1950s - 1970s

Goh Beng Kwan was born in Medan in 1937 but spent most of his formative years in Singapore. While enrolled at the Chinese High School, Goh learned to paint under the instruction of pioneer Singapore artists Chen Wen Hsi and Cheong Soo Pieng. Key elements of Goh's early works from the 1950s, such as bold, graphic outlines reminiscent of Chinese ink painting techniques, tropical colours typical of a Fauvist palette, and a strong inclination towards geometric forms à la the Cubists, reflect these artists' strong influence on the development of his practice.

In 1965 while in New York, Goh fell gravely ill and was diagnosed with stomach ulcers that required him to undergo two major operations. In addition to his poor health, Goh also found himself under financial stress as he had used up all his savings for his hospital expenses. Eventually, he decided to return to Singapore and turn his attention elsewhere. From 1966 to 1969, Goh's artistic output was relatively low as he devoted his time to helping his father with his business. It was only after he established his own framing business in 1970 that he was able to spend more time on his artmaking.

Upon returning to Singapore in 1966s, Goh's works saw a considerable reduction in scale due to the combination of a lack of time and space to continue pieces as large as he was used to in New York. Goh continued making collages and adapted the techniques he learned in New York to the Singapore context. Goh's oil paintings of the urban landscape during this period are also significant as he raced to capture scenes of a rapidly transforming environment that seemed to erase rich history in favour of clean, modern forms.