The original owners of Cheong Soo Pieng’s Return from Market (1979) (Lot 33) and Seated Lady (1981) (Lot 32) recalled the artist’s home crammed with painting materials, spread around the rooms. They were living in Nassim Road, Singapore, in the early 1980s, and acquired the works directly from Cheong Soo Pieng circa 1981-92. A contact had informed them of the artist’s home address, and they knocked on his door. The artist graciously invited the couple in and showed them the works available for purchase. They spoke at length with the artist, who they described as friendly and with longer hair than seen in his younger photographs. They noticed that many of his recent works at the time were painted with more somber, gray tones, and based on their conversation, they speculated that these more muted works were possibly inspired by the artist’s awareness of his illness. However, the pair requested for works painted with more vivid colors, and were directed to his earlier works, which were laid on the floor. They carefully selected Return from Market and Seated Lady, painted in 1979 and 1981 respectively, two exemplary works that embody the artist’s mature visual language and his long-standing dedication to Southeast Asian cultures.

The only oil on canvas composition in a circular format to surface at auction, Seated Lady is an extremely rare composition painted in an unusual format. The work features Balinese temple structures in the backdrop, ensconced within a magnificent and verdant landscape rendered with golden patterns reminiscent of the works of Gustav Klimt.

An endearing scene of a family returning from the market, with a goat leisurely grazing on the grass, Return from Market emanates a sense of tranquility and harmony. The family huddles under a parasol, in the shade of a flowery tree.

The figures that dominate these works are depicted with highly stylized facial features, almond-lidded eyes, angular faces and elongated limbs, reflecting the inspiration that Cheong received from the Indonesian shadow puppets. Depicting the cultures of Southeast Asia from a refreshing anthropological perspective, the artist captures the circadian routines of his subjects. Celebrated as a pioneer of the Nanyang Art Movement, Cheong Soo Pieng fundamentally transformed Singapore’s artistic landscape with his incredibly diverse oeuvre that delved into various Eastern and Western painting techniques and styles.

《從市集歸來》（1979年作）（拍品編號33）和《女子坐像》（1981年作）（拍品編號32）的原主回憶畫家鍾泗濱的家，裡面放滿了畫材畫具，散落在房間各處。1980年代初畫作原主居於新加坡那森路（Nassim Road），畫作是他們在1981至1992年間直接從鍾泗濱手上購入的。事緣一位熟人告知原主鍾泗濱住在哪裡，他們就徑自到鍾泗濱的家叩門。鍾泗濱也熱情地請他們進屋，介紹準備出售的作品。據原主所述，他們與鍾泗濱聊了很長時間，鍾泗濱非常友善，頭髮比他年輕時照的相片更長。他們留意到當時鍾泗濱新完成的作品色調較灰暗陰沉，而且從對話內容推測，鍾泗濱創作這些色彩較柔和的作品時，應該已經知道自己身患重疾。然而，當時原主希望購藏色彩比較亮麗的畫作，於是鍾泗濱讓他們看看放在地上的較早年作品，他們就挑選了分別作於1979年和1981年的《從市集歸來》和《女子坐像》，這兩幅畫作正好體現鍾泗濱運用成熟的視覺語言，持之以恆地以創作貢獻於東南亞文化。

《女子坐像》是鍾泗濱唯一一幅登上拍場的圓形油畫，創作形式極不尋常，非常罕見。畫中以壯麗蒼翠的景色為背景，遠處有峇里式神廟，金光閃閃的圖案近似於奧地利象徵主義畫家古斯塔夫・克林姆的風格。

《從市集歸來》描繪一家人剛剛從市集回來，他們撐著傘站在樹蔭下，枝頭開滿密密麻麻的花，新買的小羊在悠然吃草，畫面洋溢寧靜和諧的氣氛。

 這兩幅畫作的人物甚有鍾泗濱的個人風格，杏仁形的眼瞼、棱角分明的臉、拉長的四肢，從人物造型可見，鍾泗濱是從印尼的哇揚皮影偶戲得到靈感。他以當地的日常生活入畫，用從人類學而來的嶄新視角註釋東南亞文化。鍾泗濱有譽為南洋藝術運動的重要先驅，他以融和中西繪畫技法和風格的作品，徹底革新了新加坡的藝術景觀。