Peranakans & Peonies at the Joo Chiat Shophouses

I have loved creating this new print, the first in my new series of 'Peranakans and Peonies!  It features the Peranakan ladies in their beautiful embroidered clothes in front of a row of 'Joo Chiat' district painted Shophouses shading from the tropical sun under palm trees and parasols. On the border of the painting is a decorative and striking Peranakan tile design. On the original painting using a linocut carved printing block to create the tile design and I used mono-printing technique for the hand-drawn figures.

The Peranakans have such a unique and highly decorative culture and I love everything about their rich fusion of design and culture right through from their food, clothing architecture and ceremonies.

The Peranakans which literally means 'locally born' are descendants of Straits-born Chinese who arrived in the Malay archipelago between the 15th -17th Century. They married local women, were successful and wealthy traders at a time when some spices from the orient were literally worth their weight in gold. They developed an interesting blended culture of South East Asia and British Colonial influences. They traded from Shophouses in Singapore Malacca and Penang as well as from Indonesia and Phuket. The unique architectural style of the decorative fronted shophouses was referred to as Chinese Baroque and the Peranakan ladies wore embroidered blouses known as Kebayas.

The beautiful pink Peony a symbol of royalty and wealth is used in all the decorative arts. A unique and interesting culture is the colourful Peranakans!

Signed by the artist and printed on German Hahnemuhle paper

Size: A1 size. 84.1 x 59.4 cm

The print is wrapped in crisp white tissue paper presented rolled in a presentation tube with a gift tag. Inside the tube is a framing pack with the labels to go on the back of your frame.

We can courier it directly to you or for a gift directly to the recipient- Just let us know! FedEx: 3-5 working days.

*Print does not include frame. For styling purposes only.