Invitation letter from the Private Secretary of Yang di-Pertuan Besar to Mr and Mrs Low Kway Song

Title
Invitation letter from the Private Secretary of Yang di-Pertuan Besar to Mr and Mrs Low Kway Song
Year/Period
1961
Region
Singapore or Malaysia
Object Type
Dimension
Object size: 11.4 x 15.2 cm
Accession No.
2018-00391
Collection of
Credit Line
Gift of Hall of Phoenix and Peony

This letter was sent by the Private Secretary of Yang di-Pertuan Besar to invite Mr and Mrs Low Kway Song to attend the birthday party of H.H.Yang di-Pertuan Besar on 29th March 1961.Low Kway Song (1889-1982) was a pioneering artist who painted portraits of many prominent personalities in Singapore and Malaysia. He became the first artist to be paid a four-figure fee when he was commissioned to paint a portrait of the magnate Oei Tiong Ham in 1927. Low Kway Song established the first Straits Chinese Methodist Church in Malacca and in 1940 he became the Pastor of the Malacca Straits Chinese Methodist Church, where services were conducted in Baba Malay. Part of an archive which provides a record and glimpse into his personal life and artistic practice, this came from a collection which belonged to Low Kway Song.