Brilliant Beauties: Portraiture of Women in Asia

A beautiful woman has always been the most popular motif in paintings across all ages and cultures.  This exhibition introduces modern and contemporary paintings from Asia featuring beautiful women such as modern girls of Shanghai, women dressed in Ao Dai in Vietnam and sexy film heroines from South Asia.  We will explore their historical and regional differences and similarities in concepts and expressions.

While the popularity of women as the subject of painting may owe to their sheer beauty, we also need to consider that most of the artists and viewers were in fact male.  In any case, the criteria for beauty vary according to place and time. Aside from their good appearance or glamour, every one of the Asian women in the paintings is beautiful in its own unique way, having strength or softness.

What kinds of roles were given to these women when they were painted?  Today when artists and viewers no longer imply male anymore, what do we see in these women?  As part of this exhibition, we hold an Asian Beauty Contest to decide the most beautiful woman in the artworks.  Please vote for your favourite work after enjoying the exhibition.