LIE Kien Sia
Born: 1 January 1877 – Died: 27 August 1942
Particulars:
Kien Sia was born in Java, in the then Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia. He was a married man with one son living in Magelang in Java when the Pacific War broke out. He was taken to Australia and interned at the Loveday Internment Camp in South Australia. His family was left behind. The cause of his death at age 65 is recorded as senility. His grave is in the Japanese Cemetery in Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
–Mayu Kanamori
More info:
Shu-ting Jhang
Artist/s Statement:
‘Have a Great Chinese New Year’s Eve Reunion Dinner in 1942’
（1942年，好好吃一頓年夜飯）Printmaking, oil-based ink on paper
Lie was born in Java. According to the Indonesian Hokkien pronunciation, ‘Lie Kien Sia’ sounds similar to the ‘李建謝’ in Hokkien. Based on available records, Lie had an Indonesian wife and a child. On 27 January 1942, the family boarded a ship together. After arriving in South Australia, Lie fell ill and passed away on 27 August of the same year, at the age of 65. Regarding Lie’s background, it is estimated that his father or grandfather’s generation migrated from the Fujian, Guangdong, or Kinmen regions to Java for business. The family lived in Magelang City, the capital of the Kedu Residency during the Dutch colonial period. This place of residence suggests they had likely achieved a certain degree of success.
Thus, the artwork takes the theme of a Chinese New Year’s Eve Dinner. On the table are traditional foods of Chinese-Indonesian families at new year, such as lapis legit and kue keranjang, alongside other dishes symbolising Chinese good fortune. The family of three is depicted sitting together for their Lunar New Year’s Eve dinner in 1942 (the 29th day of December in the lunar month, corresponding to 14 February 1942), enjoying a reunion dinner, symbolising a peaceful, safe, and normal life at home, free from suffering.
Artist Bio:
Shu-Ting Jhang is a Taiwanese artist / teacher and visual artist, specialising in printmaking and graphic arts. She holds a certified secondary school art teaching licence in Taiwan. For many years, Jhang has been dedicated to art education beyond traditional institutions, such as hospital wards, creative ageing programs, senior care environments, with disadvantaged children, and museum based children / family art education extension. With a background in both visual art and pedagogy of art, she also has experience in participatory art, socially engaged art, and social prescribing projects in Taiwan.