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Actions Displays	Details Remove from selection Add to selection CollectionStraits Chinese Collection Object numberB2012-0003-001-0 TitlePortrait of Tan Jiak Kim CreatorG. R. Lambert & Co Description“Tan Jiak Kim (1859 – 1917) was a successful entrepreneur in banking and insurance, and also a respected community leader. As a municipal commissioner and member of the legislative council, he was a champion of causes for improving the life of the working classes. In the portrait, the furnishings and architectural constituents locate Tan in a formal and stately setting – the long length of curtain from which hangs a large tassel; the understated but elegant dado treatment on the wall; a well-made piece of furniture sporting a substantial ornamental scroll design at its foot; and the rich fabric of a table carpet. A pile of papers on the table towards which Tan’s left hand extends suggests the pressing duties of private enterprise and public office. Tan’s contemplative gaze extends beyond the picture plane. He is deep in thought, conceivably about the contents of the document on the table. The dignified surrounding affirms his social position while his deportment accentuates an intensity of purpose and a keen sense of commitment.” (Inherited & Salvaged, Family Portraits from the NUS Museum Straits Chinese Collection, Page 22). “An article in The Straits Times of 16 August 1906 suggests that [this] portrait [B2012-0003-001-0] was not only attributed to H. Thomas Jensen of Reutlinger's, Paris, who was the manager of G.R. Lambert & Co. from c.1905-08, the portrait was also the fruition of a breakthrough in photographic processes, invented by Jensen himself. According to the article in The Straits Times reporting the proceedings of the 1906 Agri-Horticultural Show in Singapore, G.R. Lambert & Co. exhibited ‘a complete set of photographs in natural colours produced purely by chemical and mechanical means only’. Several notable examples of this newly invented process included the life size photographic portraits…, and a photographic portrait of Tan Jiak Kim in pastel colours. Given that the description of the portrait fits the work in the NUS Museum’s collection, and that no other similar example is known, it is possible that [this] tinted photograph of Tan in the museum’s collection was indeed the pastel portrait of Tan that was chosen for display at G.R. Lambert & Co.’s exhibition at the Agri-Horticultural Show of 1906, and thus should be considered for its historical significance.” (Inherited & Salvaged, Family Portraits from the NUS Museum Straits Chinese Collection, Page 85). Production placeSingapore Production periodc. 1905 Object categoryPortrait MaterialPhotograph Dimensions H: 71.8 cm L: 46.6 cm H: 104.6 cm L: 79 cm Credit lineGift of Winson Tan in memory of Edward Tan Tian Leong

Object numberB2012-0003-001-0

TitlePortrait of Tan Jiak Kim

Description“Tan Jiak Kim (1859 – 1917) was a successful entrepreneur in banking and insurance, and also a respected community leader. As a municipal commissioner and member of the legislative council, he was a champion of causes for improving the life of the working classes. In the portrait, the furnishings and architectural constituents locate Tan in a formal and stately setting – the long length of curtain from which hangs a large tassel; the understated but elegant dado treatment on the wall; a well-made piece of furniture sporting a substantial ornamental scroll design at its foot; and the rich fabric of a table carpet. A pile of papers on the table towards which Tan’s left hand extends suggests the pressing duties of private enterprise and public office. Tan’s contemplative gaze extends beyond the picture plane. He is deep in thought, conceivably about the contents of the document on the table. The dignified surrounding affirms his social position while his deportment accentuates an intensity of purpose and a keen sense of commitment.” (Inherited & Salvaged, Family Portraits from the NUS Museum Straits Chinese Collection, Page 22). “An article in The Straits Times of 16 August 1906 suggests that [this] portrait [B2012-0003-001-0] was not only attributed to H. Thomas Jensen of Reutlinger's, Paris, who was the manager of G.R. Lambert & Co. from c.1905-08, the portrait was also the fruition of a breakthrough in photographic processes, invented by Jensen himself. According to the article in The Straits Times reporting the proceedings of the 1906 Agri-Horticultural Show in Singapore, G.R. Lambert & Co. exhibited ‘a complete set of photographs in natural colours produced purely by chemical and mechanical means only’. Several notable examples of this newly invented process included the life size photographic portraits…, and a photographic portrait of Tan Jiak Kim in pastel colours. Given that the description of the portrait fits the work in the NUS Museum’s collection, and that no other similar example is known, it is possible that [this] tinted photograph of Tan in the museum’s collection was indeed the pastel portrait of Tan that was chosen for display at G.R. Lambert & Co.’s exhibition at the Agri-Horticultural Show of 1906, and thus should be considered for its historical significance.” (Inherited & Salvaged, Family Portraits from the NUS Museum Straits Chinese Collection, Page 85).

Production placeSingapore

Production periodc. 1905

Object categoryPortrait

MaterialPhotograph

Dimensions

H: 71.8 cm
L: 46.6 cm
H: 104.6 cm
L: 79 cm

Credit lineGift of Winson Tan in memory of Edward Tan Tian Leong

Details