Eng Choon Hway Kuan (Singapore)

Most of the early Yongchun settlers in Singapore came from Malacca, of which the families of Tan Kim Seng and Lee Cheng Yan were most notable. As the clan grew in size and social unrest increased, the Eng Choon Hway Kuan was established in 1867 to protect the interest of their clansmen and foster closer relations. Over the next 150 glorious years, the clan association upheld its mission to love and help one another, connect ties, help the poor and needy, resolve disputes, as well as promote welfare work.

Besides being enterprising businessmen, the Yongchun people were actively involved in education. Tan Kim Seng’s son, Tan Beng Swee, founded two of Singapore’s earliest Chinese schools, Chongwen Ge and Chui Eng Free School. His grandson, Tan Jiak Kim, was instrumental in the establishment of the King Edward VII Medical School (now National University of Singapore) in 1905, after petitioning the colonial government and taking the lead in donating to its building cost. Father and son Lee Cheng Yan and Lee Choon Guan founded the Hong Joo Chinese Free School and Choon Guan School.

The seven paintings lent by Eng Choon Hway Kuan include works donated by Liu Kang, the Yongchun-born artist best known for creating the Nanyang Style. The collection also includes works of famous Yongchun artist Yu Chengyao and a painting by Shanghai Fine Arts Academy (now Nanjing University of the Arts) graduate Lee Kah Yeow.

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Liu Kang (1911-2004)
Evergreen bamboo and pine tree
1987
Ink and colour on paper
76 x 41cm
Inscription: For the celebration of the 120th anniversary of Eng Choon Hway Kuan, Liu Kang.
Seals: Liu (character in red), Kang (character in white).


Liu Kang (1911-2004) is a Singapore pioneer artist born in Yongchun (Eng Choon), Fujian province, China. Raised in Muar, Malaya, he went back to China and graduated from the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts in 1927, under Liu Haisu’s tutelage, before furthering his studies in France. He later taught at the Shanghai Academy from 1933 to 1937. He admired the style of modernists, such as Paul Cézanne from France and Vincent van Gogh from the Netherlands. After the Japanese invasion of China, Liu Kang returned to Malaya and moved to Singapore in 1942. In 1952, he travelled to Bali with Chen Chong Swee, Chen Wen Hsi, and Cheong Soo Pieng. Since then, they established the Nanyang School of painting. Liu Kang was the president of the Society of Chinese Artists, Singapore Art Society, National Day Art Exhibition Committee, and member of the Advisory Council on Culture and the Arts for the Ministry of Culture, Singapore. He was awarded the Public Service Medal and Meritorious Service Medal, along with the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from France. 

During the early days, the Eng Choon people in Singapore mostly migrated from Malacca, including clan leaders like Tan Kim Seng and Lee Cheng Yan. Under the leadership of Tan Boon Swee, Tan Kim Seng’s son, the Eng Choon Huay Kuan was established in 1867 and moved to 457 Beach Road in 1888. The two oldest Chinese schools in Singapore, Chong Wen Ge, and Cui Ying School were formed with Tan Boon Swee’s support. In 1898, the colonial government required social organisations to register, and the original location became too small and unfit for use. As such, the clan relocated to 105 Amoy Street and held the inauguration ceremony in 1905, erecting a stone monument to celebrate this move.

This work was painted in 1987. The pair of green pines stand tall and formidable, while the cluster of bamboo evokes the spirit of spring. This painting is a symbol of the longstanding history of the Eng Choon Hway Kuan, much like the pines’ deep roots and abundant foliage, expressing optimism and faith in the prosperity of the organisation and the continuation of its legacy. Liu Kang was known for his Western-style works, especially those in oil and pastels. Works like this Chinese ink painting with its experienced strokes, harmonious colours, and  unrestrained brushwork, are a rare find.

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Tay Chee Toh (1941-)
Blessings of Eng Choon
2016
Gouache on paper
76 x 77cm
Signature: Chee Toh, 2016.
Inscription: A gift by painter Tay Chee Toh and Zheng Jiancheng.


Tay Chee Toh (1941-) was born in Johor, Malaysia, and migrated to Singapore in 1958. He graduated from Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, having studied under Cheong Soo Pieng and Georgette Chen. He has a distinctive style, and his themes include rural villages, modern abstract art and sculpture.

Mr Zheng Jiancheng’s ancestry is from Yongchun (Eng Choon), Fujian province, China. He was the chairman of the Eng Choon Huay Kuan for three terms in 2013, 2015, and 2017. In 2011, he was awarded the Public Service Medal.

This gouache painting was completed in 2016, featuring the Eng Choon Huay Kuan premises. A red car is parked outside the building, with some hawkers selling local delicacies. There is also a teenage cyclist nearby. These elements were captured by the artist for his painting. Despite the dated look of the building, the clan is supported by affluent and generous donors who seek to benefit the public. The younger generation still looks favourably upon the clan, suggesting the likely continuation of its legacy. The harmonious colours and careful composition reflect the artist’s technique, artistry and humanity.

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Liu Kang (1911-2004)
Still Life
1967
Pastel on paper
46 x 61cm
Signature: Kang, 1967.


This is a still-life work, completed by Singapore pioneer artist Liu Kang in 1967. The painting depicts fruits and vegetables associated with Nanyang culture, such as mangosteens and longans. There is also an exotic bowl and modern porcelain vase. In the background, one can see a piece of flower-patterned cloth. Liu was an avid proponent of the French impressionist Paul Cézanne, and some of his works bear much resemblance to the latter. While Liu focused on Western styles of expression, he also included ink-inspired strokes into many of his still-life paintings.

The use of modern art styles and local subjects are characteristics of the Nanyang School advocated by first-generation Singaporean artists such as Liu. This exemplifies the Nanyang School.  Local Chinese artists who used to rely on China’s cultural traditions as a resource now sought to create aesthetic symbols for the post-Malayan public, against the backdrop of decolonisation and nationalism. This was a cultural awakening, as well as a socially realistic expression of patriotism.

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Shi Zuquan (1933- )
Crowing rooster
1987
Ink and colour on paper
139 x 68cm
Inscription: A gift to Eng Choon Hway Kuan, Zuquan, in the autumn of dingmao year (1987).
Seals: Painting of Shi Zuquan (characters in white), Master of Yun Shui Xuan (house with clouds beside a river) (characters in red).


Shi Zuquan (1933- ) is the president of Qiantang (Hangzhou) Painting and Calligraphy Club, and a lecturer at the Chinese Painting Department of Jing Hua School of the Arts, Beijing. He specialises in drawing flowers and birds, and particularly enjoys drawing roosters, commonly known as “The King of Rooster from Qiantang”. His rooster has remarkable form and spirit, “innovative yet disciplined, unrestrained yet exuding subtle wisdom.” This piece in “writing the idea” (xieyi) style was completed in 1987. In Chinese culture, roosters are associated with good fortune, while the bamboos are a metaphor for peace. The grand painting, with its harmonious colours, evokes unbridled freedom and prosperity.

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Lee Kah Yeow
Rosy twilight by Peach Brook
1959
Ink and colour on paper
182 x 95cm
Inscription: For the celebration of the successful rebuilding of Eng Choon Hway Kuan, done by Lee Kah Yeow at a holiday villa in Kuala Lumpur in February 1952.
Seals: Shiny star (characters in red), Lee Kah Yeow (characters in white), Heavenly horse running in the sky (characters in white).


Lee Kah Yeow is a Chinese Malaysian artist. He was born in Yongchun (Eng Choon) of Fujian province and went to Peking University in 1919 to study the sciences. He was under the tutelage of well-known painters such as Chen Banding and Hu Peiheng in his spare time. He moved to Singapore with his family in 1926 and taught art at the Chinese High School. He relocated to Kuala Lumpur in 1929, and gave art lessons at Confucian Private Secondary School, and Chong Hwa High School. In 1970, he donated about 1400 antiques and his personal works to the Lee Kong Chian Art Museum at Nanyang University. In 1975, the National Art Gallery of Malaysia organised a solo exhibition for him. In the same year, he donated 30 paintings by famous Chinese artists and 30 of his own works to the National Art Gallery of Malaysia.

This painting, Rosy twilight by Peach Brook, ingeniously captures both classical and modern methods, combining Western painting styles with traditional Chinese ink brush techniques and compositions. The foreground, midground and background are integrated seamlessly through texture strokes and colour washes. In the painting, the mountains are depicted with twists and turns, and covered with exuberant foliage with a light mist in the distance; a paradise re-born. Under the stone bridge in the wilderness, a boatman in a straw cape row quietly in his flat wooden raft, as if reincarnated from centuries ago. The artist’s pride and nostalgia for his hometown is discernible. The flock of wild geese drifts into the clouds and lets out a familiar and sorrowful sound, revealing a melancholic reluctance to leave home.

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Liu Kang (1911-2004)
Batu Caves in Kuala Lumpur
1947
Oil on canvas
68 x 96cm
Signature: Kang (in Chinese), 1947, Liu Kang.


This particularly precious work is one of Liu Kang’s early paintings, finished in 1947. Before the first Academy of Fine Arts established by Cai Yuanpei in Hangzhou, there was no formal institution for art education in modern China. In the past, painters passed down their teachings either formally in the imperial court or privately from master to student. Painters such as Lin Fengmian and Liu Haisu were amongst the early few who had contact with Western modern art and became artistic pioneers in China. Shanghai and Hangzhou were regarded as the cradles for new art and nurtured countless talents for China’s art development. Some of these talents were Chinese painters returning home from Nanyang, such as Liu Kang who eventually studied at the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts. They were immersed in and inspired by the cultural zeitgeist.

For a long period, artists fervently believed in using new techniques from the West to improve the deteriorating state of traditional Chinese painting. This was a matter of debate. Xu Beihong, a famous artist known by many in Nanyang, was among those who shared this belief and made changes to Chinese painting, which attracted critics till this day. This oil painting by Liu Kang, although using techniques borrowed from the West, is still, in essence, a Chinese painting. Western landscape painting and Chinese shanshui (“mountains and rivers”) painting are two entirely different artistic and philosophical concepts. The latter cannot be subsumed under the former. Western landscape painting emphasises scientific observation of the natural world while Chinese shanshui painting is more philosophical and introspective. These clearly reveal two divergent directions. While painting this work, Liu Kang appeared more inclined to Chinese culture. However, this did not hinder his later artistic development nor his impact on the Nanyang School and artists in Singapore and Malaysia.

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Yu Chengyao (1898 – 1993)
Remembering the spring days at Peach Brook
1959
Ink and colour on paper
57 x 121cm
Inscription: Painted by Yu Chengyao. Congratulations from Yu Chaoying and Yu Chengyao on the completion of the new building of Eng Choon Hway Kuan.
Seals: Yu Chengyao (characters in red), Yu Chaoying (characters in white ).


This painting was done by Yu Chengyao. He and Yu Chaoying gave it to celebrate the completion of the new Eng Choon Huay Kuan site in 1959. It was the 92nd anniversary of the clan and then chairman Chen Chengpi specially invited fellow Eng Choon clansmen, retired Kuomintang Lieutenant General, Yu Chengyao, and the president of the Tai Pei Eng Choon Clan Association, Yu Chaoying, to commemorate this event.

Yu Chengyao (1898 – 1993) went to Japan in 1920 to study economics at Waseda University and rose to the rank of Lieutenant-General (Army) from 1927 to 1944. He was the former Chief of Staff and Counsellor at the Military Counsellors’ Office for the Republic of China. He left for Taiwan in 1945 with the Kuomintang government and started painting when he was 56 years old. He was self-taught and used fine and dense brushwork to convey the mountains’ complex textures and forms.

Yu Chaoying was the father of the famous Taiwanese poet Yu Guangzhong and was active in Nanyang in his early years. He established Chinese schools in Penang, Malacca, and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, and taught in Hokkien. He later returned to China and was the Director of Education for the county of Yongchun (Eng Choon). In 1933, he was given the office of county magistrate by Jiang Guangnai, Commander of the 19th Route Army. He moved to Taiwan in 1950, established the Tai Pei Eng Choon Clan Association, and was its president.

Yu Chengyao’s painting of fine brushwork is lucid and exquisite. Incorporating a modern realistic style, his painting is unpretentious, reflecting the artist’s sincerity.