ASEAN has been carrying out art activities since its formation in 1967. Some of the artists from the region have initiated discussions about their traditional cultures and aesthetic discourses in recent years. One of the main issues during the 93 Symposium at Manilla was to call for an Asean aesthetic identity. It was due to the increasing awareness of the growing consciousness of culture and identity in the region. This paper begins with the history of the Nanyang Style which was established by a group of immigrant artists from China during the 30s and 40s. The Nanyang Style of art was an integration of traditional Chinese ink and wash painting, and was influenced by the School of Paris and local subject matter. By synthesising these three elements, the Nanyang artists were able to imbue a sense of local consciousness within their works. During the 1950s the Nanyang artists had extended their aesthetic explorations to Bali and since then Balinese indigenous art has become a major influence on the Nanyang Style. This was seen as an issue of regionalism in the early art history of Singapore. Nanyang Style became the mainstream in visual arts practice in Singapore until it was replaced by Abstract Expressionism and Pop art in the 1970s. Attempted in this paper however, is a re-examination of the Nanyang Style in order to demonstrate its significant contribution to the art world of Singapore. This paper also suggets that Nanyang Style might be reassessed as a metaphor for Singaporean cultural identity given its synthesised characteristics. This reassessment will further contribute to the broader debate concerning the shaping of an ASEAN aesthetic in the region / Master of Arts (Hons)

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / This study analyzes 21 high and ultra-high-net-worth data points whose entities migrated from mainland China into Southeast Asia, and now, with their descendants, have settled in Singapore. Though removed from China over generations, they still retain a continuum of evolved values that were germinated from Confucian morals, rituals, and values — more popularly recognized as Chineseness. This study investigates these traditions, ethos, and value systems through the lens of philanthropy. The principal results and conclusions are: 1) Due to push and pull factors, millions of Chinese migrants fanned out into the Nanyang (Southeast Asia) from mid-1800s to the late 1900s. The first-generation diasporic Chinese (G1) left China with a sojourner mentality. Hence their early philanthropic action mirrored sojourners’ mindsets and pointed their giving back to China, the motherland. 2) As Chinese diaspora and their ethnic Chinese descendants (G2, G3, G4) eventually settled as nationals into various countries of Southeast Asia, new hybrid Chinese identities emerged. 3) Their Confucian Chinese values were confronted and severely tested – very often remolded and evolved as they assimilated, acculturated, and converged with social norms dictated by local indigenous cultures, and political, social, and economic circumstances of the times. 4) Confucian values — honoring the family name and continuing the ancestral lineage — behest multi-generations to stick together in strength. With self-help and mutual aid philanthropy, they thrived in the Nanyang. Very soon, Chinese diaspora’s economic success propelled them into leadership. As leaders of local communities, their loyalties, generosity, and philanthropic action shifted as new generations, locally born, begin to identify as nationals of these countries and engender gratitude to where they built their wealth. Eventually, generosity to China by follow-on generations pulled back or ceased. 5) In philanthropy, the age-old values of family, ancestry, humility, and benevolence now give younger generations of ethnic Chinese pride and purpose to give outside of the traditional familial lines to create opportunities and transform lives in the communities where they work and live – including public good for the countries where they operate their businesses in Southeast Asia and beyond.