Soothe balm (2023)

site-responsive installation presented under DECK, Photography Art Centre Singapore located at Peace Centre

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Soothe balm is a site-responsive series of works that delves into the qualities of Tiger balm.  Paying homage to the Tiger Balm Building established in the 1930s situated on the junction of Short Street and Selegie Road, the works expand upon constructs of repair and healing. As we dwell in a post-pandemic world, there is a desire in the artist for the search of a balm to not only soothe the physical body but rather to soothe the soul, in coping with this state of transition.

 

Taking a photographic approach to painting, images of the skyscape are captured and translated gesturally into a painting. Paint subsequently takes on the role of the Tiger balm as it is applied onto the canvas - akin to smearing balm onto a layer of skin. This gestural application then extends onto the cracks and cavities of the exhibition space. The architectural space of Peace Centre is thus being anthropomorphized to soothe the human skin where the paint is applied. 

 

Soothe balm thus mirrors the properties of Tiger balm in an attempt to emulate a space of contemplation, to take a pause in alleviating and acknowledging the temporal shifts and adjustments present within post-pandemic today.

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