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Ong Boon Kong

Ong Boon Kong

Ong Boon Kong

The deceased painter Ong Boon Kong (1948-2021) was simple and low-key. He would carry a cloth bag with pen brushes and ink in it on his shoulders and walk in Bugis Street, Bras Basah Complex, “Little Thailand” (Golden Mile Complex), and the bustling streets of Chinatown every day, looking like a familiar neighbor uncle, but his sharp eyesight was spectacular and different from any other ordinary people beside him. He would have no scruples and concentrated on observing small animals such as sparrows and squirrels anytime and anywhere without caring about other things happening around them, people might be surprised and ask: Who is he?
When people praise an accomplished painter, they may say this: Look, he paints squirrels, he paints grapes, or he paints goldfish, and that one paints donkeys… but for Ong Boon Kong, the local people would most like to call him a Tiger painter. Indeed, he was well-known and praised for painting tigers. With a big brush in hand, he would draw freely on the rice paper, or with oil on canvas sometimes, with complete confidence. Between dry and wet strokes and shades, the King of Animals would appear instantly.
Singapore is known as the Lion City, but the Black Lion seems to exist only in the legend. Instead, in the real history recorded by images, tigers often appear. On September 8, 1831, the English newspaper Singapore Chronicle published what is believed to be the first local report of tiger infestation. Rumor has it that in the 1860s, in just one year, there were about 300 people killed by tigers, and the Lion City was almost a Tiger City then. The National Gallery Singapore had once exhibited a painting created in 1865, depicting a scene of George Coleman, the director of public works in colonial Singapore, accompanied by Indian convict laborers, who were attacked by a Malayan tiger during a jungle expedition in 1835. Among the local folk, ordinary people have the tradition of worshiping the Lord Tiger on the third day of the second lunar month to deceive the villains around them and avoid vicious comments from them.

When people praise an accomplished painter, they may say this: Look, he paints squirrels, he paints grapes, or he paints goldfish, and that one paints donkeys… but for Ong Boon Kong, the local people would most like to call him a Tiger painter.

When people praise an accomplished painter, they may say this: Look, he paints squirrels, he paints grapes, or he paints goldfish, and that one paints donkeys… but for Ong Boon Kong, the local people would most like to call him a Tiger painter.

It seems that Ong Boon Kong did not attract very much attention from the mainstream media during his lifetime, and he actually did not care about it. He loves to paint and focuses mainly on watercolors, oil paintings, and Chinese ink paintings the most. He was good at drawing various animals. He was also fond of the local street scenes. Often, he would paint the views of the stalls around the old Sungei Road, the Singapore River, Chinatown, and the Samsui women, his neighbours, or other ordinary people, with a sincere and deep love for life.

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About us

Asia Art Collective is an art advisory and consultancy specialised in Singaporean and Asian modern and contemporary art. Professional art services include providing clients with art advice on artwork purchase and sale, artwork valuation and assessment, art acquisition and collection planning, art sale and brokerage, as well as art commissioning and artwork sourcing. Asia Art Collective seeks to promote a culture of art appreciation and art acquisition and collection for Singapore art, and modern and contemporary Asian art through its diverse and rotating art exhibitions and art appreciation programmes, courses and talks. Enquire with Asia Art Collective for advice and support on your art-collecting journey.

亚洲艺汇有限公司(Asia Art Collective Pte Ltd )是新加坡专业的艺术品咨询顾问公司,公司的服务是为艺术收藏提供指导,制定策划购买艺术品方向,帮助藏家评估、分析艺术品市场价位、未来的市场走势。在选择艺术品方面,即要帮助藏家找到自己酷爱心怡的作品,同时也把艺术品列为藏家资产扩充的规划中,并且负责跟踪艺术品的买与卖。同时也提供新加坡艺术品量身定制服务

CURATOR 策展人
Iola Liu
92398226