Fat Lady Statue – Contemporary art in a residential neighbourhood

Contemporary fat lady statue displayed at the front of a house in Simei.

Simei Estate, SINGAPORE – Situated in a quiet landed-residential estate in Simei is what appears to be an inspired version of Dikke Dames beeldjes*, (Dutch for ‘Fat Lady Figurine’) by Filipino contemporary artist Daniel De La Cruz. It is a statue depicting a lively fat lady posing vivaciously in a brightly-coloured floral dress. Even better; it is a larger than life version.

This very large and unique statue stands proudly on display in the home of Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of The Year 2016, David Low and his wife, Emily Neo. The house stands out from the others in the estate with this bold display of art, especially since it is uncommon to see art displayed like this in a housing estate. The colourful statue can be seen clearly through a glass panel in the front of the house. With the vibrant colours and big, round physique, it never fails to catch the attention of many passers-by.

The statue was chosen specially to fill up an empty space in the house as suggested by their designer. “We used to have a Christmas tree here (in this empty spot) but we couldn’t have a Christmas tree up for the whole year,” said Emily Neo, a homemaker. David and Emily agreed that it was the ideal piece to fill the empty spot and had it custom-made overseas by an Italian designer.

The statue was chosen by David, an entrepreneur with an eye for art. “He renovates high-fashion boutiques, so he has a taste for art which he picked up from his business,” Emily explained. “It’s quite cheerful and brightens up the whole house,” she added. “When our friends come over, they always take pictures with this statue.”

Simone Kow, a Ngee Ann Polytechnic freshman, saw the statue and said: “I think it’s very exotic because of the colours! The pose of the statue portrays a very cheerful vibe… it gives the house a vibrant and radiant atmosphere.”

Mdm Chay, a resident staying a few units down from David and Emily, thought that the statue was interesting. “It looks fun-loving. I thought that the owners must be very artistic,” she said.

The family has many other beautiful art pieces displayed all around their home, ranging from Chinese paintings to small sculptures, the fat lady statue being one of their favourite pieces. “We even gave her a name; Angie.” Emily revealed. “We call her Fat Angie,”

Emily said: “… it’s not the traditional statue (that people are used to seeing); she (the statue) has a very small head and big bottoms. It’s just something out of the ordinary.”

*Daniel De La Cruz’s fat figurines are a collection that celebrates women. These figurines are a tribute to women, the sculptures showing robust women defined with grace, strength and wonderful movement