Koh Seow Chuan likes to see his life as a continuous painting, and himself as the painter. An Unfinished Canvas is about a unique individual who sees life as just that — a canvas that is never finished. This book traces his remarkable life from the age of four, following his journey as a stamp collector, national swimmer, architect and art collector. In all his endeavours, he reached the very top on a global field. The book makes clear how he lived and continues to live his life guided by two principles, his strong belief in the power of knowledge and the power of teamwork, which he found and followed relatively early in his life. Through stamps, he saw what knowledge could do for him academically and how it would always put him in a position of strength in whatever he did later in life. But it is in his absolute embrace of the power of teamwork that sees him succeeding in project after project. People see in him a leader they rarely see in the world of architecture, the leader who insists on we over I, group glory over personal glory. The architecture firm he founded, DP Architects, is more than 50 years old — and is now one of the biggest in the world. In his 80s now, he reminds us that his canvas is still unfinished.

Normal 0 false false false EN-SG ZH-CN X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:SimSun; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} When a talented young artist captures the attention of the art world, forces beyond her control align. Power plays pit money, ideals and families against the inner workings of a competitive and closed art world. In his debut ­fiction, Woon Tai Ho gives us an insider's look into the creative world he knows well. Set in modern-day Singapore, and drifting between worlds, Riot Green tells a gripping tale that draws on rich Chinese traditions and beliefs. It puts the spotlight on the institution of family, the jade of green that is supposed to protect us, but can prove to be a riot of heartaches and secrets. It is a story of ties that bind and those that divide. Like an abstract painting that buffers the obvious, the story unravels deftly to show love and conspiracies, harmony and conflict, chaos and order.

Brimming with verve and dramatic incident, Singapore: A Biography offers fresh insights into the life story of this island city-state through the personal experiences of the workers, adventurers, rulers and revolutionaries who have shaped its history over the last seven centuries. The authors, drawing on research undertaken in collaboration with the National Museum of Singapore, have woven together ancient chronicles, eyewitness accounts, oral histories and even modern radio and television broadcasts to create a vivid and compelling narrative that brings the past back to life. Grounded in scholarship yet fired by the imagination, this book reveals the Singapore story to have been as rich, diverse and multilayered as the city-state is prosperous, ordered and successful today.

"This is a bold project recording the lives of a particular group of Southeast Asians. Most of the people whose biographies are included here have settled down in the ten countries that constitute the region. Each of them has either self-identified as Chinese or is comfortable to be known as someone of Chinese ancestry. There are also those who were born in China or elsewhere who came here to work and do business, including seeking help from others who have ethnic Chinese connections. With the political and economic conditions of the region in a great state of flux for the past two centuries, it is impossible to find consistency in the naming process. Confucius had stressed that correct names make for the best relationships. In this case, Professor Leo Suryadinata has been pursuing for decades the elusive goal of finding the right name to give to the large numbers of people who have, in one way or another, made their homes in, or made some difference to, Southeast Asia. I believe that, when he and his colleagues selected the biographies to be included here, they have taken a big step towards the rectification of identities for many leading personalities. In so doing, he has done us all a great service." - Professor Wang Gungwu, National University of Singapore

Published in conjunction with "Between worlds: Raden Saleh and Juan Luna", an exhibition organised by National Gallery Singapore.