Twig artist, 82, goes viral - netizens want to preserve his work

New Paper

2 days ago

When Facebook user Purp Tran shared a post about an old man and his art to the public Facebook group Heritage SG Memories, she never expected it to get so many reactions.
Now, netizens are calling for the work of Mr Thien, 82, to be preserved.
In the images posted, the artist is crouched before an image on the ground that appears to be a line drawing. Upon closer examination, the lines are really stray twigs arranged by Mr Thien to form a portrait, accompanied by a title in Chinese characters.
"This lovely uncle uses stray sticks to create art every morning around the Pek Kio area. He is definitely a heritage fixture that we enjoy seeing when we are lucky to, and will miss one day. Pretty certain that there won't be another quite like him," she says in her post.
The post has received more than 7,100 reactions and has been shared 702 times since it was posted in the early morning of July 30.
It was also shared on Facebook page SGVirality, where it received 2,900 reactions and 192 shares.
'Drawing from the heart'
The comments on the post were mostly in praise of the artist's skill, although some were worried that the artist would get into trouble for vandalism.
"Talent in the heartlands. Kudos to uncle's creativity," commented Benjamin Zeng Yuhui.
"He's drawing from the heart, Uncle probably misses someone," said Gany Eusope.
A quick search online showed that Mr Thien's portrait is of actress Zhu Hong, 83, likely a movie star the artist grew up watching.
For some, the post provided an explanation as to how the images appeared.
"Omg I was…wondering who/why coz it was kinda freaky to have a random image by the carpark! But thanks for enlightening me!" said Joel Ng.
Corinne Schmidt-Chua asked if Mr Thien's work could be preserved for posterity. "Perhaps some residents can compile an online photo gallery of his artwork to remember him in future?
"
"The artist's skill is truly remarkable so I took a video while he's creating his dream girl," said Rogger Yap
Mr Thien is no stranger to attention.
He was featured on Stomp in 2023, and three years before that, Minister of State for National Development and Trade and Industry Alvin Tan, mentioned him in a Facebook post.
But Purp Tran told The New Paper that she simply wanted Mr Thien to be celebrated as an artist while he is still alive, and believes that he would do well as a busker. "I think people would support him," she said.
"National day is coming up. I would feel proud to see a local talent like him doing his thing on the big screen," she added.