Synopsis:

iPreciation is honoured to present a solo exhibition by Singaporean artist and Ink master, Zhuang Shengtao. This exhibition brings together a selection of 34 works created between the years 1984 to 2010, a period marked by his significant artistic development from one of tradition to that of the contemporary. These works are a synthesis of traditional and modern themes, where bold brush strokes and abstract characters meet, reminiscent of the aesthetics of modern Western art, yet retaining the fundamentals and symbolism of Chinese calligraphy. They reflect Zhuang's roots in Chinese Ink painting and calligraphy and his desire to incorporate the free-spirited and expressive quality of the Western art he encountered during his travels to Europe and the USA in the 1980s.

About the artist
Born in China in 1944, Zhuang came to Singapore in 1955 with his parents. He enrolled in a part-time art program at the Nanyang Academy Of Fine arts in 1964, studying Chinese painting and calligraphy under the tutelage of renowned ink artist, Shi Xiang Tuo. He graduated with his bachelor's degree in 1974, and a Master's degree in 1977, both obtained from Nanyang University, Singapore. He later went on to study French in Singapore, at the University of Nice (Nice, France) and the Alliance Francoise (Paris, France) in 1981. He moved to the USA in 1987 and enrolled in an Advanced English program at the Monterey Institute of International Studies, California. Zhuang also studied print making at the Cornish College of the Arts (Seattle, Washington, USA) in 1988, and achieved a Master of Fine Art in the University of Washington, (Seattle, USA) in 1990. He has participated in many solo and group exhibitions in Singapore and other countries, including the Three Singaporean Artists (1983, Raya Gallery, Australia),New Direction – Singapore Contemporary Art in the 80s and The National Museum Centennial Art Exhibition (1987, Singapore National Museum Art Gallery), Journey of Ink, (1993, Singapore National Museum Art Gallery), Power and Poetry – Monuments and Meditations in Chinese Contemporary Ink Paintings (1998, Singapore Art Museum), 5th International Ink Painting Biennial of Shenzhen (1999, Shenzhen, China) and in BenSe Art Museum, (2009, Suzhou, China)

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Featured artworks
(Partial image) Zhuang Shengtao - SHM 404, 2008, 69 x 138 cm
(Partial image) Yellowness - 1996, 35 x 46 cm