experience on her own terms. Her current painting practice uses the female gaze through a combination of writing, drawing, painting, collage and printmaking to create layered 'documentations' of a unique woman's experience.

The artist has exhibited and performed several shows including Arcus Pride Art 2022, Clifford Chance Pride Art Show 2021, Salon des Influencers at Alliance Française de Singapour 2021, Supermarket 2012, Stockholm Independent Art Fair, sponsored by Riksutställningar, a Swedish Exhibition Agency. She has also presented her 8th solo exhibition in September 2021, in a duo show with British artist Victoria Cantons at Cuturi Gallery. To date, Marla Bendini has performed and exhibited in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Macau, Sweden, Spain and the United States of America.

Melanie Gooi

Melanie believes the curative power of art stems from its ability to bring awareness into one’s inner world and shed light on hidden emotions.

Continuously experimenting, she is known for her minimalist abstract approach to creating art that seeks to inspire calm and quiet reflection.

Connect with Melanie via Instagram @melaniegooi.art or

Sign-up for her periodic visual diary https://www.pencilbooth.com/melaniegooi

Vivien Lee

A Chemistry and Economics double-major, I started professionally as a business lecturer, educational researcher and corporate trainer. An incessant lifelong learner, I have Masters degrees in educational development, educational leadership and management, as well as the sacred arts.

Whilst I thoroughly enjoy the creative aspect of reading, writing and research work; art making provided for another dimension of creative expression beyond that of any intellectual pursuit. I have been painting for more than 15 years, and chose to pursue it full time about 10 years ago.

A pilgrim on the journey Home, I love pondering life’s big questions: Where did I come from? Who am I? Why am I here? How should I live? Where am I going? My art tells the story of these wonderings and wanderings; as my heart feels, my mind sees and my soul imagines. They reflect the
ebbs and flows of my life and relationships. They speak of my honest attempts at crafting my life into a work of art. They portray the Holy Spirit guiding me towards wiser ways in discovering Beauty.

I dream about possibilities, enjoy new experiences and embrace learning opportunities. In my art,
this translates into my fascination with exploring and experimenting with new art forms, mediums, materials, colour and styles. I am constantly creating because of a fundamental belief that within our deepest selves resides pure goodness; a gift yet to be fully unleashed, and so there can be no limits to expression.

As a mixed-media abstract artist, I work intuitively and reflectively by responding to the marks and colours to make my next move. I thrive in silence, waiting and listening as I develop the layers which
reflect the mystery and depths of my existence. I enjoy words and symbols and they often feature be it as an initial inspiration or as a final statement of revelation.

I pray that in pondering these artworks, you too will be inspired to evoke your story; hitting the trails
of life with new hope and joy to make of yourself the masterpiece that you are.

@vivienleeart