Guo-Liang Tan (b. 1980, Singapore) is a visual artist working primarily in painting and text. In his work, the painterly and the textual act as surfaces for performing affect that can conjure a haunting or a promise. He is interested in how this sense of absence, located in the past and/or the future, frames our present-ness and of our subjectivities. Tension between the phenomenological and the psychological are played out in the process of painting and writing, staging congruencies and slippages that occurs within material and language. Tan's practice revolves around these moments of overlaps and gaps where projections and disruptions may be used to map out territories of desire.
Tan completed his BA 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. His work has been exhibited and collected in Asia and Europe. A selection of his paintings was selected for the Singapore Platform at the inaugural Art Stage in 2011. In 2012, he presented his first solo exhibition 'Play Dead' at Space Cottonseed. He was subsequently awarded the National Arts Council Scholarship for visual art as well as the Mackendrick Scholarship and the Antje und Jürgen Conzelmann Preis for painting. Recent exhibitions include The Trouble With Painting Today in Pump House Gallery, London, and Peacetime Resistance in Bærum Kunsthall, Oslo and Glasgow Project Room.
Alongside his own work, he also collaborates with other artists on curatorial and publication projects, including 'Found & Lost' (2009) for Osage Gallery, 'We who saw signs' (2011) for Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore (ICAS) and 'Singapore Intensive' (2012) for Future Perfect. His artist publication on drawing, 'Aversions' (2009) brought together contributions from a host of contemporary artists in Singapore to explore the conceptual and the performative in drawing. He was an artist-in-residence at the NTU CCA residency in 2015 and currently runs the project space Peninsular.
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Guo-Liang TanUntitled (Cassiopeia) , 2015Acrylic on aeronautical fabric, wood151 x 131 cm
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Guo-Liang TanPeripheral Ritual I - III, 2018Acrylic on aeronautical fabric, wood163 x 408 cm
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Guo-Liang TanUntitled (Retrograde), 2019Acrylic on aeronautical fabric, wood110 x 90 cm
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Guo-Liang TanLight Frays II , 2019Acrylic on fabric and wood141.2 x 121.1 cm
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Guo-Liang TanUntitled (Nighthawk), 2020Acrylic on aeronautical fabric, wood90 x 75 cm
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Guo-Liang TanAmphibian Wisps, 2020Acrylic on aeronautical fabric, wood150 x 130 cm
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Guo-Liang TanMontage II, 2020Acrylic on aeronautical fabric, wood190 x 65 cm
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Guo-Liang TanJump Cut I, 2020Acrylic on aeronautical fabric, wood58.5 x 45cm
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Traces
Tomoko Kashiki, Genevieve Leong, and Guo-Liang Tan 16 Sep - 23 Oct 2022 SingaporeOta Fine Arts Singapore is delighted to present 'Traces', a group exhibition featuring three artists: Tomoko Kashiki, Genevieve Leong, and Guo-Liang Tan. The works presented here suggest the presence of...Read more -
Guo-Liang Tan: Soft Turnings
27 Nov 2021 - 8 Jan 2022 SingaporeOta Fine Arts Singapore is delighted to present Soft Turnings, the third solo exhibition by Singaporean artist Guo-Liang Tan. This exhibition will feature Tan’s most recent pieces: five large paintings...Read more -
Habitat
Cheng Ran, Hilmi Johandi, Takao Minami, Guo-Liang Tan, Tang Dixin 7 Aug - 16 Oct 2021 ShanghaiA habitat is simply a home, and can be thought of as a place where living organisms live, eat, breed in, and survive. Encompassing painting, film and photography, “Habitat” explores...Read more -
Encounter
Chen Wei, Maria Farrar, Hilmi Johandi, Zai Kuning, Guo-Liang Tan 10 Apr - 29 May 2021 SingaporeOta Fine Arts Singapore is delighted to present 'Encounter', a group exhibition featuring five artists: Chen Wei, Maria Farrar, Hilmi Johandi, Zai Kuning and Guo-Liang Tan. The media in which...Read more -
Time
Chen Wei, ChillChill, Masanori Handa, Tsuyoshi Hisakado, Hilmi Johandi, Yayoi Kusama, Guo-Liang Tan 13 Oct 2020 - 31 Jan 2021 SingaporeOta Fine Arts Singapore is delighted to present 'Time', a group exhibition featuring seven artists from China, Japan and Singapore: Chen Wei, ChillChill, Masanori Handa, Tsuyoshi Hisakado, Hilmi Johandi, Yayoi...Read more -
Singapura
Zai Kuning, Hilmi Johandi, Guo-Liang Tan, Liao Jiekai, Jason Lim 10 Oct - 21 Nov 2020 TokyoOta Fine Arts Tokyo is delighted to present 'Singapura', a group exhibition featuring a selection of five artists from Singapore, the city-state known for its diverse mix of cultures. These...Read more -
Post Art Fair
Maria Farrar, Chris Huen, Hilmi Johandi, Yayoi Kusama, Nobuaki Takekawa, Guo-Liang Tan 13 Mar - 25 Apr 2020 SingaporeOta Fine Arts Singapore is delighted to present 'Post Art Fair', a group exhibition featuring a robust selection of our represented artists. In response to the cancellation of Art Basel...Read more -
Desert Garden
Akira the Hustler, Etsu Egami, Masanori Handa, Jong YuGyong, 17 Aug - 12 Sep 2019 ShanghaiOta Fine Arts Shanghai is delighted to present 'Desert Garden', a group exhibition featuring eight artists from China, Japan, Korea and Singapore. Through the diversity of works presented, the exhibition...Read more -
Crossroads
Akira the Hustler, Chen Wei, Cheng Ran, Masanori Handa, Zai Kuning, Yayoi Kusama, Hiraki Sawa, Guo-Liang Tan, Tang Dixin 21 Sep - 3 Nov 2018 SingaporeCoinciding with Gillman Barracks Art After Dark x 6th Anniversary Celebrations, 21 September 2018, 7pm till late Ota Fine Arts Singapore is delighted to present 'Crossroads', a group exhibition by...Read more -
Guo-Liang Tan and Zang Kunkun | Ethereal Machines
Guo-Liang Tan and Zang Kunkun 7 Jul - 12 Aug 2018 ShanghaiMai 36 Galerie and Ota Fine Arts Shanghai are delighted to present 'Ethereal Machines', a dual exhibition that brings together Chinese artist Zang Kunkun and Singapore artist Guo-Liang Tan. Strikingly...Read more -
Guo-Liang Tan: Ghost Screen
Guo-Liang Tan 8 Sep - 21 Oct 2017 SingaporeOpening Reception in the presence of the artist: Friday, 08 September 2017, 6-8 pm Artist Talk & Booklet Launch: Sunday, 01 October 2017, 3-5 pm Ota Fine Arts Singapore is...Read more
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ART SG
Booth BD01 10 Jan 2023Ota Fine Arts will participate in 'ART SG', from 11th to 15th January 2023. Ota Fine Arts is located at Booth BD01 , presenting...Read more -
Art Jakarta 2022
Booth B6 26 Aug 2022Ota Fine Arts participates in 'Art Jakarta 2022', from 26th to 28th August 2022. Ota Fine Arts is located at Booth B6, presenting artworks by...Read more -
Art Basel Hong Kong 2022
Booth: 1D18 19 May 2022Ota Fine Arts will participate in Art Basel Art Basel Hong Kong 2022, from 25th to 29st May 2022. Ota Fine Arts will be located...Read more -
"S.E.A. Focus 2021", Singapore
14 Jan 2022Ota Fine Arts will participate in 'S.E.A. Focus 2021'. The gallery will feature the latest artworks of Hilmi Johandi (b. 1987, Singapore), Zai Kuning (b....Read more