Superb Skill and Eternal Kindness
Superb Skill and Eternal Kindness
Saturday, 28 July 2018
Sian Chay received a donation of S$250,000.
After several months of elaborate preparation, the national treasure artist Mr. Lim Tze Peng’s solo exhibition was held on 28 July at 10.30am at Artspace@Helutrans. The President of Singapore Mdm Halimah Yacob who is also Patron of Sian Chay Medical Institution, officiated at the opening of the exhibition. This solo exhibition was hosted by the real estate developer, Fission Group, which helped to raise S$500,000, of which S$250,000 was doanted to be the President’s Challenge 2018, and the other 50% was donated to Sian Chay Medical Institution.
Mr. Melvin Poh, Founder and Managing Director of Fission Group, is the Organizing Chairman of ” Redefining the Archaic: The Art of Lim Tze Peng”. He has been collecting Lim Tze Peng’s paintings since 2013 and the collection has exceeded 100 pieces within a few years. 90 percent of the art works in this exhibition are from Mr. Melvin Poh’s private collection.
In his opening speech, Mr. Melvin Poh said that, “Lim Tze Peng is among the pioneer generation of Singapore born painters and his painting works are quite representative. On one hand, organizing this event is to honour the personal life of Mr. Lim Tze Peng as well as his contribution for Singapore society. On the other hand, it is also to raise funds to support the President’s Challenge and Sian Chay Medical Institution.”
There are many kinds of charity and sincerity is the most important kind. Mr. Toh Soon Huat, Chairman of Sian Chay Medical Institution, is a friend of Mr Melvin Poh for many years. His dedication to charity is obvious to all and Mr Melvin Poh highly admired Mr Toh very much for the latter’s spirit of selfless devotion without asking for a single cent. He is a role model for me to emulate. I also appreciate the warm services that Sian Chay Medical Institution provides to the residents. Mr Melvin Poh and Mrs Poh are playing their part and hoping to bring more capable friends to support charity with money or effort, to take on social responsibilities and strive together in good faith.
Over 80 masterpieces of Mr Lim Tze Peng, Singapore Cultural Medallion Award honoree and 2016 Meritorious Service Medal awardee, were elaborately displayed in the exhibition. All these art works are the magnum opera of his 70 years’ art career, including his rare oil paintings from in the 1960s, the landscape paintings of Kampung and old-time Singapore from the 1960s to the 1980s, a series of life paintings during his trips in Bali and Paris from the 1990s to the mid-2000s, and the semi-abstract ink paintings from the mid-2000s to the present.
In this exhibition, several works were on public display for the first time, including the recently completed colour calligraphy works. four large-scale abstract tree paintings, including the largest size of “Untitled 21 (Tree)” (264.2 x 538.5 cm), will be the focus of this exhibition. The exhibition is for display only and not for sale and the public can expect to appreciate the full set of Lim Tze Peng’s art works across 60 years.
Toh Soon Huat, Chairman of Sian Chay Medical Institution, said during the interview, “Lim Tze Peng’s art exhibition is a complete success, and I am especially grateful to Melvin Poh and Mrs Poh of Fission Group for their great support. Thanks to Lim Tze Peng for painting the art of love. Thanks to all the benevolent people and the supporters for their generous donations. Thanks to all for your presence and support. Sian Chay Medical Institution has 15 branches throughout the island to provide TCM consultation services to residents, serving up to 1,200 patients per day. The annual operation cost is $6 million . Sian Chay Medical Institution sincerely look forward to the support of people from all walks of life. Thank you with gratitude.”