Turn Five

In 1994, the Sotheby’s Auction House in Singapore sold 151 pieces of artwork, most of them by Chen Chong Swee. The auction was a charity event, with the goal to raise one million dollars to provide scholarships to visual artists. It is a fitting tribute to a man who became well known not only for his artwork, but for nature and his teaching. Chen was born in Swatow, China in 1910, and after graduating from high school went on to study fine art, water color and ink printing, at the Xinhua Academy of Fine Arts. Upon graduation, he moved Singapore. He was a teacher in many different schools and became a well known speaker and lecturer on the subject of Chinese Ink Painting.

His own style was a mix of tradition, which he emphasized the importance of, and a new, more modern approach seizing on his own personal ideas. He was influenced by his life in Singapore, so much so that it eventually influenced the way he painted, thus creating his own style that veered away from the traditional paintings. However, he remained grounded by the education he had gained in school. One way is that he continued to put written words onto the paintings, a tradition for Chinese artists, known as idea writing. This was meant to, and did have, the effect of letting the viewer in on the meaning or story behind the paintings. It is because of his own personal beliefs, that the sole purpose of artist is to communicate with the public. That the sensibilities and the the concerns of the artist, should always be given to the viewer. In other ways he was considered a modern painter, but not in the tradition of alienating the public.

The Salon Art Society was founded by Chen in 1953. That same year he traveled to Bali with fellow painters, Chen Wen Hsi, Lui Kang and Cheong Soo Pieng. It was an inspirational trip as Chen and his fellow painters were so taken with the country resulting in a completely new style of painting now known as the Nanyang School. And while their work may have hung on the walls of galleries and in some to the best hotels in Singapore, their first group show was not until they returned from the trip. The artists arranged a show of the paintings they had created during their time and work in Bali. The four artists remain famous to this day, and they will continue to inspire generations of artists in the future.

Related posts:

1. Indonesia’s Artist of Memory: J. Ariadhitya Pramuhendra
2. Singapore, the Beautiful Mix
3. A First “Date” with Vincent Van Gogh in New York City

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