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About the artwork
Lim Tze Peng employs thick and expressive strokes for his calligraphic writing. Being largely self-taught, Lim first learnt and refined his techniques by by taking influence from the works of master calligraphers. His painting expeditions with artists such as Cheng Chong Swee also aided in the evolution of his practice. With broad saturated strokes that meld and blend into each other, this untitled work is a hallmark of Tze Peng’s total transition into abstraction. The characters are unabashed in their lacking of meaning and now take the centre stage as the painting itself. The starkness adds to the power contained in the strokes and further highlights them as the centre of focus. This work is also likened to the appearance of a Chinese seal, a trait that can be seen in his other abstract calligraphy works as well. Despite the decidedly Chinese medium being depicted as a Western abstraction, Tze Peng’s core is in his roots: the line remains a craft.
About the artist
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.