A personal sharing by our 6th-generation artisan
An inside look at the ancient art of hand-crafting wooden statues of Daoist and Buddhist deities, by the 6th-generation artisan of Say Tian Hng Buddha Shop (Estd. 1840). Part of the Singapore HeritageFest 2025.
Time & Location
17 May 2025, 10:00 – 11:15
Peranakan Museum, Ixora Room, 39 Armenian St, Singapore 179941
About the event
Guan Yin in my Google Drive: An Accidental Artisan’s Efforts to Preserve an Ancient Craft
In 2021, Ng Tze Yong left his job as CEO of a charity to apprentice under his grandmother and father as the 6th-generation artisan in a family business dating back to 1840, hand-crafting wooden statues of Daoist and Buddhist deities using early Qing Dynasty techniques.
In this intimate sharing session, Tze Yong offers a rare glimpse into the puzzling world of Daoist iconography, used for depicting the innumerable gods of the Daoist pantheon and expressing the ancient values and philosophies that continue to guide our lives today.
But this isn’t just a story of tradition. It's also about transformation.
From organising an international Monkey God redesign competition to using his grandma's shop as a business case study at New York’s Parsons School of Design, Tze Yong will share the ups and downs — and the…