Chen Ren Hao was introduced to Chinese literature and calligraphy at a young age by his father, a Chinese scholar and painter. He studied at Xinhua Academy of Fine Arts in Shanghai and pursued further education at Ecole National Superieure des Beaux-arts. Upon his return in 1933, Chen became an educator at the Shanghai Art Academy. When the Sino-Japanese war broke out, he moved to Malaysia in 1937 and settled in Singapore during the 1950s. He then became the principal of Dunman Government Chinese Middle School and taught Chinese Art at Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. With his profound knowledge of Chinese literature and art, he contributed significantly to art education in Singapore.
Calligraphy presents 江村即事 by Yuan dynasty poet and painter Huang Geng in the semi-cursive script. The poem describes the view of late autumn, where flowers have withered, and leaves have fallen off trees, losing the familiar colours of fall. As winter approaches, catkin and buckwheat plants begin to bloom. These plants take the place of autumn flowers, bringing colour and contrast to an otherwise gloomy sight of wilting foliage.
