From Assignment to Competition

A Secondary 4 oil painting assignment developed into a finalist entry in the Emerging Artist category of the 2026 UOB Painting of the Year (Singapore). Between the Rebars of Our City draws inspiration from Leonora Liow’s Rich Man Country and reflects on the often unseen labour behind Singapore’s urban landscape. Yiduo reflects on the development of the work, from its literary inspiration and initial concept to the painstaking artmaking process behind the final painting.

Written by: Yang Yiduo (4i4, 2026)

This artwork was a two-month undertaking that began as an oil painting assignment.

It was our Secondary 4 cohort’s first formal attempt at oil painting, under the guidance of our new Art teacher, Mr Immanuel Goh. The timeline of the assignment happened to coincide with submissions for the UOB Painting of the Year competition, so those of us who were eligible were entered into the competition.

Initially, I already had a few ideas that I wanted to express through my painting, but the competition gave me an additional sense of purpose. Alongside my peers, I began studying past winning works and analysing the factors that may have contributed to their success. This process helped me refine my ideas and eventually develop the concept for my final work.

In my Secondary 3 English Literature class, we studied Hook & Eye: Stories from the Margins, an anthology of local fiction. One story in particular stood out to me: Rich Man Country by Leonora Liow. It follows an unnamed migrant construction worker who comes to Singapore hoping to build a better life for himself and his family. As he experiences mistreatment and discrimination, readers are invited to reflect on the realities faced by migrant workers in Singapore.

This became the main inspiration for my artwork, Between the Rebars of Our City. Through the painting, I wanted to draw attention to the often overlooked and underappreciated labour behind Singapore’s impressive skyline. Much like the steel rebars that eventually disappear beneath concrete, the hard work of construction workers can also go unnoticed, even though it forms an essential foundation of our infrastructure.

The Artmaking Process

The first step was developing a reference image, which was crucial in helping me visualise the composition and create a more accurate representation of my subject matter. I used Photoshop to combine images of migrant workers and steel rebars into a single reference.

Next, I painted a base layer of colour over the white canvas. This helped establish the overall tone of the artwork and ensured that there would be no distracting patches of white showing through.

I then made a rough sketch using charcoal. I chose charcoal instead of graphite because the texture of the canvas made it difficult to work with a harder drawing medium.

Finally, I began painting. One creative decision I made was to render each rebar carefully, stroke by stroke, so that the edges appeared sharp and detailed. The process was extremely repetitive and required a great deal of patience. At times, the thought of finally being able to stop painting the same lines over and over again became motivation in itself to keep going.

Looking back, I am very grateful for Mr Goh’s expertise and guidance throughout the process, as well as for the opportunity to enter the competition. I am proud that my artwork was recognised as a finalist and that it can now be viewed by members of the public. More importantly, I hope that the work encourages viewers to reflect on the people whose labour often remains unseen behind the city we experience every day.