Solamalay Namasivayam

“The beauty and structural aspects of the human figure have always intrigued me. Drawing them is fundamental to my art. I find it stimulating and challenging to study and discover its
complexities, every time I draw the human figure. It appears to be a never ending journey of exploration and discovery.”

Solamalay Namasivayam (1926 - 2013) was a pioneer generation artist, educator and a central figure to the development of nude painting and figurative art in Singapore, as a founding member of Singaporean art collective, Group 90, which included other prominent artists such as Brother Joseph McNally, Mr. Chia Wai Hon and Mr. Sim Tong Khern. He was a Colombo Plan Scholar and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, majoring in Figure Painting/Drawing (1961). He lectured at the Singapore National Institute of Education from 1962 to 1981, at the Singapore Educational Media Service (Ministry of Education) from 1982 to 1985, and at LASALLE-SIA College of the Arts as a Fine Arts and Specialist Lecturer in Figure Drawing from 1987 to 2001. At LASALLE, he introduced ‘‘Life Drawing’’ as a subject into the Fine Arts Curriculum in 1987. His works are collected by several private collections in Singapore, United Kingdom, Japan and, America.