Lim Tze Peng
Born in Singapore in 1921, Lim Tze Peng is one of Singapore’s most significant artists and a living legend. Renowned for his Chinese ink creations of post-independence Singapore, he also practices Chinese calligraphy. Alongside local and international exhibitions, his masterpieces are exhibited in prominent Singapore institutions and part of many prestigious collections. Lim has been bestowed several awards including the Special Prize at the Commonwealth Art Exhibition in England in 1977 and the prestigious Cultural Medallion in Singapore in 2003. In May 2012, he broke records with the sale of his works at a Christies auction in Hong Kong.
 


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Videos

Videos

“From Then To Now: Capturing Life”—A look into Lim Tze Peng's artful world

Lim Tze Peng

Ode to Art x Tatler: The Immortal Works of Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng

CNA featuring From Then to Now: Capturing Life by Lim Tze Peng at Ode to Art Gallery Singapore

Lim Tze Peng

8World featuring From Then to Now: Capturing Life by Lim Tze Peng at Ode to Art Gallery Singapore

Lim Tze Peng

How To Collect Art For Your Home - Tatler x Ode To Art

Lee Jung Woong, Fernando Botero, Lim Tze Peng, Dedy Sufriadi

Collecting Local with Gallerist Jazz Chong of Ode to Art

Lim Tze Peng, Hong Zhu An, Anthony Chua Say Hua, Hong Sek Chern

Lim Tze Peng Solo Exhibition in Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Mumbai

Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng's Portrait of the Heart solo exhibition 2018 | CNA Lifestyle Experiences

Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng: A Century of Memories - A Virtual Exhibition

Lim Tze Peng

Soul of Ink: Book Launch

Lim Tze Peng

Straits Times interview with Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng

938 Now x Jazz Chong radio interview on Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng

Meet Singapore's oldest living artist | Legit Old

Lim Tze Peng

An interview by 96.3's FM DJ Anna with our beloved artist, Lim Tze Peng.

Lim Tze Peng

What's In My Portfolio: Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng

95 year-old artist Lim Tze Peng, Interview by Straits Times (2015)

Lim Tze Peng

Conversations with Lim Tze Peng 林子平 : Abundant Loads, from A Century of Memories

Lim Tze Peng

Conversations with Lim Tze Peng 林子平 : Time to Connect, from A Century of Memories

Lim Tze Peng

A Life Filled with Art - Lim Tze Peng by The Straits Times

Lim Tze Peng

Conversations with Lim Tze Peng 林子平 : Floating Treasures, from A Century of Memories

Lim Tze Peng

Conversations with Lim Tze Peng 林子平 : Taste of the Past, from A Century of Memories

Lim Tze Peng

Conversations with Lim Tze Peng 林子平 : Coffeeshops at Chinatown, from A Century of Memories

Lim Tze Peng

Conversations with Lim Tze Peng 林子平 : Down Memory Lane, from A Century of Memories

Lim Tze Peng

Ode to Art Presents Lim Tze Peng (2015)

Lim Tze Peng

Conversations with Lim Tze Peng 林子平 : Mooncake Shop, from A Century of Memories

Lim Tze Peng

Art Introduction- Lim Tze Peng, Bustling Streets of Chinatown

Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng featured in "Creators" by Yahoo TV

Lim Tze Peng

Tuesday Report - Ninety Years Young - Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng

SINGAPORE SERIES: Sculpture - Art Lecture Full Video

Ong Kim Seng, Lim Tze Peng, Zhu Hong, Hong Zhu An

SINGAPORE SERIES: Painting - Art Lecture Full Video

Various Artists

Interview with Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng

Lim Tze Peng - Singapore's Living National Treasure

Lim Tze Peng



Publications

Publications

From Then to Now: Capturing Life , 2023

A Century of Memories, 2021

Mothership features Lim Tze Peng: Capturing Singapore Through Over 600 Ink Paintings, 2021

Come and visit Ode To Art in Boulevard's Instagram Stories, 2022

Boulevard invites you to a look at Ode to Art gallery , 2022

Lian He Zao Bao Newspaper publication: Lim Tze Peng holds first virtual exhibition to celebrate his 100th birthday!, 2021

Straits Times Publication for Lim Tze Peng & Hong Zhu An virtual exhibition, 2021

Jazz Chong出席新加坡国家美术馆慈善晚宴并接受《ICON风华》采访, 2022

SG Magazine Media Publication for Lim Tze Peng as a 99-year-old artist, 2021

The Hindu Online Media Publication featuring Lim Tze Peng: Etching geographies in ink, 2021

Mid day magazine Feature: Lim Tze Peng - A brush with old age, 2021

Lianhe Zaobao feature for Lim Tze Peng's exhibition in India, 2021

Harper's Bazar Magazine Feature for Singapore's Oldest Living Artist Lim Tze Peng's first solo show, 2021

Mumbai Age Newspaper feature: Inking Truths with Lim Tze Peng, 2021

Straits Times Newspaper Publication for Lim Tze Peng: Art and a simple appetite for good health, 2021

Time Out Media Publication feature for Lim Tze Peng - Singapore's oldest living artist, 2021

Straits Times Media Publication for Lim Tze Peng: "I Live to Draw", 2021

Shinmin Daily Feauture for First Generation Artist - Lim Tze Peng, 2021

Lian He Zao Bao Media Publication: Lim Tze Peng: Mental Imagery to No Image , 2021

Business Times Media Coverage of Lim Tze Peng, 2021

The Spirit of Ink, 2019

Impressions by Lim Tze Peng, 2015

Larger Than Life , 2014

Lim Tze Peng - Black & White, 2012

The Journey of Lim Tze Peng, 2009

The Journey of Lim Tze Peng, 2009



Biography

Biography

Born in Singapore on 28 September 1921, Lim Tze Peng is one of Singapore’s most significant artists and a living legend. Renowned for his Chinese ink drawings and paintings of post-independence Singapore, he also practices Chinese calligraphy. Alongside numerous solo and group exhibitions, both local and international, his masterpieces are exhibited in the Singapore Art Museum and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and are part of many prestigious collections. Lim has been bestowed several awards including the Special Prize at the Commonwealth Art Exhibition in England in 1977 and the prestigious Cultural Medallion in Singapore in 2003. In May 2012, he broke records with the sale of his works at a Christies auction in Hong Kong.

Even though Lim was born and educated in Singapore, his diligent studies and daily dedication to practicing his craft enabled him to excel in the Chinese ink tradition. His new ink works are deeply rooted in tradition, yet, they have a palpably contemporary feel and can be enjoyed by those who are schooled in other traditions.

Lim is famously known for his Chinese ink drawings and paintings of Chinatown and the Singapore River produced in the early 1980s after having embarked on his artistic journey in the 1950s. His paintings of these landmarks signified and reflected the change these prime locations were undergoing during urban development in Singapore. These paintings are a memory of what Lim saw as a Singaporean watching his kampong transform into an urbanized capital, and documented the cultural diversity and transformation of the city. Lim shows that Singapore's multi-cultural environment may provide a context in which artists can respond to a variety of influences without being trapped in a defensive form of traditionalism or a superficial form of cosmopolitanism. 

Having a solid foundation in Chinese philosophy, art and culture, Lim also practiced Chinese calligraphy, especially in the 1990s. Lim's creative impulses for his new works is clear, where previously it was "I see and I paint, now it's I reflect and I paint." His latest series of calligraphic works reveal a new level of artistic maturity - their raw energy reflect an aggressive swiftness and decisive ferocity, injecting the calligraphy with invigorating tension.


Awards

2016
Meritorious Service Medal at the National Day Awards.

2003
Cultural Medallion Award, Singapore

1981
National Day Award (PBM), Singapore

1977
Special Prize,Commonwealth Art Exhibition, England

1963
National Day Award (PPA), Singapore

Collections 

Housing Development Board Singapore 
Prime Minister's Office Singapore 
Singapore Airline, 
Singapore Art Museum 
Overseas Chinese Banking Corporation 
United Overseas Bank 
Swiss Bank 
Four Seasons Hotel, Singapore 
Shenn's Fine Art, Singapore 
IBM Singapore Pte Ltd 
Lee Kong Chian Art Museum
National University of Singapore 



Exhibitions

Exhibitions

2022
From Then to Now, Capturing Life - Ode to Art, Singapore

2021
Soul of Ink: Lim Tze Peng at 100 - The Arts House, Singapore

2020
A Century of Memories - Ode to Art, Singapore [Digital Exhibition]

2019
墨缘 - The Spirit of Ink, Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Mumbai, India

2018
Portrait of the Heart -  心象, Ode to Art, Singapore

2016
Evening Climb: The Later Style of Lim Tze Peng, National University of Singapore Museum, Singapore.

2015
Impressions - Ode to Art, Singapore

2014
Larger than Life - Ode to Art, Singapore

2013
 攀登 The Journey - Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay 

2012
Black and White - Ode to Art Gallery, Singapore 
Tze Peng in Bali - Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore 

2010 
My Kampong, My Home - Singapore Management University Gallery, Singapore 

2009 
Inroads: The Ink Journey of Lim Tze Peng - National Art Museum of China, Beijing, 
China Inroads: The Ink Journey of Lim Tze Peng - Liu Haisu Art Museum, Shanghai, China 

2008 
Inaugural Exhibition, NTU Art and Heritage Gallery, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 
Inroads: Lim Tze Peng's New Ink Work - Art Retreat Museum, Singapore 

2007
Lim Tze Peng: Singapore River Memory - Cape of Good Hope Gallery, Singapore 2006 
Tze Peng in Paris - Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore 
Infinite Gestures-Recent Paintings by Lim Tze Peng - Singapore Tyler Print Institute, Singapore

2003 
Tze Peng - Singapore Art Museum, Singapore









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