Chow and Lin illustrated by Maria Chen, inspired by an original image courtesy of the artists

DATE

2025/07/18

ARTICLE

Maria Chen

PHOTOS

Courtesy of the Artists

What We Carry: Chow and Lin on Memory, Identity, and the Meaning of Home

In Artist’s Proof: Singapore at 60, art becomes the lens through which a nation’s story is told — not through political speeches or institutional narratives, but through memory, materiality, and imagination. This landmark exhibition, presented by The Culture Story and produced by Family Office for Art, marks a deeply personal tribute to Singapore’s founding leaders and the generations that have shaped the island-state. Featuring over 90 works by more than 50 artists, including 11 new commissions, the exhibition offers an intimate and multilayered portrait of Singapore’s past, present, and future — from nostalgic kampongs to questions of diasporic identity and nationhood in a globalised world.

Among the commissioned artists are Stefen Chow and Huiyi Lin, whose collaborative practice straddles art, data, and policy. Known internationally for their long-running project The Poverty Line, Chow and Lin’s approach marries rigorous research with emotionally resonant storytelling. Their new work for Singapore at 60, titled I’m Worth My Bread, investigates national development, consumption, and the power of everyday objects — centering food as a portal into economic systems and cultural belonging.

In this conversation with CNTRFLD, the duo reflects on the layers of identity, memory, and meaning that shape their practice: from growing up in Malaysia and Singapore, to presenting globally at institutions like MoMA and the United Nations. We discuss how their transnational experiences inform their understanding of what it means to be Singaporean today, especially within the broader context of Southeast Asia — and how they continue to ask, through their work, what home, heritage, and humanity might look like in times of rapid transformation.

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CREDITS

All works courtesy of the artists

“Objects embody and symbolize our experiences and memories of people, places and occasions... iced gem biscuits or cream crackers give a sense of home.” — Huiyi Lin

CNTRFLD. How has living and working across different countries — from Beijing to presenting at global institutions like MoMA — shaped your understanding of what it means to be Singaporean today, especially within the wider context of Southeast Asia?

SC. We take the view that understanding Singapore requires being able to grow in it, to see from the outside, and also to see through others who may have cursory to deep knowledge about the country. We find all these viewpoints combine to be comprehensive, inclusive and perceptive. A lot of the art projects that we do are from a third person perspective, looking from the outside to the inside. This gives us a way to understand how issues that seem simple actually permeate around the world across continents. Living and working in different countries gives us that position and entry point to understand issues from a complex yet global perspective. Southeast Asia has a huge diverse mix of cultures, and while geographically close, there is diverse culture, ethnicity, history, economic and political systems. I was born in Malaysia and grew up in Singapore, Lin was born and grew up in Singapore. We cannot assume that one's position from any one Southeast Asian country could represent the whole of Southeast Asia. While we have some shared histories and geopolitical factors, the people and societies are very different. It is also a region that has been largely peaceful for the last few decades, there is cooperation, understanding and friendship among the countries. It is in this wider context of that we continue to explore what it means to be Southeast Asian.

CNTRFLD. What does “home” mean to each of you? How have you both maintained a connection to Singapore while operating across such diverse international and cultural contexts — and how do these connections manifest in your work?

HL. For me, home is about family. It is a cliché, but home is where the heart is. In this day, we connect through physical presence, virtual linkages and physical objects. Objects embody and symbolize our experiences and memories of people, places and occasions. When we look at objects that we bring with us, keep with us, they become placeholders in our memories that connect to the everyday that we are living in. As Singaporeans living overseas, we also very much wanted to explore the diaspora identity and linkages. In researching for the work that we are showing at AP60, we interviewed other Singaporean families living abroad. They would mention that in their fridge they have a bottle of kaya or sambal chili. Biscuits, like iced gem biscuits or cream crackers, give a sense of home. Those connections are important parts of cultural identity and personal memory.

CNTRFLD. In this moment of Singapore’s 60th anniversary, what nuances of national identity are you exploring in your work for AP60? How are you reflecting on the city-state’s rapid transformation in relation to broader East and Southeast Asian narratives?

SC. When we were commissioned by Mr. Chong Huai Seng to create a new work for this exhibition, we discussed at length with Mr. Chong, Ning and Kian Chow about the meaning of the show. Our core idea for our project was: how are we able to learn from history, bring it to the present and also project into what the future may hold. Our art is often based on a question that follows through with research and knowledge building. For this project, we dived into archives at the National Library, of the newspapers that existed in 1965, the year that Singapore became independent. We went through the microfilms to study the newspaper reports, advertisements and visual language. From The Straits Times to Berita Harian, Nanyang Siang Pau, Sin Chew Jit Poh, Tamil Murasu. We wanted to understand what Singapore was like in 1965 through the events, marketplace, items. We often look at how things in history seem very different or distinguish how much we have evolved. Back in 1965, when those newspapers were printed, it was the present day, it was the moment for anyone who existed at that time. We absorbed those contents and found inspiration which then became this project. It was during a tumultuous period that Singapore became independent… in the midst of the Vietnam War, Indonesian confrontation with Malaysia, Indo-Pakistani war, severe food crisis in India, normalizing of diplomatic ties between South Korea and Japan… Geopolitical manoeuvring and economic survivability were crucial. On the ground, the everyday that people in Singapore then lived in felt cosmopolitan, with colonial structures and international linkages. There were distinct cultural identities coexisting within a smaller population. You could feel like the DNA of Singapore was present in 1965, and those strands worked into the post-independence growth journey.

As we reflect on Singapore's present, we are very aware that Singapore has managed to reach very high levels of economic progress, societal development, and governance. Within the wider East and Southeast Asian narratives, it is a very strong player given its population and geography. It has strategic relevance and connectivity. It is with these contexts that we feel this project and the research need to translate Singapore’s position along with the tensions that it brings.

CNTRFLD. You’ve both shared how formative personal experiences shaped your worldviews. How did your respective childhoods and family histories influence your paths toward becoming artists — and how have these roots impacted the kinds of systems and stories you feel compelled to interrogate?

HL. I have always been fascinated by my parents’ stories about how they grew up, their everyday experiences. My paternal grandmother had eleven children; their huge family lived in a kampong (local village). In a generation, Singapore’s infrastructure changed, jobs and education transformed. When I live in or visit different countries, I observe how a society changes with the economic environment, the impact on how people think and relate with each other. How the social structures and narratives evolve. In my research, I examine the dynamic interactions between economic development, communities, families and individuals, and the linkages to global and regional networks.

SC. I was born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to family that was relatively well to do at that point. We lived on a landed property; I remember a big garden. My father decided to send his three children to Singapore to study, and I was the youngest. I was two years old when I arrived in Singapore. Before I reached primary school age, my father lost everything in business, and for the next ten-plus years, life became difficult for us as my father, who was a struggling businessman in Malaysia, was making barely enough to keep us in Singapore. It is through those experiences that I grew up understanding about choices, circumstances, and how you cannot take anything for granted. As I became an adult, I was very fortunate to travel quite a bit, I saw how countries and regions were impacted by systems, by political leadership, by governments, by people, by cultural norms, by traditions. These cumulative experiences make me question what we can make out of life, and art is a vehicle to convey our ideas into a visual and emotional dialogue.

CNTRFLD. Your ongoing project The Poverty Line spans over 36 countries and explores how poverty is experienced through the lens of food and policy. How has the project evolved over time, and in what way might it inform or appear within your contribution to Singapore at 60?

HL. When we first started “The Poverty Line” project in 2010, it was with a question about poverty and inequality. And how that could be seen through food choices -- choices made on a daily basis, on a per meal basis. That is the tail end of how policy impacts and incorporates understanding of individuals and families. As we grew the project, it became a much larger exploration of food systems, on the connections that we have as people, as humans who all eat and are exposed to news and information, and how all these facets impact the future. It has expanded to investigate systems through objects and materiality, and the meaning forms through chains of association. Over the past 14 years, we traversed over 200,000 kilometres to cover 38 countries and territories across 6 continents. The project has brought me on a path to see how art, life and the issues that we are concerned about can be woven together, to create art that sparks conversations, thinking and empathy. For this new project “I’m Worth My Bread”, we focus on food products. We explore how they have come to be in our lives, as these foods are very much part of the networks that Singapore is part of. Whether they are local or imported products, they have been through the industrial value system of production, distribution, innovation, marketing and selling. They are parts and levers of the larger landscapes that Singapore is exposed to and has developed as part of.

SC. We tend towards the idea of deconstruction, put forth by French philosopher Jacques Derrida in the 1970s. It is about examining and exposing the underlying logic of systems to allow new interpretations, and this approach has tremendous influence in art, architecture, fashion and other creative fields. The project has different layers of interpretation with respect to different issues, like an onion, and these layers reveal over time.

CNTRFLD. You often work through statistical, economic, and policy-based frameworks to visualise complex global systems. Can you share more about the work you are presenting at Artspace for AP60? How does it integrate both personal and systemic dimensions of Singaporean — and Southeast Asian — identity?

HL. Our work, “I’m Worth My Bread” is a visual investigation of iconic food products in Singapore that engage with daily consumption, commercial structures, industrial technology and cultural history. The items form a total purchase value that is equivalent to Singapore’s GDP per capita, calculated on a per day basis. GDP is a very interesting metric that is used internationally as an indicator of countries’ economic strength. The concept of GDP was developed by Russian-born American economist Simon Kuznets in the 1930s, during the Great Depression. GDP growth figures are carefully watched to ascertain whether economies are doing well. However, GDP does have its limitations on what can be quantified, and what is excluded. It focuses on consumption and production and does not account for inequality or externalities like environmental pollution. Singapore has one of the highest GDP per capita in the world, and its economic success is built upon moving up the value-added ladder. The work explores different ideas about national development, societal and individual success measures, connectivity, value creation, exchange and preservation. Food evokes tangible memories and experiences, linking to the wider food cultures and heritage that we have in this region. We want to bring all these different parts together into a work that becomes visually thought provoking about what it means to be Singaporean, and how Singapore’s story is woven into the regional and global network.

SC. I want to add, that when we were looking through Singapore newspapers in 1965, we were surprised to see how multinational a lot of the advertising campaigns seemed. We saw ads for Toblerone, Nestle, Lea & Perrins, Weisen-U, Parker Pen, Bic and so on. We had was a sense that in those days, a lot of consumer products came from overseas. Having lived in China for many years now, we realize that Western culture has not quite embedded itself in China as strongly as much as in Singapore. In Singapore, we consider Milo a local drink, we eat dishes that are a blend of influences from Southeast Asia, China, India, Europe and US. “Western food” stalls in Singapore hawker centres are such a local delight and can be seen as a homage to influences from colonialism and Western cultures. Many brands that were featured in the advertisements 60 years ago are still going strong and recognized as heritage icons today. Lin and I had many discussions and researched about observations that intrigued us, such as why were foods from Switzerland so prevalent back in the 60s, and so on. I have physically travelled to almost all the Southeast Asian countries. It is really fascinating is how different every country is and how important their histories, cultures, local politics, norms and traditions matter very much. Each country’s everyday foods are the amalgamation of these factors through the different times. We can uncover clues about a country's position and mental state based on what people eat.

CNTRFLD. Your practice sits at the intersection of art, data, and social engagement. How do you navigate the balance between rigorous research and emotionally resonant storytelling — particularly in politically charged or ethically complex contexts?

SC. It's never easy, isn't it? For us, every art project starts with a question. That question sometimes sounds simplistic, maybe even silly, because it is a question that invites answers from everyone, and everyone has a different opinion. We do in-depth independent research to understand the overall context surrounding that question, and only then do we come up with a direction on our visual method. Between Lin and I, we also have lots of arguments, as a married couple with children trying to balance an artistic practice, our conversation topics involve life and art. We put in dedicated time and thinking into our art practice, and this results in a lot of disagreements. And I think the disagreements are what forge the Chow and Lin way of thinking.

I wouldn't say that every work we come up with presents issues in a neutral and balanced way. I don't think that is how art works. Art can be opinionated. Art can also be proven wrong in time to come. It is important that we make our intentions and our process to be as sincere as possible. There is no absolute opinion on how the issue should be perceived, this is how we set out to create our work. It is the opinions of two individuals with very different opinions and knowledge blended together. It is imperfect, unvarnished and perhaps a little biased.

CNTRFLD. You’ve collaborated extensively with researchers, economists, and policymakers across the globe. How have these interdisciplinary exchanges — especially in relation to Southeast Asia — expanded or challenged your perspectives as artists rooted in Singapore?

HL. Art Is a meaningful and also challenging way of bringing together issues, experts and audiences, in a way that is inclusive and diverse. When we presented at the United Nations Conference Center in Bangkok to policy makers, NGOs and researchers who were working on social protection policies in the Asia Pacific region, the art became a visual medium of engagement. It was very different from the work that they were doing and talking about in their conferences. Art has a way to break down barriers and to engage on a person-to-person basis. I have a background in economics and policy. For me art creates engagement on issues which encounter and require different perspectives. As artists, often we find that we are not the ones building the solutions, but we can invite questions and observations to happen, and for people who are working on the inventions, technology, policies, to bring in ideas and develop solutions together.

CNTRFLD. What are your thoughts on the growing presence of Singaporean and Southeast Asian artists in the global art world? What do you feel is shifting in terms of regional recognition, representation, and cultural influence?

SC. I think that for a long time, Southeast Asian artists, including Singaporean artists, are not well represented on the world stage. That is changing, and it is important, because Southeast Asia is a region of 700 million people, that is a significant number of opinions and stories.

What makes Southeast Asia unique is the diversity, history and also connections to the wider world. Southeast Asia is a region that has been dominated by colonial forces for centuries, with the exception of Thailand. It is important to reflect on those histories, and critically examine post-colonialism systems that have evolved, to recognize systemic biases in representation and further enable agency for new paths. Artists’ opinions are always different, and that helps to create a balanced narrative. When I say “balanced”, I'm not saying that everyone's opinion is the same, but rather it is possible to have space where artists of different backgrounds and different opinions come together to have a dialogue, have conversations through the works. I think art is the initial discourse towards critical thinking, towards greater understanding, and also powering down of assumptions that we have of other people. Having the growing presence of Southeast Asian artists in the global landscape is much needed and only a sign of better things to come.

CNTRFLD. Are there any recent of forthcoming projects or collaborations you’re excited about?

HL. We just presented our largest installation work, “Even If It Looks Like Grass”, which was commissioned for the Lahore Biennale 03 last October. In developing the concept, we worked closely with the curator John Tain, and executive director Qudsia Rahim to understand the nuances of local and regional development, challenges and resource constraints. What kept coming up were topics on food security and data security, linked to the global spread of agriculture and information structures. We decided to focus on co-existing systems of wheat and data centres and researched on how these have revolutionized development and impact geopolitical dynamics over a span of 10,000 years of human history. We turned the two floors of the Alhamra Art Center into a map room displaying satellite imagery of wheat farms as well as data centres from the top wheat production and data storage hubs in the world. And in an analogue metaphor of how big data informs and overwhelms, we pasted thousands of open-sourced research papers, news articles and cultural representations. We placed a locally manufactured smart phone amongst 160 kilograms of wheat flour, as a matrix of equivalent value. And we partnered a local NGO to bring in a chakki, which is a traditional hand-powered stone wheat grinder, so the viewers could mill wheat into flour. We wanted to create multiple pathways to explore how these complex systems connect to our everyday lives, and it was amazing to see the audience’s interaction with the work. We are now in talks to present this work also in Beijing later this year.

CNTRFLD. You’ve built a practice that bridges disciplines and continents. What advice would you offer to aspiring Singaporean or Southeast Asian artists hoping to engage with urgent global issues while remaining connected to their heritage and regional context?

SC. I think that Singapore offers a very strong foundation for building your knowledge base and skills, but Singapore is a very small part of the larger world. It is a country of 6 million people in a world that has more than 8 billion. So, I think it is important to travel when you can, or to read as widely as possible, because Singapore did not reach this state of development by staying inward-looking. Singapore became important to an extent because it engages the world, and it provides the larger world with a lot of value. And within Southeast Asia, understanding of diversity, complex interlinkages and multiculturalism is important. As artists, we should think about these too. My advice to young artists from Singapore and Southeast Asia is to engage with other artists, with other individuals from other cultures, other countries. Keep an open mind, be an open vessel for knowledge, for opinions, for creativity and from there, new works can emerge to reflect on local and regional issues that contribute to global conversations.

CNTRFLD. As artists working transnationally, where do you see the role of the artist today? What responsibility — if any — do you believe artists hold in shaping national, regional, or global narratives during times of transformation?

HL. The role of an artist is certainly important because artists are social commentators, and inspire understanding about the world we are in. It is a privilege, to have artistic tools and platforms that can interact with different disciplines. And I think that art is the basis of culture that shapes thinking. Do artists change the world? I think there are very few individuals or very few professions that are actually able to do that, but we still try. In our practice, we try to represent the sign of our times. We deliberate on perspectives and concerns of our time, and we translate that into art forms that people today and tomorrow may be able to reflect upon.

Stefen Chow - SC

Huiyi Lin - HL

About the Artists
The crux of Chow and Lin’s practice lies in their methodology of statistical, mathematical, and research-based techniques to address global issues. Their projects are driven by discursive backgrounds in economics, public policy, and media, and are augmented by enduring exchanges with specialists across disciplines.

Chow and Lin have exhibited at The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), Arles Les Rencontres de la Photographie, Art Basel Hong Kong, the Lahore Biennale, NUS Museum, and the United Nations Conference Centre in Bangkok. Their works are in the permanent collections of MoMA, the China Central Academy of Fine Arts Museum, and Art Vontobel. They are authors of The Poverty Line (Actes Sud and Lars Müller Publishers, 2021), held in the MoMA Library and Centre Pompidou Bibliothèque publique d'information.

They are recipients of the Berlin Falling Walls Breakthrough Award – Science in the Arts (2020), IMPART Art Prize (2022), and Global TED Fellows (2024). Chow and Lin also engage closely with international policy, research, and innovation platforms to advance interdisciplinary discourse. They have spoken at the World Economic Forum, United Nations ESCAP, and APEC Women’s Leadership Forum, and lectured at institutions such as the London School of Economics, Sciences Po, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Parsons School of Design, and Bielefeld University of Applied Sciences. Their work has been featured in BBC News, The New York Times, NPR, Le Monde, France 24, Internazionale, Chosun Economy, and The Straits Times. It has also been cited in Sir Anthony B. Atkinson’s Measuring Poverty Around the World (Princeton University Press, 2019) and in Ghost in the Shell magazine (Kodansha, 2024).

Stefen Chow and Huiyi Lin are based in Beijing.


About Artist’s Proof: Singapore at 60

A landmark exhibition and deeply personal tribute to Singapore’s founding leaders — told not through speeches or textbooks, but through art. Over the past decade, private collector Mr. Chong Huai Seng has gathered artworks capturing Singapore’s transformation, from nostalgic street scenes to bold contemporary takes on identity and leadership. In celebration of Singapore’s 60th birthday, this ambitious exhibition features over 90 works by more than 50 artists, including 11 new commissions and one original music composition.

The exhibition underscores Chong’s passion for supporting emerging artists, and aims to inspire audiences to embrace Singapore’s contemporary art scene and invest in its future through collecting and patronage. This “love letter to Singapore” traces the country’s journey from a struggling young nation to a thriving global city. Scenes of Singapore’s evolving cityscape unfold through paintings and photographs, while works inspired by Lee Kuan Yew and the founding fathers reflect on legacy and nation-building. The exhibition also looks inward, questioning the relationship between artists, the state, and the people.

Presented by The Culture Story and produced by Family Office for Art, Artist’s Proof: Singapore at 60 invites audiences of all ages and backgrounds to experience Singapore through the eyes of its artists.


With thanks to The Culture Story, Singapore, for facilitating this interview.

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