Fisherman's Daughter

Photograph Print by Yip Cheong Fun.

This artwork is mounted on mattboard.

Down Memory Lane in Singapore:

Fisherman’s Daughter

 This prize-winning picture of a fisherman`s daughter with the fishes hung out to dry is nostalgic. Gone are the days when we can readily find fishermen and their families in any coastal areas in the Bedok area of Singapore. More than this, this stunning picture, is A Portraiture of Smell, said  MediaCorp`s photographic specialist, Francis. He told his class attending his training course in photography that the Master Photographer had successfully portrayed smell in this artistic creation. That was high praise indeed from our local TV expert. Throughout his career, Yip Cheong-Fun had a deep and prevailing interest in the human condition. Many of his images feature people. This picture is one of his key works that illustrate the breadth of Yip`s working style. It shows an otherworldly portrait that matches a figure to an activity. The result is indirect and dream-like as our fisherman`s daughter stands amidst the fishes strung up to dry, as though she could easily be standing at a doorway curtain of crystal beads. She is shot from a lower angle, framing her head against the sky. It produces a mood that is really fascinating. See the penny she holds in her fingers, presumably given to her by the photographer.

 This is one of the many world-class salon pictures of a Chinatown photographer who has conferred the title of Honorary Outstanding Photographer of the Century and as the 20th century`s photographic specialist in Seascape. Yip Cheong-Fun, the Master lensman, was also awarded the coveted 1984 Cultural Medallion by the Government of the Republic of Singapore in recognition of his artistic talent and creativity and for commendable achievement in Photography.