Bio
Guo-Liang Tan (b. Singapore) is a visual artist working primarily in the field of painting, from which works in other
mediums such as text, collage and video sometimes emerge. In his work, surfaces, painterly or otherwise, become a space for performing gestures of affect and conjuring a haunting that converses with the ghosts of abstraction. Gaps and overlaps, traces and fragmentation feature prominently in Tan’s making process. He is interested in how this frames and orientates our sense of time, body and memory.
Tan completed his BA in Fine Art & Critical Studies at Goldsmiths College, London and his MFA at Glasgow School of Art. He was also a guest student at The Städelschule, Frankfurt am Main, Germany and an artist-in-residence at the NTU Centre of
Contemporary Art. He is a recipient of Singapore National Arts Council Scholarship as well as the Mackendrick Scholarship and the Antje und Jürgen Conzelmann Preis for painting. He was also a finalist in the Sovereign Asian Art Prize 2018.
His work has been exhibited and collected in Asia and Europe. Past and recent exhibitions include ‘Ghost Screens’ (2017) and ‘Soft Turnings’ (2021) at Ota Fine Arts, Singapore, ‘A Different Way
Of (Thinking About) Painting?’ (2017) at Langgeng Art Foundation, Yogyakarta, ‘DEPTHS: Others, Lands, Selves’ (2018) at Elevation Laos, Vientiane, ‘Reformations’ (2019) at NTU ADM Gallery,
Singapore, ‘Strange Forms of Life’ (2020) at STPI Gallery, Singapore, ‘Object of Desire’ (2021) at Gerðarsafn Kópavogur Art Museum, Iceland, ‘Re-surfacing’ (2023) at STORAGE, Bangkok, ‘Another Folding Scene’ (2024) at Sifang Satellite Space, Shanghai and ‘Everyday Practices’ (2024) at Singapore Art Museum.
Tan belongs to a generation of artists whose creative output extends beyond his own studio practice. Alongside his own work, he also collaborates with other artists on curatorial and publication projects, including ‘Aversions’ and ‘Found & Lost’ (2009) for Osage Gallery, ‘We Who Saw Signs’ (2011) for Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore, ‘Side Affects’ (2019) for Ota Fine Arts and ‘State Of Motion 2020: Rushes Of Time’ for Asian Film Archive.
Guo-Liang Tan is represented by Ota Fine Arts.
Education
2014—15
Städelschule, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
2013—15
Master of Fine Art, Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, UK
2001—03
BA Fine Art & Critical Studies, Goldsmiths College, London, UK
Award/Grant/Residency
2022
Villa Lena Residency, Italy
2018
Sovereign Asian Art Prize (finalist)
2015
Centre Of Contemporary Art NTU CCA Residency, Singapore
2015
Antje und Jürgen Conzelmann Preis
2014
Axisweb Artwriting Programme (Scotland), Glasgow, UK
2013
National Arts Council Singapore Scholarship
2013
Mackendrick Scholarship
2007
Close Connection, Amsterdam, Netherlands
2002
Hamal Butt Art Award
Solo Exhibitions
2024
‘Another Folding Scene’, Sifang Satellite Space, Shanghai
2023
‘in mid shapes’, Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo
2021
‘Soft Turnings’, Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
2017
‘Ghost Screen’, Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
2012
‘Play Dead’, Space Cottonseed, Singapore
Public Commissions
2023
‘A Folding Scene’ for Esplanade Concourse, Singapore
2021
‘Arrive, Arrive’ for Light
to Night Festival, National Gallery Singapore
2021
‘Interlude For Lentor’ for LTA Art-In-Transit, Singapore
Group Exhibitions
2024
‘The Secrets of Color: from Impressionism to Contemporary Art’, Pola Museum, Kanagawa, Japan
‘Everyday Practices’, Tanjong Pagar Distripark, Singapore Art Museum
‘Point, Line, Plane’, Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
‘En Route: Southeast Asia’, Ota Fine Arts, Shanghai
‘Petite Grounds’, Ota Fine Arts, Shanghai
‘Chronic Complusions’, Private Museum, Singapore
2023
‘Re-Surfacing’, STORAGE, Bangkok
‘Constructs’, Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
‘Desire Is Dead’, Tanglin Shopping Centre, Singapore
2022
‘Traces’, Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
‘We’re Young Once’, Art Agenda, Singapore
‘S.E.A. Focus: chance… constellations’, Tanjong Pagar Distripark, Singapore
2021
‘Object of Desire’, Gerðarsafn Kópavogur Art Museum, Iceland
‘Habitat’, Ota Fine Arts, Shanghai
‘Encounter’, Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
‘S.E.A. Focus: hyper-horizon’, Tanjong Pagar Distripark, Singapore
2020
‘Strange
Forms Of Life’, STPI Gallery, Singapore
‘Time’, Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
‘Singapura’,
Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo
‘Post Art Fair’, Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
2019
‘Desert Garden’, Ota Fine Arts, Shanghai
‘Object of Desire’, Brother Joseph McNally Gallery, Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore
‘Reformations: Painting in Post 2000 Singapore Art’, NTU ADM Gallery, Singapore
2018
‘DEPTHS: Others, Lands, Selves’, Elevation Laos at icat Gallery, Vientiane, Laos
‘Crossroads’,
Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
‘Hikarie Contemprary Art Eye Vol.10’, Tokyo, Japan
‘Ethereal Machines: Guo-Liang Tan & Zang Kunkun’, Ota Fine Arts, Shanghai
‘The Crossing’, Gallery Exit, Hong Kong
2017
‘A Different Way Of (Thinking About) Painting’, Langgeng Art Foundation, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
‘Suppose, there is A’, Earl Lu Gallery, Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore
‘Alfa Tango’, Grey Projects, Singapore
2016
‘Of The Sea’, Chatham Historic Dockyard, UK
‘í drögum / Prehistoric Loom IV’, Akureyri Art Museum, Iceland
2015
‘Peacetime Resistance’, Bærum Kunsthall, Oslo, Norway & Project Room, Glasgow, UK
‘MFA Degree Show’, Glue Factory, Glasgow, UK
‘RUNDGANG 2015’, Städelschule, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
2014
‘The Trouble With Painting Today’, Pump House Gallery, London, UK
‘In Heaps & Hinges’, The Old Hairdresser’s, Glasgow, UK
‘Do You Believe in Angels?’, Equator Art Projects, Singapore/Manila
2013
‘Painting in Singapore’, Equator Art Projects, Singapore
2012
‘Marcel Duchamp in Southeast Asia’, Equator Art Projects, Singapore
2011
‘Remaking Art in the Everyday’, Art Stage, Singapore
2009
‘From left to right and right to east’, Project Space, Huddersfield, UK
2003
‘Imagine The Painting Sees You’, Pilot Art Space, Hastings, UK
Curatorial Projects
2021
‘Shwe Wutt Hmon: Noise And Clouds And Us’, Objectifs Centre for Photography and Film, Singapore
2020
‘Strange
Forms Of Life’, STPI Gallery, Singapore
‘State Of Motion 2020: Rushes Of Time’, Asian Film Archive,
National Archives Singapore
2019
‘Side
Affects’, Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
2012
‘Singapore Intensive II: Song-Ming Ang’, Future Perfect, Singapore
2011
‘We Who Saw Signs’, Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore
2009
‘Found & Lost’, Osage Singapore, in affiliation to Singapore Arts Festival
2008
‘Gloaming’, Grey Projects, Singapore
2006
‘The Deep End', p10 Art Space, Singapore
2004
‘And we took ourselves out of our hands (In Search of the Miraculous)’, p10 Art Space, in affiliation to Gravity (organised by Multimedia Art Asia Pacific) and SENI Singapore 2004
Selected Articles
Wong Bing Hao, ‘not sure i rmb’, exhibition text for Another Folding Scene at Sifang Satellite Space, Shanghai, 2024
Lynda Tay, ‘Guo-Liang Tan: Soft Turnings’, exhibition review in ArtAsiaPacific, 2022
Jeannine Tang, ‘Watching Paint, Motion Picture’, in Soft Turnings exhibition catalogue, published by Ota Fine Arts, 2021
‘A Conversation with Guo-Liang Tan and Sherman Sam’, in Soft Turnings exhibition catalogue, published by Ota Fine Arts, 2021
Ian Tee, ‘Conversation with Singaporean artist Guo-Liang Tan’, interview on Art & Market, 14 Dec 2020
Wong Bing Hao, ‘Guo-Liang Tan: Soft Obsolescence’, article in LEAP, 2018
Sherman Sam,’ How Abstraction Can Improve Your Life’, article in Art-In-Sight, published by OCULA, 2018
Jean Hui Ng, ‘Review: Ghost Screen – Guo-Liang Tan’, exhibition review in ArtAsiaPacific, 2017
Choe Ho, ‘Guo-Liang Tan’s Ghost Screen’, exhibition review on intersection.sg, 2017
Anca Rujoiu, ‘What We Take Away With Us (From A Work Of Art)’, in Ghost Screen exhibition catalogue, published by OTA Fine Arts, 2017
Kevin Chua, ‘The Uncommitted Life’, in Ghost Screen exhibition catalogue, published by OTA Fine Arts, 2017
Jeremy Sharma, ‘A flower painting by any other name… genre painting that isn’t’, article on Artitute.com, 31 Dec 2012
Adeline Chia, ‘Still life paintings play dead’, exhibition review in Straits Times Life!, 22 Nov 2012
Joleen Loh, ‘Of floods and flowers’, exhibition review in TODAY Arts section, 22 Nov 2012
Tony Godfrey, ‘Thinking Paintings’, in Play Dead exhibition catalogue, published by Space Cottonseed, 2012
Hanna Scott, ‘Voices of Revolution’, feature article in Surface Magazine, Aug 2011
Mayo Martin, ‘Sign Language’, exhibition review in TODAY Arts section, 8 Aug 2011
Lee Weng Choy, ‘A Conversation about Drawing’, in C-Arts Magazine, Nov/Dec 2009
June Yap, ‘Found & Lost’, exhibition review in Asian Art News, July/Aug 2009
