Using dreamy, light shades and gentle green tones, the work captures not a literal depiction of reality but a reverie of memories, internalised and captured through deft brushstrokes. The artist’s sensitive rendering of the rural environment is conveyed through lively, expressive lines that give the structure character and weight, capturing the spirit of simpler times. The broad expanse surrounding the dwellings suggests the breadth of space, where land was abundant before the development of modern towns. These elements create a warm scene that celebrates the harmony and peace of life in the past. A graduate from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore in 1958, Yu Chian was the first artist in Malaya to be awarded a French Government scholarship to study at the famed Ecole Nationale des Beaux Arts in Paris from 1959 to 1962. He had his works accepted 15 times in prestigious Salon exhibitions in Paris and received Honourable Mentions in the Salon des Independent and Societe des Artistes Francaise, which was rare for a non-French artist. He was also commissioned to do a mural titled Life In Malaysia for the Malaysian High Commission in Paris. He returned to Malaysia in February 1962 and held a solo exhibition at the British Council in Penang where all 110 works were sold.