Shui Tit Sing, Combing Hair (A Pair), c. 1979
Left:
Ink and colour on paper
80 x 49.5 cm
Condition: Very good, with slight foxing throughout the work.
Right:
Teakwood
30.5 x 22.5 x 8 cm
Condition: Very good
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Shui Tit Sing (Singaporean, 1914–1997) was an artist known for his contributions to both painting and sculpture. Born in China, he relocated to Southeast Asia in the mid-20th century, where his practice gradually developed in response to the region’s people and environments.
Shui began as a painter, working primarily in ink and water-based media, before turning increasingly to wood carving from the late 1960s onwards. His sculptural works, often carved in teak, became the defining aspect of his later career. Across both mediums, he remained focused on the human figure, particularly within scenes of everyday life. His works are characterised by a direct, observational approach, capturing the unembellished moments drawn from lived experience.
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Combing Hair reflects Shui Tit Sing’s sustained interest in everyday gestures and intimate human activity. The act itself is simple and repetitive, yet it carries a sense of routine, care, and familiarity - themes that recur throughout his practice.
In his sculptural work, such moments are reduced into compact, solid forms. The use of teak allows for a degree of simplification, where emphasis is placed on posture and movement rather than fine detail. This results in figures that feel grounded and self-contained, with the gesture remaining the focal point.
The subject of daily life, particularly personal actions, appears consistently across Shui’s body of work in different mediums. Rather than isolating grand or dramatic scenes, he focused on ordinary routines, translating them into both drawn and carved forms over time. This continuity of subject reflects an ongoing engagement with observation, where the same themes are revisited and reinterpreted through material and process.
This work is sold as a pair.
(Photographed in February 2026)