Social Identity: Portraiture as a reflection of the subject's status in society: Georgette Chen

Georgette Chen, Portrait of Eugene Chen, 1940, Oil on Canvas.

What you need to know about the life of Georgette Chen (in a nutshell):

• Was a forerunner in the Singapore art scene. One of the founders of the Nanyang style of art.
• Cultured early life: lived between Paris and New York, visiting China regularly with her father to remember her roots.
• Both Georgette and her husband were imprisoned during the breakout of the Second Sino-Japanese War, which later evolved into WWII.
• Eugene Chen was a minister
  
• Eugene Chen, her husband, died as a POW towards the end of WWII (before June 1944)
• Georgette Chen continued to paint portraits of her husband post-mortem.

Her style of painting is classified as Post-Impressionist. Refer to the earlier posts on Affandi and Vincent Van Gogh for details on the art movement and characteristics of the style.

In Portraits that are depicted to portray Social Status, we can look to posture and items in the image to show the class/interests of the sitter. Remember that this portrait is HOW HE WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR ALL ETERNITY. Nothing is a mistake. Everything has importance.

First, it is necessary to look into the traditional clothing of the time period. In the late 1930's and early 1940's, suits, ties, and hats (fedoras) were in fashion.

Compare this to our sitter. He wears a simple what appears to be a cotton button casual shirt with a scarf wrapped around his neck.

This can suggest several things:

1. He is down to earth, and not concerned with the fashion of the day.
2. He is conservative, and does not with to attract attention to himself.
3. As we know that he is a minister, we know that the Chen couple is not hurting for money. This may imply that he is humble.
4. The scarf tied around his neck suggests that he is an intravert: it acts as a kind of shield in a way, almost like a blanket would.
   

He is posed wearing glasses and a book. This suggests:

1. That he is educated, and places value on having an appearance as an intellectual or knowledgeable man.

He sits in a wicker chair. This suggests:

1. That perhaps he enjoys admiring the outdoors or staying at home, as wickerchairs are not indoor furniture and are typically only found in the home.

He sits on the edge of the chair, and looks off into the distance as if distracted. This suggests:

1. He is worried or preoccupied. It looks as if the weight of the world is on his mind, suggesting that he is committed to his job as a minister.
   
2. He is a busy man who enjoys leisure but perhaps does not have time for such joys as reading.

While there is nothing for you to ACTIVELY DO for this post, please take note of the symbolism in the artwork including the traditional dress of the 1940's, Georgette and Eugene Chen's past, as well as the style of the artwork.

It is very important that you know HOW to do this. You'll get to practice on another artwork in the NEXT post :D