LOT 51
TAN THEAN SONG
B. Kedah, 1946 – 2017
Sparrow, 1990
Signed and dated “Thean Song, 90” on lower right
Batik
50 x 73 cm
Private Collection, Singapore
RM 1,200 – 3,000
The setting is simple, and everyday. It is something that we commonly see. However, Tan Thean Song manages to turn a simple scenery into something completely otherworldly and arresting. With elaborate batik details, patterns and shapes, the congruent tones and gradual change of cool hues of the backdrop, it seems almost spiritual. He freezes a disorderly scene into a single, serene moment that seems to glow. Tan Thean Song studied art at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, and specialises in painting with Chinese ink and watercolour. His painting ‘Playing Kite’ is a permanent collection of the National Art Gallery in Kuala Lumpur, and said painting also won the second prize in batik medium in the Salon Malaysia Art Competition in 1969. In 1964, he won the first and consolation prizes in the Malaysian Young Artists Art Competition.