Wartime heroine Elizabeth Choy talks to LI XUEYING about her decision to allow her nude photo for display
SINGAPOREANS who remember Mrs Elizabeth Choy as a steely war heroine can see a softer, more vulnerable side of her at the National Museum.
A nude photograph of her is on display as part of an exhibition on her exceptional life, titled Elizabeth Choy - A Woman Ahead Of Her Time.
The small portrait, which measures 14 1/2 cm by 18 cm, about half the size of an A4 piece of paper, shows a standing Mrs Choy facing the camera, her arms extended in a dancer's pose.
Her hair is pinned back, showing her delicate features, and her body is silhouetted against a lighter background, showing off its contours.
The exhibition was opened last November but it was only about two weeks ago that Mrs Choy decided to allow her nude picture to be displayed.
'The body is a work of nature and God's art,'
says Mrs Choy of her nude picture.Asked by Sunday Plus for the reason for her change of mind, she said: "One must not be prudish. In the West, such things are common."
Her stint as an artist's model dates back to 1949, when she was 39 years old and was working in London for both pragmatic and artistic reasons. Posing, especially nude, was a lucrative profession at the time.
But Mrs Choy was, and still is, very interested in art, and had enrolled in an art appreciation course in London.
However, so as not to deprive another student of a place in the art school, she decided to work as a model instead, which allowed her to remain close to the art circle.
During that year, she posed for numerous nude paintings and five or six nude photographs. She also posed for the famed sculptress, Dora Gordine, who did two works of her, Serene Jade and Flawless Crystal.
Mrs Elizabeth Choy today with Serene Jade,
a nude sculpture of herself.Mrs Choy gave the former piece to her daughters who, in turn, donated it to the Singapore Art Museum. Flawless Crystal is in an art gallery in Leicester, Britain.
She said that one of her favourite pieces was a painting done of her bare back. But this was stolen when she was renovating her house.
Several visitors who viewed the exhibition at the National Museum were unanimous in their praise of the photo.
American tourist Jacob Haar, 18, said: "It has a certain energy which gives insight into her personality."
Mr Mahinder Singh, 44, a laboratory technician, added that it was "not just physically beautiful, but spiritually so as well".
Tourist Peter Beckith, 65, from Surrey, Britain, said: "I have done nude paintings before and I know that it is very difficult for models to pose in a standing position because it is more revealing. Most of them do it in a reclining or sitting position."
Mrs Choy said that she does not feel embarrassed about the photograph: "There is nothing to be ashamed of. The body is a work of nature and God's art. The room I was in was like a temple and the students treated me with such reverence. I felt like a goddess."
First published in The Sunday Times, Feb 15, 1998
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