SINGAPOREAN
1947 — 2008

Chua Ek Kay was an accomplished Chinese ink artist hailed as the bridge between Asian and Western art, known for his distinctive semi-abstract depictions of lotuses, street scenes, landscapes, and figures. Trained in Chinese ink painting under the tutelage of pioneer artist Fan Chang Tien from 1975 to 1985, Chua also read Western art at the Lasalle-SIA College of the Arts in 1990, and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Tasmania as well as a Master of Arts from the University of Western Sydney. Chua’s most prominent accolades included the Grand Prize for the UOB Bank’s 10th Painting of the Year Award; the Juror’s Choice for the Philip Morris ASEAN Art Awards in 1998; and the Cultural Medallion from the National Arts Council in 1999. In September 2002, STPI invited Cultural Medallion recipient Chua Ek Kay to be the first Singaporean artist to participate in its distinguished Visiting Artists Programme. Chua exhibited widely, including the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Singapore in 1988, the Shanghai Art Museum in China in 2005, and a posthumous solo show to mark the opening of the National Gallery of Singapore in 2015.