Chew Jia Hui

Theme: My Organ, My Companion

Distinction, School Category, 2023

Artist statement:

If my eye is a failing organ, I would like to bring this organ on a last adventure to travel around the world. My eyes are the reason why I started painting and drawing since young. They allow me to view the world beautifully. I would consider my eye as my friend, because they've gone through the same emotions as I did. During the darkest moment, they had always been with me as a witness in my life, they shed tears when I’m upset and sparkled when I’m happy. They painted my life with colours. My eye is a special organ to me, just like a friend, not all friends get along together, but my eyes do, no other eyes would fit me, and that is why I called it my friend.

However, I have always visualised and drew sceneries on canvases, painting it with colours as my eyes guided me, but I have never seen some sceneries in real life, I just painted them based on how I perceived them. Hence, I want to bring my friend on a last and final adventure to make my paintings come into reality, and to show my gratitude towards my friend.

In my artwork, I drew the sun setting as the last moment of the adventure, when the eye "dies", my life falls into total darkness, where stars can't be seen. On the hot air balloon, the vivid colours represents the colours that my eyes allow me to see. Dolphins are drawn to represent my gratitude towards my eye and the tracks are drawn to represent moving towards the last colours of my life.

About the Artist

Chew Jia Hui, 14
Fuhua Secondary School