THERE are Buddha figurines everywhere, in various stages of being made including a gigantic one where the lower half of the body is touching the roof of the foundry warehouse. In the midst of heads and limbs lying about waiting to be soldered together, two giant apples are in the final stage of completion.

Dust of all kinds - metal, ceramic and fine sand - swirls in the air as work at the bronze foundry is in full swing. In a hot but windy afternoon, the workers assigned to artist Kumari Nahappan's apple sculptures are polishing and smoothening the surface (a process called "chasing"), filling up and welding tiny holes to create a flawless finish. Kumari - in face mask and gloves - is closely overseeing the work to make sure it's done correctly.

Ever so quietly, in her characteristically gentle style, Kumari is putting the pressure on the Thai workers of Asia Fine Art (AFA) as the deadline to deliver the apples draws nearer. "They are very good in what they do, but this sculpture is also very different from the work they normally do, so I have to be here to supervise every step because it's more difficult and much more costly to correct something gone wrong," she explains. In two weeks, the monumental sculptures will be shipped from the foundry in Ayuthya, Thailand, to Singapore.