My Entry to the CCC's Street Art Contest #211: "The Samsui Woman"

It's that one day of the week when I’m super motivated to go hunting for some incredible street art. Why? Because I’m all in on the CCC’s street art contest. It’s become a bit of a weekly ritual for me; scouring the city, researching, and checking out the latest street art that I’ll feature in my entry post. Lucky for me, my city’s got no shortage of cool spots with art worth traveling for, especially on a warm day like this.

This time, I headed over to Chinatown to see a piece that’s been stirring up quite the buzz online. Some folks on social media have been calling the artist "evil" or "disrespectful" over this artwork. Naturally, that got me curious, so I decided to check it out in person.

As soon as I stepped out of the Maxwell MRT station, bam... there it was, right in my face. It’s no wonder it’s been getting so much attention; it’s in a prime spot with tons of foot traffic. Perfect for catching the eye of both art lovers and critics alike.

From what I’ve gathered, the big controversy is that the artwork features a Samsui woman who, according to some, looks more like a "prostitute" than a hardworking woman. That got me digging into who the Samsui women actually were. Turns out, they were immigrants from southern China, specifically the Sanshui district; now Guangdong; who came to Singapore in the 1920s to work in construction and other tough trades.

Another thing that critics online have pointed out is that the woman in the artwork is smoking, which doesn’t really vibe with the government’s anti-smoking campaigns.

Now, I never thought a single piece of art could spark such heated debates, but here we are. Personally, I don’t think the artist, Sean Dunston, was trying to promote prostitution or cigarette smoking with his work. And honestly, I don’t think we should hold art to a standard where it has to tick every box of political correctness just to be appreciated.

Maybe I don’t know enough about the history and culture of the Samsui women to have a strong opinion on the matter, and I’m definitely not looking to start a debate. So for this post, I’m just gonna focus on the aesthetics: it’s beautifully done.

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