Chen Youbing(Tan Oepang)(b.1947)
God of Longevity in Bamboo Forest
ink and colour on paper
executed in 2011
136x69 cm
(53 1/2 x 27 1/8 in)

”Chen Youbing’s paintings are light-hearted and carefree. His knowledge of the philosophy of Chinese traditional culture shaped his implicity and restraint. As he grew up in Singapore, he is enthusiastic and true; therefore, Chen’s works sometimes are peaceful, untrammeled, sometimes clear and solid, while other times spiritual, sophisticated and graceful. Nourished by trends of western art, Chen pushes the boundary of media and subjects. Like surrealism, the mediation and thought for the future are the elements in the paintings. It is traditional yet modern; restrained yet energetic. This is the art charm and personal style of Chen Youbing”.
-Excerpt from the review of Everything is Natural and Naïve – the Charm of Chen Youbing’s Art by Xiong Yi-Jing in 2008

Chen Youbing is a celebrated master in Singapore. There are diverse forms in his creations ranging from oil paintings, sculpture to ink paintings. The medium does not confine his fluency in art creation. Instead, his works are being presented in various appearances in different periods. In early years, Chen’s oil painting carries a sense of western surrealism. As he grew up in Singapore, his use of colours is bright with Southern Pacific sincerity. Later on, his rendering of oil paintings returns to simple. The emphatic stroke and neat composition resemble of the works by Bada Shanren. His ink paintings have great order with consistency and temple rhythm demonstrated by the changes of lines in the interaction of heavy and light, wet and dry strokes. God of Longevity in Bamboo Forest reflects Chen’s simple state of mind through the connotation of art, articulating his pursuit of simplicity.