My Veil? Ng Eng Teng Nationality: Singaporean. Year: 1995. Medium: Stoneware, glazed. Size: 59 x 36 x 26cm.

Through posture and gesture, My Veil? asks questions about the role of certain women's attire today. Eng Teng's strategy as an artist is skilful and intelligent, and succeeds in prompting conceptual questions about a complex subject although he stresses that his work is not in any way making a statement, political or social. This item of clothing is suggestively shortened to expose the lower half of the torso/face, so it is no longer concealing what can be considered the more private parts. Eng Teng explains, "There are a few works on veiled faces, inspired by the outlawed Al-akram movement in Malaysia. Years back, I would see a few of their women in our MRT train, all in black, including veil, gloves and socks, leaving only the two eyes visible. They can look at you, but you only see their eyes. I feel at a disadvantage. This sort of feeling started me off on the veiled figures."

--Bodies Transformed ch. 7

References

Constance Sheares. Bodies Transformed: Ng Eng Teng in the Nineties. Singapore: NUS Museums/ National University of Singapore, 1999.

This document is part of a joint project of the NUS Museums and the University Scholars Programme, National University of Singapore. This image and accompanying text appears here with the kind permission of the NUS Museums.

Last updated: 11 January 2001