Born in 1931, Choo Keng Kwang is widely recognized for realistic renditions of landscape, animals and nature in the oil medium. Sympathetic to local working classes, Choo features them in many of his works. Graduating in 1953 from Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), he worked as a teacher, eventually returning to NAFA to helm the Art Education Department in 1984. Choo has since held many solo exhibitions and has participated in group art exhibitions in Southeast Asia, Japan, Europe and USA. Since the 1950s, Choo has received many awards for his many contributions to art and education, among which is the Public Service Medal (PBM) in 1976.In the 1970s Choo saw the urgent need to record the trades of early Singapore before they disappeared forever. ‘Streetside Coiffure (Chinese Style)’ depicts one such trade that no longer exists. In the painting, a hairstylist ties her customer’s hair with red ribbons along a five-foot way of Chinatown. The hairstylist’s customers are usually elderly working women such as domestic helpers, nannies and labourers. The characteristic features of Choo’s art are again evident here: the central placement of the main subject and the blurring of details in the background.
