Anthony Poon was a pioneering Singapore second-generation abstract artist. The prolific and successful modern artist and sculptor created a multitude of works, experimenting with styles such as abstract expressionism and optical art. Poon was best known for his curvilinear Wave series of works comprising two-dimensional and three-dimensional relief paintings, and for his sculptures. He was also one of the most commissioned artists of his time, and his works can be found in public spaces and public and private collections around Singapore as well as overseas. In 1990, he received the Cultural Medallion for his contributions to visual art in Singapore.

Anthony Poon was born in Singapore in 1945. He started attending the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts in 1961 and graduated in 1964. He went on to become an industrial artist at Singapore Glass Manufacture for three years, and pursued his artistic endeavours at the same time.

He held his first two solo exhibitions Paintings by Anthony Poon (1964) and Mixed Media (1967) at the National Library, and was involved in two group exhibitions, Southeast Asia Art at Victoria Memorial Hall (1964) and Eighth National Art Exhibition at the National Art Gallery in Kuala Lumpur (1967). His early pieces showed influences of his training at the Academy, where he was inspired by the works of Singapore pioneering artist Cheong Soo Pieng.

In 1968, Poon left Singapore to pursue further studies in the UK, first at the Byam Shaw School of Art in London on a Lee Foundation study grant as well as a scholarship from the school, and then at the Regional College of Arts in Bradford in York.

When he returned to Singapore in 1971, his practice had changed. Under the wing of the new Alpha Gallery, Poon held three solo exhibitions at the gallery and was involved in six group exhibitions from 1971 to 1978 while he worked as its manager from 1973 to 1978. After that, he became a full-time artist.

Works from this period show his enquiry into various forms of abstraction, particularly into geometric art, hard-edge painting and optical art. For instance, his first series upon his return from the UK, known as the Kite series which was conceptualised during his time overseas, was influenced by optical art. The works from this series featured flat, geometric shapes that created optical effects on shaped canvases. His Colour Theory series, developed in the ‘80s, explored chromatic ranges.

But it was his Wave series, developed from the late ‘70s, that led Poon to develop his signature style. The Wave series began as two-dimensional paintings, which later evolved into three-dimensional relief paintings (many of which were named after colour codes in the Liquitex acrylic paint colour chart) in the ‘80s. The works feature curvilinear shapes inspired by frequency waves, yet staying true to Poon’s deep and abiding interest in the harmonious balance and systematic use of art’s most basic components—form, line and colour. He received the first prize at the UOB Painting of the Year Competition in 1983 for one of his Wave paintings.

From working on the Wave relief paintings—which required among other features, the placing of metal strips under the canvas to create a three-dimensional effect—Poon progressed onto metal sculpture in the early ‘90s. From then on, his art practice focused mainly on the creation of sculptures which are meticulously and precisely rendered in metal, featuring geometric shapes, strips, ribbons and twirls in a complex interplay of form, line and colour.

Over the decades, Poon created many works and received numerous commissions from organisations such as Shell, the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts and the National Library Board as well as from overseas companies. He also served on several art advisory boards at the National Arts Council.

In 1990, he received the Cultural Medallion for his contributions to visual arts in Singapore.

In September 2006, Poon passed away from lung cancer in Singapore at the age of 61. That same year, his family donated 23 of his artworks to the Singapore Art Museum in accordance with his last wishes. Three years later, these artworks formed the key pieces in a 2009 retrospective exhibition of his works, Light and Movement Portrayed: A Tribute to the Art of Anthony Poon, held by the National Art Gallery and Singapore Art Museum.

Today, his works continue to be exhibited in public spaces and both public and private collections across Singapore and overseas in countries such as Brunei, Japan, China, Hong Kong, UK and US.