Newly renovated in January 2023, Toh Lim The Canton Table at LOTTE HOTEL WORLD is a Chinese restaurant with over 20 years of tradition, welcoming guests with a menu incorporating contemporary trends and the finest interior design. At the end of the hallway leading into the restaurant is a beautiful artwork that immediately catches the eye with two birds that appear to be singing. As you approach the piece, you will be fascinated by the lucid illustrations of the birds’ wings, blue drops of water, leaves, and fruits painted in various oil colors. Prominent South African contemporary artist Ryan Hewett created this work in the image of an Eastern utopia based on the concept of paradise, from which Toh Lim gets its name. While the dark blue background mingling with the interior is neat and understated, the two birds constituting the main theme are drawn in the artist’s signature style with colorful, thick brush strokes and simple outlines reminiscent of cubism and surrealism. He gives shape to an invisible utopian space through his work and hopes that this space can be appreciated for a long time.

Ryan Hewett is a South African contemporary artist from Durban who studied graphic design before turning to art. He is renowned for his creative portraits that employ a sensory color scheme, grotesque and abstract styles, and various instruments such as knives. He first drew attention as an up-and-coming artist when his first solo exhibition sold out in just three weeks. His work takes form in a space partitioned with masking tape, where multi-layered colors are brushed on before edges of the paint layers are cut away with a knife. This technique lends itself to images with deep textures and rich colors. He states that portraying someone is to create a door to the inner journey of self-exploration rather than showing external likeness. The artist has participated in various art fairs, including solo and group exhibitions in major cities around the world, and has works on display at Di Donna Galleries and the Goss-Michael Foundation in the United States, Fine Art Centre in Taiwan, and the non-profit organization Recharge Foundation.