Born in China, Tan Siah Kwee (b. 1948) emigrated to Singapore at the age of seven. Having learnt calligraphy in school since young, Tan’s intense interest in Chinese calligraphy led to his founding of the Chinese Calligraphy Society of Singapore in 1969 when he was only 20 years old. He has held the position of president of the society since its inception. In addition to his three solo exhibitions in 1979, 1987 and 2009, Tan is an educator at heart, organizing and giving lectures on Chinese calligraphy. In 2000, Tan was awarded the Cultural Medallion by the Singapore government.Well versed in Chinese literature, Tan features a classic couplet by Ming dynasty philosopher and calligraphy, Zhu Shi Lu (1539-1610). The couplet is executed gracefully in running script, a script style for whichTan is known.
