Acculturate III – Reflection Art Exhibition by Singapore Artist Dr Lim Poh Teck

From 10-16 January, from 11am-8pm daily, Dr Lim Poh Teck presents Acculturate III – Reflection, a solo exhibition on his exploration of the different cultures and how they assimilate into one another.

To acculturate is to assimilate into a different culture, to undergo cultural modification by adapting to or borrowing traits from others. Dr Lim Poh Teck’s oeuvre of East meets West art, describing his schizophrenic existence as an oriental artist in the global and thoroughly Westernized port of Singapore, manifests the tensions and culture wars that arise from necessary integration and occasional marginalization in an ostensibly migrant society.

In his paintings, traditional (Eastern) motifs may be presented in bold, colourful and graphic (Western) ways, juxtaposing unlikely elements in lively, contemporary combinations. Earlier paintings contrasted the kampong with the city, the vernacular with the urban public, relying heavily on floral and feline icons. Poh Teck’s most iconic floral or starburst motif has morphed from chrysanthemum to ceiling fan to radioactive symbol to fireworks. In its latest guise for this exhibition, they have acquired a certain three-dimensional rotundity as biomorphic object, appropriately green and ecologically-aware. Less universal but no less prevalent, cats or lions often crop up as main subjects in several compositions. Other times, subjects are subsumed to a complex background of ‘floral’ networks, as our eyes dance across a canvas which never fails to engage.

The first exhibition of 2018 at Visual Arts Centre – do not miss Acculturate III – Reflection and the events: Opening night on 10 Jan, from 7pm, Artist talk on 13 Jan, from 3pm.

林保德博士在2018年最新的个展 “文化适应III——反思”（Acculturate III- Reflection）里呈现数十幅精彩的作品。在新系列《欢庆》中，花卉植物的风格变得素雅，已褪掉了颜色，变成黑白色。植物生长茂盛，而标志性的眼睛仿佛体现一种好奇的探索。

出生于新加坡的林保德从小就在裕廊的乡村长大。热带植物花卉是东南亚的特色，而生命力顽强，不断的在任何环境中适应、调整，并进化，这又像生活中各个文化的相互结合、适应。在这次的作品中，另一个有趣的符号是潮州人的粉红桃粿。由于父亲的早逝，林保德从小就学做桃粿，一家全靠母亲卖桃粿维生，所以他便对桃粿有特殊的感情。把桃粿变成文化符号，而桃粿内又画了一艘帆船，便象征从中国南方的华人渡轮来到南洋，也带出美食文化背后的历史渊源。

“我作画只需一个大方向，画啊画的，细节自己会跑出来。画画的自己很放纵，可以丢掉很多东西，进入状态就很兴奋……”

— 林保德 

了解展览更多内容，请游览联合早报在1月9日现在版、艺苑栏目的报道，记者：黄向京

Press Feature: Lianhezaobao, Fukan Section, 9 January 2018 by Ng Siang Ping