Rowing at Dawn

Photograph Print by Yip Cheong Fun.

Size refers to the artwork mounted on matboard.

This artwork is mounted on mattboard.

Down Memory Lane in Singapore:
A Gold  Medal Photograph by Yip Cheong-Fun 
Rowing At Dawn   (Ramer an L`aube)

This stunning picture of a lone boatman rowing his sampan in the light of dawn, off the coast of Singapore, has won First Prize in the Malaysian Klang Exhibition in 1961 and was named Print of the Show in the Washington Fair, the USA in 1967. This print also won numerous gold medals in various international shows, including a gold medal in the National Exhibition in Indonesia in 1957 and a silver medal in France. It went on to win other awards overseas and has been accepted for exhibition in over 80 countries.

Yip’s love for the sea has inspired him to create quite a number of remarkable seascapes, winning numerous top awards in international salons worldwide. His approach to the study of the sea is direct and uncomplicated. He strives for simplicity. His series of seascapes including Rowing at Dawn and The First Cast remained the most admired of Yip’s works internationally. They are exceptional studies combining the qualities of light, atmosphere, and mood. They pose a timelessness and yet a freshness. Moved by these qualities, the Photographic Society of New York made him Honorary Outstanding Photographer of the Century and a photographic specialist in Seascape of the Century. In its citation, ‘this was the world’s highest tribute to a photographer. The one-shot photograph Rowing at Dawn taken off the coast of Tanjong Rhu in Singapore in 1957 is Yip at his best in seascapes. The delicate play of light and shadows, the balance of the boats, the expanse of the water combined to make it a memorable work of art, according to W. Y. Choy, of the NDD of the United Kingdom and a former Director of Singapore’s National Museum. To the average person, the picture is symbolic of the appearance of a new dawn, a new beginning of life and in work. Look for the auspicious motifs of sea dragons and fishes in the wavy sea. Every ripple, every wave in the sea brings good fortune and prosperity. Rest assured that no darkroom work was involved.