The art of building a city

IN Chua Tiag Ming's gorgeous black-and-white photograph Drying Planks, an unknown labourer stands on top stacks of planks. His thin figure is framed by the cloudy sky while the upright drying planks all point - almost in veneration - towards him.

Taken in either the 1960s or the 1970s, the photo is a quiet tribute to the anonymous worker whose sweat and toil built this city but whose contributions often go unsung. With the masterly framed yet unassuming photo, Chua captures this fact elegantly.

Chua's is one of the many strong and evocative artworks that feature in National Museum of Singapore's upcoming exhibition A Changed World: Singapore Art 1950s - 1970s.