Johor-born Teo Kim Liong studied both Western paintings at NAFA and obtained an Honours degree in Physics from the University of Singapore in the 1950s and 1960s. With a career in various managerial positions in marketing and engineering, Teo embarked on full-time painting at the age of 56. His artistic works combine both the European practice of outdoor painting with the Nanyang sojourner’s pursuit of inspiration. From Singapore and the region to China and Western countries, Teo’s landscape repertoire is a diary of his practice and travels.
In this oil painting, Teo eschews the notion of merely creating an optical impression of an Autumn scene. Instead, he attempts to express feelings. The emotional intensity of the piece can be felt through the gestural brushstrokes that form the leaves of the tree and the warm yellow ochre that evinces the beauty of Autumn. The artist’s work, along with the many others in his oeuvre, is reminiscent of the Post-Impressionist style, which Teo perhaps learnt as a student in NAFA.
