36th UOB Painting of the Year Competition 2017

"Art is not what you see, but what you make others see."
- Edgar Degas

Some selected pieces from this year's competition is exhibited here for your refreshing:-

One Life
By Sukit Choosri, Thailand
(2017 UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year)

"One Life aims to open the mind to see beyond the immediate." In particular, the shadow of a decaying tree is cast over the lady's body, portraying the transience of life.

I Thought, We Can Stay Strong Like Stones
By Chok Yue Zan
(2017 UOB Painting of the Year: Established Artist Category - Malaysia)

In this portrait of his family, Mr Cheok recreated it from an old family photo to depict the passing of time along with the drastic change his hometown forest in the background.

Triumph Over Heavy Blows
By Abu Jalal Bin Sarimon
(Gold: Established Artist Category - Singapore)

This is a portrait of leaders who had "...hit rock-bottom, only to rise again and claw their way back to the top by overcoming adverse circumstances." 

Movement of Earth
By Byun Si Jae
(Silver: Established Artist Category - Singapore)

This artwork "focuses on the relationship between nature and architecture, and bridges the two elements through the use of ink and acrylic on layers of transparent silk."

Diskusi (Discussion)
By Alvian Anta Putra
(Most Promising Artist of the Year - Indonesia)

This artwork "captures how technology has created a cultural shift that has made people virtually close to one another; but in reality man has drifted further apart."

Three Worlds
By Yang Kaiwen
(Most Promising Artist of the Year - Singapore)

"We constantly live in a dream of our own reality, surrounded by the all-pervasive and intangible sense of indifference. In life, the three worlds may collide but will never meet."

Overlooked
By Cindy Evangeline
(Gold: Emerging Artist Category - Singapore)

"The delicate and fragile glass vessels, each a metaphor of an individual's soul, are easily overlooked due to their transparency. Viewers can only understand the true nature of human emotions by looking deeper into the hidden cracks."  

Dreaming of Old Shanghai
By Yong Wee Loon
(Silver: Emerging Artist Category - Singapore)

"The scene reflects the intertwining of traditional and modern Shanghai, binding society together."

Silent Tide
By Guan Ming
(Highly Commended: Emerging Artist Category - Singapore)

In a world awash with technological innovation ... "We stay connected even in our most private moments. Books are being abandoned, and cultural traditions are slowly disintegrating. What will tomorrow become?"

Dyspraxia
By Sunny Chyun
(2017 UOB Painting of the Year: Established Artist Category - Singapore)

"Dyspraxia explores the combination of elusive perceptions, memories and meanings. Ms Chyun challenges pictorial conventions using the physicality of paint to resonate emotions."

Bibliography:

- 36th UOB Painting of the Year brochure

Spotlight on: The Spirit of Orchestral Music

If you already have an overdose of classical music, why not be adventurous and explore contemporary orchestral music?

For example, classical piano music is great and familiar. But, there are further variety of sounds that can be played and blended from this instrument that are refreshing.

Click here for  World's Most Breathtaking Piano Pieces | Contemporary Music Mix | Vol. 2.

And, if you are get a kick out of music for movies, then you might wanna check out some great soundtracks from the compilations prepared by the Spirit of Orchestral Music, as well.

Click here for The Beauty Of Epic Music | 2-Hour Epic Orchestral Music Mix | Vol. 2. The soundtracks are epic alright and will not disappoint in moving your emotions for good. 

My favourites are Track 1: In The End and Track 4: Colors of Love.  In Colors of Love, Thomas Bergesen will awaken an entire forest and city, and would certainly rouse you to get going and seize the day.

Enjoy!

For more of The Spirit of Orchestral Music, click here.

Story to the Song "Miracles" by Chris Quilala

When your circumstance doesn't line up with your expectation of God's goodness, what would you do?

Would you stop believing in God and get angry with Him? Understandably, you could get ahead of yourself in your finite mind versus God's omniscience.

Click here for Miracles - Song Story With Chris Quilala (Jesus Culture). "Jesus Culture" is the name of the worship band at Bethel Redding.

Christmas 2017 Starts Early at Cold Storage

Even before Michael Buble's "It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas" could air on radios, Cold Storage supermarket is getting decked out and all about ready for Christmas 2017.

This is the time to shop for Christmas before the herd of shoppers get into the swing of Christmas hustle and bustle.

Prepare early for Christmas and you will benefit from the feel-good sensation of a longer Christmas and avoid the last-minute buying frenzy when you ought to be relaxed and cruising along as Christmas day arrives.

Husband and Wife Biscuits

There are biscuits and there are biscuits, but some have names just stick out.

For example, the renown wife biscuit (lou po bing in Cantonese) and the less popular husband biscuit.

Wife biscuit

Husband biscuit

Husband and Wife biscuits (from left to right)

The nursery rhyme on "What Are Little Girls made Of?" goes like this:

What are little boys made of? 

What are little boys made of? 

Frogs and snails, 

And puppy-dogs' tails; 

That's what little boys are made of. 

What are little girls made of? 

What are little girls made of? 

Sugar and spice, 

And all that's nice; 

That's what little girls are made of.

It is somewhat similar when it comes to husband and wife biscuits when you look at their ingredients and resultant tastes. The husband is stuffed with fermented bean curd, garlic, and black sesame mix paste whereas the wife is filled with candied winter melon and caster sugar.

Hands down, the best wife biscuit is found in Hong Kong with flaky crusts that melt in your mouth and well-grounded winter melon filling.

Click here for a review of Best Wife Cake in Hong Kong/Where to buy wife biscuit in hong kong by Singaporean In Hong Kong blog. 


And, then there is the Sun biscuit (Tai Yang Bing in Chinese) from Taiwan. When I had it for the first time, it was simply out of this world with its maltose filling and flaky crust.

Click here for a review of Sun biscuit with a link on how you can make your own.

A Royal Visit to Tiong Bahru - Sequel

For the background preparation leading up to the visit by Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, to Tiong Bahru Market, click here for To market, to market: How Tiong Bahru stallholders prepared for a royal visit.

And, you will get to see the bouquet of flowers presented to the Duchess of Cornwall. It's a make-my-day visit that any florist would dream of remotely.

A Royal Visit to Tiong Bahru

Further to Daily Refreshing's earlier two blog posts on Tiong Bahru, it is refreshing to note that Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall toured Tiong Bahru neighbourhood on 1 November 2017 as part of their itinerary on a four-day visit to Singapore.

3 June 2017: Visit Tiong Bahru and Walk Into The Past

3 June 2017: Tiong Bahru Shophouses and Market   


Click here for "A stroll through the neighbourhood: Britain’s Prince Charles and wife Camilla visit Tiong Bahru" as reported by Lianne Chia of Channel NewsAsia.