1959 Paris Cubist Venus, 1959
Lu Chong Min

This painting by 呂聰敏 has been exhibited at :
Akademia Galerie Raymond Duncan 31, rue de Seine Paris (1919-1966)
Galerie Raymond et Ligoa Duncan Gallery, 22 East 72nd street New York
Galerie Lise Cormery Paris, 1993.
The parisian oil on canvas, "The Paris Cubist Venus of Singapore", painted by Lu Chong Min in Paris while he lived there in the 50's is very enigmatic. This muse painted in the cubist style, by thick layers gives a sculptural relief to this Venus and creates a very peculiar, deep and obsessive beauty. Modern and western by the pictural treatment this chef d'œuvre nevertheless remains majestic and traditionnally asiatic, as an ancestral goddess. This is why this exceptional painting was titled La Vénus cubiste de Singapour.

The artist is part of the Collection of the
Museum National Gallery of Singapore.

'SHOW (Re)Collect, a microcosm of Southeast Asia through the collection of National Gallery Singapore'
National Gallery of Singapore
August 19, 2018 Yuching
I went to visit the (Re)Collect exposition at National Gallery of Singapore just before it’s about to end. The curatorial concept of the exhibition is to present the artworks by tracing back the founding history of the museum’s collection.

Works of Lu Chong Min (呂聰敏) and Cheong Soo Pieng(鍾泗濱) depicting the daily life of the civilians, both of which are oil paintings, Lu’s work takes on a subtle tone while Cheong’s “Title unknown (The Malay Women and Boy)” is very vivid and colorful in which the post-impressionism influence is very obvious yet it still contains the atmosphere and cultural expression of the tropic countries.
Lu Chong Min(呂聰敏)’s “Market Scene”

Even though the works are only connected by the timeline of the founding the institution, yet it’s somehow a microcosm of the culturally diverse Southeast Asia region.
Signature Art Prize 2018 @National Museum Singapore
In "Exhibitions"
Published by Yuching



Show Singapore Art Society, 1955
While London was an eminent destination for student artists from Southeast Asia, the most prestigious European art schools were in Paris. Only a handpicked few got to study at the Écoles Des Beaux-Arts, the world-renowned alma mater of artists such as Matisse, Monet and Renoir.
In 1955, Lu Chong Min enrolled at the French school, Lu’s departure was noted by an advertisement in the day’s newspapers.

Straight Times, 22 juillet 1997, Salon Pont des Arts, Kuala Lumpur, Lu Chon Min, Muarborn, citoyen malaysien né à Muar, Johor, Lu Chon Min (1933-1994), regarded as a protege of Liu Kang studied at l'école from 1953 until 1956. He concentrated on his art and his family after he got married in 1962. His last years were devoted to still life of vases and fruits. Lu Chon Min, according to his wife Tan Miow Kheng had not exhibited much since he started running his own art classes from 1963 until 1990. He is regarded as among the brightest in the first batch of Malayan artists who flocked in Paris.


Straight Times, 22 juillet 1997, Salon Pont des Arts
The Salon Pont des Arts was opened by Christie's Asia managing director Philip Ng.
The Salon Pont des Arts, Bridge of Art, exhibition at Galeri Petronas in Kuala Lumpur has so much to offer. Focusing on artists from Malaysia and Singapore trained in France, notably Paris, the exhibition features seven artists, including three who are deceased. The artists are Liu Kang, Tew Nai Tong, Long Thien Shih, Yeo Hoe Koon, Chia Yu Kian, Lai Foon Moi and Lu Chon Min (1933-1994). Of special interest are the works of three Singaporean artists, Liu Kang, Seremban and Muar born Lu Chong Min (1933-1994. Chong Min according to his artist wife Tan Miow Kheng, had not exhibited since he started running his own art classes from 1963 until 1990. He is regarded as among the brightest in the first batch of Malyan artists who flocked to Paris. His works have been seen here only in spurts - one painting in the romance in Nanyang exhibition at the Central Art Academy in Kuala Lumpur in December 1994 and a few at a group exhibition of pioneer artists at the Art Gallery in Penang in April 1997.

Penang Institute, Source of inspiration for local artists
The art-exodus really began from the Georgette Lai nexus with Ecole Nationale des Beaux Arts de Paris Professeur Chapelain-Midy. The story of Malaysians seeking art tutelage in France – their struggles, impressions and inspirations – is chronicled in a major survey involving 98 works by 32 artists in the French Connexion exhibition at the National Visual Arts Gallery (NVAG) in Kuala Lumpur, which will end on October 31, 2015.
Paris was the undisputed art capital of the world. Post-War (WWII) Paris was a vibrant city of romance and intellectual ferment, with Seine-loafing, wine-swilling from sidewalk cafes, Ooh-La-La (Moulin Rouge) and the march of art-isms like Impressionism and Post, Fauvism, Surrealism, Tachism and Cubism. Luminaries in various disciplines defined the time : Sartre, Baudelaire, Victor Hugo, Anais Nin, Daghilev, Nijinsky, Coco Chanel, Stravinsky, Le Corbusier, Toulouse-Lautrec, Leger, Giacometti, Matisse, Picasso... Jen Hao studied at the ENSBA Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux Arts and was a research fellow in the Paris Art Research Institute. His buddy, Liu Kang (1911- 2004), was not formally attached to any institution, but meeting Matisse and Fauvist artist Kees van Dongen had a great impact on Liu Kang’s works. Apart from Jen Hao and Liu Kang, many others from Johor also made the Nafa-Paris art rigmarole because of the proximity to Singapore. They include all Singaporeans like Lu Chong Min (1933- 1994). The Paris connection may not be as popular today. Times change, with the ascendancy of the English language in the Internet Age. But Paris still conjures the timeless romance of its artistic reputation and pedigree, and its image as a great fount of creative inspirations and impulses.
September, 2015, Paris – Ooi Kok Chuen has written 88 books and catalogues on art.
He is a recipient of the Australian Cultural Award 1991 and Goethe-Institut Fellowship 1989
And a two-time National Art Gallery Art-Writer of the Year (2003, 2008).




































Lu Chong Min 呂聰敏 (Muar, Malaysie 1933-1994) Singapour

Singapore Joconde, Venu Paris Portrait, 1959

Oil on canvas, signature haut droit Min, 59
Singapore early post-colonial Art history Show Singapore Art Society, 1955
2018 Exposition Recollect, National Museum Art Gallery Singapore
Akademia Galerie Raymond Duncan 31, rue de Seine Paris (1947-1966)
Galerie Raymond et Ligoa Duncan Gallery, 22 East 72nd street New York
The Salon Pont des Arts, Kuala Lumpur, 1997
Galerie Lise Cormery, 6, rue de Lanneau Paris 75005, 1993