Lot 007
TAN CHOON GHEE
b. Penang, 1930 - d. 2010
MEN RESTING, 1988
Signed and dated with seal (lower left)
Ink on rice paper
23.5cm x 26.5cm
PROVENANCE
Private collection, Kuala Lumpur.
ESTIMATE RM 2,000 - 3,000
PRICE REALISED RM 3,607.04
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Tan Choon Ghee is recognised as one of the most technically accomplished artists in Malaysia specialising in scenic recordings of local architecture and landscapes. Wonderful subjects from towns and cities revealing the charm of daily life often serve as an inspiration. The artist uses deft expressive calligraphic strokes to portray a group of men in leisure, reading and resting. The contents of the newspaper read by one of the men is skilfully suggested in delicate hues.
Tan Choon Ghee completed his secondary education from Chung Ling high school in 1948 and graduated from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Art in Singapore in 1951. He then attended the Slade School of Fine Art in London from 1957 to 1959. He had received a German government painting scholarship and an Australian government television set design scholarship. He had worked for TV Singapore and TV Broadcast Ltd in Hong Kong prior to becoming a fulltime artist. He had held numerous one man shows with his first in 1956 at the Hooi Ann Association, Penang followed by in 1958, 1962 and 1963 organised by the British Council, Penang; National Library in Singapore (1962 and 1970); Australian High Commission in Kuala Lumpur (1983 and 1993) among others. Tan had also been honoured with two retrospective exhibitions in 1996 and 2000; a tribute show in Kuala Lumpur (2009) and a recent posthumous solo exhibition titled A Lifetime of Drawings showcasing his sketchbooks and paper works at the Penang State Art Gallery (2014).
REFERENCE
Tan Choon Ghee Retrospective (1957 - 1992) , Penang State Art Gallery, 2000.
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