Rare Chinese ink masterpieces unveiled at National Gallery Singapore

Ren Xun. The Scent of Flowers 

and Singing of Birds. 1868.

Two special exhibitions at National Gallery Singapore showcasing the evolution of Chinese ink painting and its impact on Singapore art history opened to the public on Saturday.

Entitled "Rediscovering Treasures: Ink Art from the Xiu Hai Lou Collection", the exhibition is the first comprehensive survey by a national museum to focus on collections from Xiu Hai Lou, one of the most important ink collections in Singapore.

The exhibition offers important insights into how art collecting and patronage developed in Singapore during the early 20th century, and provides visitors the chance to see rare masterpieces by prominent artists such as Chen Hongshou, Qi Baishi, Xu Beihong and Zhang Daqian.

Chen Chong Swee was one of the first artists in Singapore to use Chinese ink painting techniques to depict local landscapes. The exhibition "Strokes of Life: The Art of Chen Chong Swee" is a major retrospective survey of Chen's artistic career spanning six decades, and it focuses on his key contributions to artistic developments in Singapore from the 1950s to the 1980s.

"Many of these masterpieces are rarely seen in public. In these exhibitions, visitors can look forward to a visual feast of masterful brushwork, inventive approaches and distinctive styles," said Low Sze Wee, Director (Curatorial, Collections & Education), National Gallery Singapore.

The exhibitions will run till Dec. 4, 2017. National Gallery Singapore will organize a series of complementary programs to encourage greater appreciation of ink art, including lectures by respected academics and practitioners, and hands-on activities for visitors of all ages.