Born in 1937 in Indonesia, Goh Beng Kwan migrated with his family to Singapore in 1945. In the 1950s, he studied Chinese ink painting with Chen Wen Hsi. In 1963, he studied at the Art Students' League in New York where he was first introduced to collage art and Abstract Expressionism. Goh was awarded the inaugural UOB Painting of the Year First Prize in 1982 and the Cultural Medallion in 1989.Goh is noted for his collage works with contain an “oriental perspective”. Inspired by nature, environment and his ethnic Chinese heritage, his works relate to sensory impressions of the places he has visited. Goh’s works are mainly mixed media pieces which use natural and man-made materials.
