Born in 1943 in Indonesia, Tan migrated to Singapore as a child. After graduating from the Nanyang University in Singapore in 1968, he worked at the French Embassy for 24 years before becoming a full-time artist. In 1985, Tan was awarded the Gold Medal of the French Artist Salon and in 1987, the Singapore Cultural Medallion. In 2003, Tan was honoured with the World Economic Forum Crystal Award and Singapore Meritorious Award. In 1993, Tan became the first Singapore artist to have a private museum dedicated to the display of his extensive oeuvre of artistic and literary works. ‘Portrait of Lu Xun’ is a startling likeness of the great Chinese writer, who is regarded as the father of modern writing in China. Rendered in swift and fiery brushstrokes, it reflects Lu’s forceful personality. These rapid brushstrokes are the result of the technique known as ‘lightning creating method’, developed by Tan over years of practice. This portrait is one of a series of portraits of famous personalities that include Picasso, Shakespeare and Stephen Hawking.
