Born in Amoy, China in 1912, Lim Cheng Hoe came to Singapore when he was 7. Primarily a self-taught artist, Lim studied art under Richard Walker, Singapore’s first Art Inspector of Schools, at the Raffles Institution in the early 1930s. Lim was a prominent and significant first generation artist due to his treatment of the local landscape in the watercolour medium. He was also a founding member of the Singapore Watercolour Society. Singapore River (1960) is representative of one of Lim’s most favoured locations to visit and paint. In addition to demonstrating Lim’s mastery of his watercolour technique, the painting features the OCBC building along Chulia Street, a major landmark of the Singapore River at the time.This work was previously in the collection of Chia Yew Kay (1917-1992), who served as Treasurer of the Singapore Art Society from the late-1950s to mid-1960s. His job as a clerk at the British Council placed him in a position to assist with organising various exhibitions for local artists at the British Council Hall in Singapore. Chia maintained a relationship with artists such as Cheong Soo Pieng, Chia Yu Chian, Choy Weng Yang, Lim Cheng Hoe, and Vincent Hoisington.
