Koh Seow Chuan (born 1939, in

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

) is a founder of

DP Architects DP Architects Pvt. Ltd. is a Singaporean multinational architectural industrial design firm. It started as Design Partnership in 1967 and was incorporated as a private limited company in 1993. It is a multi-disciplinary design consultancy. It i ...

, a philatelist, and philanthropist.

Biography

Education and career

Koh graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture from the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

in 1963. He worked in Malayan Architects Co-Partnership before joining William S.W. Lim and Tay Kheng Soon to establish Design Partnership in 1967. Design Partnership was subsequently renamed

in 1975. Koh, a member of the

Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...

, was given the

RIBA International Award The RIBA International Award is the Royal Institute of British Architects' highest award. The shortlist for the Lubetkin Prize is made up of the winners of the RIBA International Awards. Laureates 2011 RIBA International award winners in 2011 ...

in 2005 and the President's Design Award in 2006 for his work on

Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...

. His other notable projects include

People's Park Complex People's Park Complex () is a high-rise commercial and residential building in Singapore, situated in Park Road off Eu Tong Sen Street in Outram, within People's Park and next to Chinatown MRT station. History The People's Park Complex was a com ...

Philately

He is an avid collector of stamps, historical documents, old postcards, cultural artefacts, maps, photographs, antique books and art pieces, and has exhibited or donated many of these. Some of his collections, including photographs and postcards which dates from the 1880s, is on display at the

Singapore Philatelic Museum The Singapore Philatelic Museum ( Chinese: 新加坡集邮博物馆; ta, சிங்கப்பூர் அஞ்சல்தலை அருங்காட்சியகம்) is a museum about the postal history of Singapore and its stamp ...

. Koh served as President of the Singapore Stamp Club in 1967. From 1971 to 1974, he helped to establish the Federation of Inter-Asian Philately (FIAP), and held the position of General Secretary on the pro tem executive committee. He was one of the founders of the Association of Singapore Philatelists and held the position of President in 1989. He is currently an honorary member on their governing council. Koh was the Vice-President of the organising committee of the Singapore World Stamp Exhibition in 1995.

Philanthropy

In 2003, Koh donated 150 paintings by Singaporean artist

Lim Tze Peng Lim Tze Peng (, born 28 September 1921) is a Singaporean artist who is a teacher by training and profession. He was awarded a Cultural Medallion in 2003 in recognition of his contribution to the country's art and culture. In June 2021, it was re ...

to the

Singapore Art Museum The Singapore Art Museum (Abbreviation: SAM) is an art museum is located in the Downtown Core district of Singapore. It is the first fully dedicated contemporary visual arts museum in Singapore with one of the world’s most important public co ...

. He donated 63 artworks by Wong Keen, a Singapore Abstract Expressionist, worth S$1.27 million to the

in 2007. In 2007 he donated 2,231 items of mainly late 19th and early 20th century rare documents of the Straits Settlements and Singapore. In 2008, Mr Koh made a second donation of about 400 out of print and rare books and 68 rare maps.

names gallery after him in honour of his contributions Part of his collection is in The Koh Seow Chuan Collection at the National Library. Koh received the Patron of Heritage Award in 2006, Distinguished Patron of Heritage in 2008, and Patron of Heritage again in 2009. He is a member of the National Heritage Board and Chairman of the

National Art Gallery List of national galleries is a list of national art galleries. {{tocright Africa *Iziko South African National Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa *National Art Gallery of Namibia, Windhoek, Namibia The Americas *Galería Nacional, San Juan, Puerto ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Koh, Seow Chuan 1939 births Living people Singaporean philatelists Singaporean people of Chinese descent University of Melbourne alumni Singaporean architects