Lot 44
LEE MAN FONG
B. China, 1913 – 1988
Untitled (Bali), Circa 1952
Signed “M Fong” with artist’s seal on lower right
Watercolour on paper laid on masonite board
43.5 x 50 cm
Provenance Private Collection Singapore
Formerly in the Private Collection of a Distinguished Collector in Jakarta, Indonesia
RM 15,000 – RM 25,000
After Lee Man Fong’s visit to Bali, he briefly worked there, and held solo shows in Jakarta and Bandung. The artist quickly gained recognition for his paintings of Balinese subjects, many influenced by the work of Willem Hofker. He then held a solo show in Jakarta in 1941, after which he was interned by the Japanese. In 1949, Lee was awarded a Malino scholarhips to study art in the Dutch Netherlands. He was there for three years, and then returned to Indonesia where his talent was acknowledged by the late President Soekarno, to whom he became an art advisor.