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Resources > Collections > Artwork Bamboo

Year of execution:  Undated
Year of acquisition:  1984
Medium:   Chinese ink and colour on paper
Dimension:  45 x 34.5  cm
Gift of the artist

Chen Wen Hsi was born in Guangdong, China, in 1906. At a young age, Chen showed a keen interest in art. At age 20, he left Guangdong to pursue his passion at Shanghai College of Art and later Xinhua Arts Academy. During his time in college, he met fellow pioneer artists of Singapore, Liu Kang, Chen Ren Hao and Chen Chong Swee. In 1948, Chen moved to Singapore and became an art teacher at The Chinese High School and the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts between 1949 and 1968. In 1952, with his three colleagues, Chen embarked on a landmark trip to Bali to portray the beauty of Southeast Asia. 

Chen loved animals. As a child, he would relish observing the animals in his village–watching sparrows in the air and geese waddle. The artist was well-versed in Western and Chinese painting, though his forte was in Chinese brush painting. Bamboo features birds perched on the bamboo tree, featuring swift and spontaneous brush strokes adding vitality to the artwork.

Artist(s)

Chen Wen Hsi 陈文希