10 Painting PARIS CITY OF OTHERS


The show transports the audience to an


era when Paris was at the height of modernity


T


he latest exhibition at the National Gallery of Singapore looks at the art history of Paris


from an Asian perspective, focusing on a group of individual artists from such countries as Vietnam, Japan, India, and China to retell the Asian experience in France during the 1920s to 1940s. It explores how the Asian


artists lived, worked, and


exhibited in Paris during this dynamic period of modern art history, moving beyond the idea of Paris as an art world centre by exploring this ‘other’ perspective. Tis peak period in the artistic migration in the city’s life offers an original and nuanced picture of Paris as a site for dynamic creativity, where the cross-cultural exchange of aesthetics brought new ideas to society. Te show transports the audience


to an era when Paris was at the height of modernity. Te city was a mecca for many artists, especially during the 1920s. Artists, architects, writers, and performers connected in the cafés of the Left Bank, with Montparnasse especially attracting creatives and bohemians of the time,


who were intent on rejecting the traditional norms and values. Foreigners from around the world imbued fresh influences


music, and dance. Te styles of the earlier Art Nouveau and the emerging Art Deco style were also influencing everything from fashion and furniture to advertising, often drawing on Asian inspirations. Asian artists joined this group of emerging artists seeking new inspiration and brought their own distinctive heritages to Paris to engage with the city’s modern art world. At the same time, Paris was also the seat of a colonial empire, which had troubling implications and raised complex questions for artists from the colonies. It was a critical period in the narrative of modernism and modern art’s relationship to ‘the Other.’ Tis dynamic cultural hub


attracted leading Asian artists such as Foujita Tsuguharu (1886-1968), Georgette Chen (1906-1993), Le Pho (1907-2001), Liu Kang (1911- 2004), Hanamaka Katsu (1895- 1952), Xu Beihong (1895-1953), and Sanyu (1907-1966), who forged new


into art,


View of Sacré-Cœur by Liu Kang, 1931, gouache on paper, 25 × 16.5 cm, collection of the family of the Liu Kang © Liu Kang Family


JOIN A TOUR of Georgette Chen:


At Home in the World, National Gallery Singapore


Untitled (Woman Wearing Shawl) by Amrita Sher-Gil, circa 1932, oil on canvas, 42 x 33 cm, collection of the Dabriwala family


modes of expression, blending their own cultural histories with the modernities of Paris. As they encountered people from different backgrounds – the cultural ‘others’ – they themselves were often viewed as outsiders (‘others’), fuelling a vibrant exchange of


aesthetics and ideas,


shaping their artistic identities in profound ways. Te exhibition offers a nuanced


exploration of these Asian artists’ experiences at the time,


including


new research on the contribution of Asian artists and artisans to Art Deco, their presence at major exhibitions and salons in Paris, and the impact of these colonial networks and exhibition platforms on modern artists from Southeast Asia. Artists claimed their space within Paris’ artistic landscape, from the halls of the École des Beaux-Arts to the studios of Académie de la Grande Chaumière, at the same time expanding their networks in the quarter of Montparnasse, a popular district for artists’ cafés, studios, and informal art schools. Asian artists were also active in the field of the decorative arts during this period, with Japanese designers and artisans designing for the new market and demand for luxury decorative arts. In this area, it was the Vietnamese workers who provided much of the labour for the newly popular lacquer ware and furniture on sale to the public. Amid this cultural vibrancy, artists


navigated the tension between modernity and tradition against the backdrop


Autoportrait au chat (Self-Portrait with Cat) by Foujita Tsuguharu, 1926, oil, pen and ink on canvas, 80.4 x 60.2 cm, collection of Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon, gift of the artist in 1927 © Fondation Foujita / ADAGP, Paris, 2025. Image © MBA Lyon. Photo: Martial Couderette


ASIAN ART | APRIL 2025 | #AsianArtPaper | asianartnewspaper | of a global economic


depression, colonialism, and the looming threat of war. It was in this dynamic environment that Asian artists found themselves in a serious and thoughtful re-engagement with their own cultures and identities as


‘the other’, resulting in an exchange of ideas and creativity.


asianartnewspaper |


art within national, cultural, and colonial contexts in Paris, the show also reveals how artists navigated the expectations of the European audience while simultaneously re- engaging with their own cultural identities. A particular focus is on the realm of the decorative arts, which served as an initial point of cultural exchange, highlighting the collaborations between Asian artisans and French designers that mutually shaped aesthetic sensibilities and artistic practices during this dynamic period. Artists in the exhibition include


Self Portrait by Georgette Chen, 1923, oil on canvas, 35 x 27 cm, collection of National Gallery Singapore


Part of the exhibition looks at the


complex networks of migrant artists in Paris, uncovering how these connections enabled artistic developments and career progression. By examining the reception of Asian


Foujita Tsuguharu, who was born in Tokyo but moved to Paris in 1913 to pursue his art studies. A distinctive figure of the avant-garde, he became a well-known figure in the Parisian bohemian art world, associating with Western artists such as Picasso and Modigliani. Foujita’s style combined Western and Japanese artistic traditions, using traditional Japanese ink techniques with modern French aesthetics of the time to create works with a variety of subject matter from café scenes, nudes, self- portraits, and his famous cats. Born in Hanoi, Le Pho first


studied at the Vietnam University of Fine Arts and whilst there gained a scholarship that allowed him to enrol in the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 1932 to become part of the first generation of Vietnamese artists to study in Paris. His works include stylised depictions of nudes, women in traditional dress of ao dai,


WATCH


The Paintings of Amrita Sher-Gil,


Seattle Art Museum


La forêt (Forest) by Jean Dunand, 1930, gold and silver lacquer, 12 panels, 300 x 600 cm, collection of Mobilier National. Image courtesy of Mobilier National. Photo: Isabelle Bideau. Dunand (1877-1942) was a Swiss-French painter, sculptor, and interior designer during the Art Deco period


Asian Art Newspaper


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