[SINGAPORE] At Yeo Workshop in Gillman Barracks, the human body takes centre stage – reclining, twisting, stretching across the walls in bold, instinctive strokes. But this isn’t just an exhibition of beautiful figure drawings. It’s a long overdue tribute to the man who made them possible: Solamalay Namasivayam (1926 - 2013).
Better known as “Nama” to those who knew him, he was the quiet force behind Singapore’s life-drawing movement. A Colombo Plan scholar, art teacher and founding member of the art collective Group 90, he fought to make figure study – then considered “indecent” because it involved nude models – a fundamental part of the local art syllabus.
Thanks to his efforts, life drawing found its way into Lasalle College of the Arts in 1987, shaping generations of young Singapore artists who now take it for granted.
Audrey Yeo, founder of Yeo Workshop, says: “Namasivayam is deeply commendable and deserves our utmost respect. He dedicated his life to advancing artistic skills and creativity, fuelled by an unshakable belief in its importance. His efforts have borne fruit. Today, life drawing is a mainstream part of Singapore’s art education. It is bittersweet that he did not live to see the full impact of his work, nor to benefit from it personally.”
The exhibition titled Points of Articulation is presented alongside a new 280-page monograph of the same name. On display are Nama’s figure studies in charcoal, pastel, and ink – anatomically precise, yet alive with the messy, dynamic energy of real life.
The Business Times: "How one man made nude art possible in Singapore"