Singapore
Born 1917, Xiamen, Fujian Province, China.
"When the story of art in Singapore is finally told, Cheong Soo Pieng will assume a pre-eminent stature... he will emerge as a formative presence in accounts of modern art in South-East Asia as a whole."
- T.K. Sabapathy
1933 - 1935
Studies at the Xiamen Academy of Fine Arts.
1936
Furthers his studies at the Xin Hua Academy of Fine Arts.
1937
Studies disrupted by the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War.
1942
Holds solo exhibition in China.
1945
Leaves China, spends time in Hong Kong and Macau.
1946
Arrives in Singapore.
1947
Starts to teach at NAFA.
1948
Lectures part-time at Chinese High School.
1952
Travels to Bali with fellow artists Chen Wen Hsi, Chen Chong Swee and Liu Kang.
1953
Watershed exhibition of works from the Bali trip.
1954
Features in the inaugural issue of the SAS journal The Singapore Artist.
Mid-1950s
Soo Pieng's wife and two sons arrive in Singapore from Xiamen.
1956
Holds his first solo exhibitions in Singapore, Penang and Kuala Lumpur.
1959
Travels to Sarawak where he makes many sketches.
1961
Becomes a full-time artist.
1961 - 1963
Travels to London and Europe. Solo exhibitions in London, Munich, Glasgow, Dublin, Cologne, Hamburg and Berlin.
1964
Commission by the Tourist Promotion Board to produce his largest work representing the country's cultural diversity.
Opens a studio on Zion Road where he conducts private lessons.
1965
Exhibits works at the Commonwealth Arts Festival in Dublin and Glasgow.
1967
Metal reliefs shown at the First Sculpture Exhibition, a pivotal event for sculpture in Singapore as the name suggests.
Solo exhibition at the National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, in honour of his 50th birthday.
1969
Exhibits metal reliefs at the Second Sculpture Exhibition.
1975
Mother and Daughter, an oil painting, is nominated for a United Nations postage design.
1977
Mother and Daughter is made into a UNESCO first day cover, the first time this honour was bestowed on an artist from Singapore.
Returns to Bali to gather new inspiration.
1983
Died of heart failure in July.
Retrospective exhibition at the National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore held in November.
(Source: excerpt from
Wei Wei Yeo, with Yu Jin Seng & Grace Tng. Cheong Soo Pieng: Visions of Southeast Asia. Singapore: The National Art Gallery, 2010.)