LOT 24
JOLLY KOH, DR
B. Singapore, 1941
Palms at Titiwangsa, 2005
Signed and dated “Jolly Koh 05” on lower right
Oil and acrylic on canvas
170 x 107 cm
Provenance Private Collection, Kuala Lumpur
RM 50,000 – RM 90,000
“I believe a painting must be beautiful in order to be able to fulfill its function of uplifting the soul.” – Jolly Koh
His exploration of the relationship between colour and space resulted in this beautiful masterpiece, with the disruption of the beautiful colour-space being the two palms running through the middle from the bottom-up while the bushes rests at the bottom and the palm leaves adorn the top of the canvas. This piece is translucent and breathtaking, as Jolly Koh successfully takes the viewer to a serene alternate reality of nature with the combined use of oil and acrylic, producing yet again another romantic and lyrical painting.
Jolly Koh was born in Singapore, where he studied for his National Diploma in Design at Hornsey College of Art, London in the year 1962. A year after, he obtained his Art Teacher’s Certificate from London as well, and his Masters at Indiana University, USA in 1972. His artworks have been exhibited at the National Art Gallery in Victoria, Australia, Bank Negara Malaysia, the Fullerton Hotel in Singapore and J.D. Rockefeller III Collection, just to name a few. The NHB of Singapore has ten pieces in their collection by Jolly Koh which span from 1959 to 1996.