Born in 1931 in China, Chua Mia Tee migrated to Singapore in 1937. A graduate from Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts in 1957, Chua is a highly regarded master of portrait painting. Chua has painted portraitures of prominent public figures, including presidents and prime ministers of Singapore. Besides portraitures, Chua also paints nationalistic and local scenes of Singapore, which serve as historical documentations of the nation’s changing landscape.Newton Hawker Centre is a major food centre at the fringe of the main shopping belt in Singapore. A tourist attraction, it was opened in 1971, then closed in 2005 for major renovation works and reopened in 2006. Chua captures the activity in front of a row of stalls decorated with flags to celebrate Singapore’s national day.
