BIOGRAPHY with Photos /Link: Biography Prabhakara Jimmy Quek 1955 Born in Singapore. 1962 Began Primary Education at Maha Bodhi School. 1967 Completed Primary Education at Maha Bodhi School. 1971-72 Learned arts from secondary school's art teacher Tan Seng Yong. 1972 President of Art Society, Monitor and Prefect at Dunman Government Chinese Middle School. 1972 Completed Secondary Education at Dunman Government Chinese Middle School. 1973 Studied at Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. 1973 Artworks selected for the Open Section and Secondary Section, Black and White Still Life drawing. 1973 Artwork selected for the 1973 National Day Art Exhibition. Victoria Memorial Hall, Singapore. 1974 Studied at Ngee Ann Technical College, Business Studies Department. 1974 Awarded Third Prize in National Art Competition, Open Section Western Painting. 1974 Exhibited in Art for Everyone Exhibition. Kuo Chuan Community Centre, Singapore. 1976 Participated in Industrial and Business Orientation Program during college long vacation. 1976 Treasurer for Photographic Society 1976/77, Art Editor for Graduation Souvenir Magazine Publication Committee, Display Officer for Photographic Exhibition 1976, Ngee Ann Technical College. 1976 Exhibited in Art for Everyone Exhibition, organized by the Ministry of Culture and People Association. 1977 Awarded Diploma in Business Studies by Ngee Ann Technical College in association with the Polytechnic of Central London. 1977 Awarded Higher Stage Group Diploma in Marketing from the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, UK. 1977 Work selected for the National Day Art Exhibition. Victoria Memorial Hall. Singapore. 1977 Attended Advertising Design Course conducted by the Adult Education Board. 1977-78 Administrative Officer in a piling company. 1979 Management Trainee in a management company. 1980-83 Designer/Design Manager in a design company. Involved in 3-dimensional work for interiors, exhibitions and outdoor projection programmes. 1982 Attended CAM Diploma in the Advertising & Marketing Course at Singapore Institute of Management. 1983 Painting selected for the National Day Art Exhibition. National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore. 1983 Awarded Certificate of Commendation in 1983 Painting of the Year Competition. (Title of Work: Event: 9-4- 83). 1983-84 Director for a design service and outdoor projection company. 1985-86 Studied at St Patrick's School of Art (changed name to LaSalle College of the Arts). 1986 Began practising art full time. Signing off his paintings "Prabhakara" which means, "Source of light" in Sanskrit. 1986 Awarded two Certificates of Commendation in the 5th Painting of the Year Competition. (Title of Work: Compromise and Nature II). 1986 Paintings exhibited in Art in Leisure. Goethe Institut Art Gallery, Singapore. 1987 Awarded Certificate of Commendation in the IBM Singapore Art Award Competition. (Title of Work: Good Morning, City). 1987 Selected for the Discovery Art Exhibition. Shell Theatrette, Shell Tower. A first painting collected by the Singapore Art Museum. 1987 Painting "Cosmic Landscape" 152 x 130 cm was acquired by the Singapore Art Museum for permanent art collection during the Discovery Art Exhibition. 1987 Exhibited in the National Museum Centenary Art Exhibition. National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore. 1987 Exhibited in the First Asean Art Federation Exhibition at Taiwan Provincial Art Museum. 1987 Held First One-man art exhibition at Gallery 10-12 Hyatt Regency, organized by Della Butcher Gallery Fine Art, Singapore. 1987 Went on a pilgrimage tour to India, Nepal and Kashmir. 1987 Began learning and practising Vipassana Meditation under the guidance of Ven. Sujiva at Santisukharama, Kota Tinggi, Malaysia. 1988 Awarded First Prize IBM Art Award 1988 (Title of Work: Impression) and Merit Prize IBM Art Award 1988 (Title of Work: Pace). Awarded painting Impression was purchased by IBM and it was donated to the Singapore Art Museum for permanent art collection. 1988 Held Second One-man Art Exhibition Transformation at Della Butcher Gallery Fine Art, Singapore. 1988 Exhibited in Masterpieces From Private Collections Exhibition at National Museum Art Gallery. 1988 Exhibited in Singapore Contemporary Artist Exhibition at Hong Kong Arts Centre, Hong Kong. 1988 Exhibited in Singapore Artist Exhibition, Sogo Art Galleries at Yokohama, Kobe and Sapporo Japan. 1988 Member, Modern Art Society, Singapore. 1988 Exhibited in the First Exhibition of Federation of Asian Art Association. Taiwan Museum of Art, Taiwan. 1989 Exhibited in Invitational Asia Artists Art Exhibition in conjunction with 100th Anniversary of Taichung City, Taiwan. 1989 Artwork selected for the exhibition and awarded a Certificate of Commendation in the IBM Art Award 1989. (Title of Work: Follow, Progress & Look Back). 1989 Artwork selected for the Exhibition in the IBM Art Award 1989. (Title of Work: Light of Harmony & Progress). 1989 Exhibited in Second Exhibition of Federation of Asian Art Association. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 1989 Exhibited in First Asian Travelling Exhibition of Painting, photography and Children's Art. Art Centers and Museum Galleries, Singapore Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Brunei Darussalam and the Philippines. 1990 Held One-man Exhibition "The Spirit of Nature" at Oriental Singapore. 1990 Exhibited in First Asian International Art Exhibition. National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 1990 Exhibited in Urban Artists; 25 Years of Singapore Art. National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore. 1990 Exhibited in Singapore Artists Speak Exhibition. National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore. Works featured in Book: Singapore Artists Speak. 1990 Exhibited in Modern Art Travels East-West; Corporation Collection from Singapore and the Netherlands. World Trade Centre, Rotterdam. 1990 Painting featured in the Singapore Business Diary. 1991 Exhibited in Many in One: 25 Years of Art from Singapore. National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore. 1991 Exhibited in Many in One: 25 Years of Art from Singapore; Travelling Exhibition in the USA. Meridian House International, Washington DC, and Indianapolis, Dallas, Los Angeles and Honolulu, USA. 1991 Exhibited in the Grand Discovery Art Exhibition. Empress Place Museum, Singapore. 1991 Exhibited in 2nd Bru-Sin Art Exhibition. National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore. 1991 Exhibited in Change: 20 Singapore Artists, A decade of their work. National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore. 1991 Works featured in the Book: Change: 20 Singapore Artists. 1991 Awarded Certificate of appreciation for commendable volunteer services and dedication in supporting the charities of the Community Chest of Singapore for Christmas Cards Project 1991. 1991 Solo Art Exhibition, Jain Marunouchi Gallery, New York, USA. 1992 One-man Art Exhibition "Journey into Myself" at The Substation Gallery, Singapore. Published Prabhakara - Journey into Myself. 1992 Exhibited in 7th Asean International Art Exhibition. Gedung Merdeka, Bandung, Indonesia. 1992 Member, Singapore Art Society. 1992 Married to Siew Hooi in Singapore. 1992 Exhibited in Contemporary Singapore Art Exhibition. Hong Kong. 1992 Exhibited in Multi-images, Singapore Art Society Art Exhibition. Empress Place Museum, Singapore. 1992 Exhibited in the Group Exhibition to celebrate the 70th birthday of Della Butcher at Riverwalk Galleries Exhibition Hall. 1992 Visited by Sargent Shriver, Chairman and CEO of the Board of Special Olympics International Headquarters, Washington, D.C. USA. at Jimmy's home in Tampines, Singapore. 1993 One-man Art Exhibition "Within" at Substation Gallery Singapore. 1993 One-man Art Exhibition "Within" at Oriental Singapore. 1993 Exhibited in New Space, Singapore/Vietnam Art Exhibition. Art Gallery of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. 1993 Exhibited in the 6th Asean Art Biennial Bangladesh 1993. Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, Dhaka, Bangladesh. 1993 Exhibited in Art in Asia; Singapore Art Fair 1993. World Trade Centre, Singapore. 1993 Exhibited in the Eighth Asean International Art Exhibition. Fukuoka City Art Museum, Fukuoka City and Tagawa City Art Museum, Tagawa City, Japan. 1993 Exhibited in Singapore; Place, Poems, Paintings. National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore. 1993 Works featured in the Book: Singapore; Place, Poems, Paintings. 1993-94 Conducted art courses, Sketching & Drawing Courses and Painting Course for adults at Federation of Art Societies, Singapore, Church Street, Singapore. 1994 Participated in a community project and contributed paintings to art exhibition and sale for disabled children in the Teach Me program by Mount Elizabeth Hospital Ltd. 1994 Exhibited in Window on Singapore Art; Travelling Exhibition to China and Hong Kong. China Art Gallery, Beijing, Suzhou Museum, Shanghai Art Gallery, Quanzhou Overseas Communication Museum Xiamen Library, Guangdong Provincial Museum and Fund Ping Shan Museum of the University of Hong Kong. 1994 Exhibited in Rhythm & Vitality. Empress Place Museum, Singapore. 1994 Exhibited in the 9th Asian International Art Exhibition. National Museum of History, Republic of China. 1994 Exhibited in the Third Asean Travelling Exhibition of Painting, Photography and Children's Art. Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Brunei Darussalam and Philippines. 1994 Exhibited in 5 Directions: Recent Artworks by Five young Singapore Artist at Takashimaya Gallery, Singapore. 1994 Member of the judging panel for the Della Butcher Award for Excellence in the Arts. 1995 Member of the judging panel for the Philip Morris Group of Companies Singapore/Asean Art Awards, Singapore. 1995 Exhibited in The 10th Asian International Art Exhibition, National Museum Art Gallery, Singapore. (4-31 August 1995). 1995 Exhibited in Contemporary 95 Art Exhibition by Angkatan Pelukis Aneka Daya. 1995 Exhibited in the Modern Art Society 30th Anniversary Art Exhibition. Riverwalk Galleria Exhibition Hall, Singapore. 1995 Painting featured in a commemorative hardcover book: Art in the City by Raffles City. 1995 Treasurer, Modern Art Society, Singapore. 1995 Working Committee, 10th Asian International Art Exhibition, Singapore. 1996 Awarded certificate in recognition for participation in the Grand Shell Discovery Art Exhibition October 1996. 1996 Exhibited in Manahara. Orchard Point Exhibition Hall, Singapore. Fundraising project for the Buddhist Library. 1996 Exhibited in Modernity and Beyond. Inaugural Exhibition, Singapore Art Museum, Singapore. 1996 Exhibited in the Modern Art Society 32nd Anniversary Exhibition. NAFA Gallery, Singapore. 1996 Treasurer, Modern Art Society, Singapore. 1996 Working Committee, 11th Asian International Art Exhibition of Metropolitan Museum of Manila, Philippines. 1996 Working Committee, Modern Art Society's 32 Anniversary Art Exhibition. 1996 Moved studio to 10 Kampong Eunos, Federation of Art Societies, Singapore. 1997 Moved studio to Telok Kurau Studios. 1997 Member of the judging panel for the Ramakrishna Mission Centenary Celebrations (1897-1997) Art Competition, Singapore. 1997 Exhibited in Taegu - Asia Arts Exhibition. Taegu Cultural Arts Gallery, Korea. 1997 Exhibited in Very Special Art Exhibition. Raffles City, Singapore. 1997 Life member, Singapore Art Society. 1997 Secretary, Modern Art Society, Singapore. 1997 Exhibited in the Modern Art Society Thirty-Three Anniversary Art Exhibition, Self-portrait of the Artists. UOB Plaza 1 Sky Lobby, Singapore. 1997 Exhibited in 12th Asian International Art Exhibition, Centre de Actividades Turisticas, Macau. 1997 Exhibited in Singapore Art Society Exhibition '97. Orchard Point Exhibition Hall, Singapore. 1997 Exhibited in Singapore Art 97. Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre. Singapore. 1998 Treasurer, Management Committee 1998/1999, Vipassana Meditation Centre (Singapore). 1998 "Recent Paintings" one-man art exhibition at Alliance Francaise de Singapour. Published Prabhakara- Recent Paintings. 1998 Exhibited in Second Nature: Cityscapes of Singapore. An exhibition of Singapore Contemporary Art. Hong Kong. 1998 Exhibited in 4 Perspectives - Art Exhibition. The National Museum of Thailand, Thailand. 1999 External Assessor, Assessment Panel for the Diploma in Visual Arts Assessments for 2-D Studies in the School of Fine Art, LaSalle-SIA College of the Arts, Singapore. 1999 Vice President, Management Committee 1999/2000, Vipassana Meditation Centre (Singapore). 1999 Exhibited in the Singapore Art Society 50th Anniversary Art Exhibition, Paragon Exhibition Hall, Singapore. 1999 Exhibited in City/Community: Singapore Art Today. Nokia Singapore Art 1999. 1999 Exhibited in President's Charity Art Exhibition 99, Far East Square Pavilion, Singapore. 1999 Diobok-Obok: Continuities and Contingencies - Southeast Asian Art Today. Singapore Art Museum (19 Oct - 21 Nov 1999). 1999 Exhibited in the 14th Asian International Art Exhibition. Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Japan. 1999 Held Small Paintings Art Exhibition at 407 TKS Studio. 1999 Moved studio to Tampines St 22. 1999 Invited to participate in Maybank-Very Special Arts Pair-with-An-Artist programme to be a mentor for 2 young artists. 2000 Participated in International Carnival at Marina City Park. 2000 Member of the Course Accreditation Committee for the Department of 2D and 3D Studies, Lasalle-SIA College of the Arts. Singapore. 2000 Exhibited in St. Andrew's Mission Hospital Charity Art Exhibition. Singapore Tourism Board, Singapore. 2000 Exhibited in SANA Charity Art Exhibition 2000 the Pavilion Far East Square, Singapore. 2000 Exhibited in Ngee Ann Kongsi Art Exhibition 2000, Singapore. 2000 One-man Art Exhibition, Paintings by Prabhakara Jimmy Quek at Galerie Belvedere, MITA Building, Singapore. 2001 Exhibited in Time and Space 37th Modern Art Society Anniversary Art Exhibition. Mita Building, Singapore. 2001 Exhibited in Nokia Singapore Art 2001: Histories, Identities, Technologies, Spaces - Singapore Art Today. Singapore Art Museum. (8 Dec 2001 - 3 Feb 2002). 2001 Exhibited in the 16th Asian International Art Exhibition. Guangdong Museum of Art, Guangzhou, China. 2001 Exhibited in Ngee Ann Kongsi Art Exhibition 2001, Singapore. 2001 Exhibited in Diversity - Singapore Art Society Exhibition, MITA Building, Singapore. 2002 Exhibited in Singapore - Japan Arts Exchange Exhibition. Osaka, Japan. 2002 Exhibited in 17th International Asian Art Exhibition, Daejeon Municipal Museum of Art, Korea. 2002 One-man Art Exhibition by Prabhakara Jimmy Quek at Galerie Belvedere, Capital Tower, Singapore. 2002 Exhibited in Interiors - Vistas of Internal Spaces. Group Painting Exhibition. Utterly Art, Singapore. 2002 Exhibited in Ngee Ann Kongsi Art Exhibition 2002, Singapore. 2002 Exhibited in Singapore Art Society Annual Art Exhibition. MITA Building, Singapore. 2002 Donated two paintings to MINDS - Movement for the Intellectually Disabled of Singapore. 2003 The painting "Bougainvillea and Door" was presented to His Excellency Gerhard Schroder Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany by the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore. 2003 Co-organizer for Vipassana Meditation Centre (Singapore) Metta Meditation Retreat conducted by Sayadaw U Pannathami. 2003 Conducted an art and painting workshops for teachers at Metta School. 2003 Exhibited in the Sixth Annual National Teochew Art and Chinese Calligraphy cum Overseas Teochew Artists Exhibition. Teochew Building, Singapore. 2003 Launched the Exclusive Personal Art Cards Project. 2004 Invited to exhibit in Art Exhibition by 4 artists in Tampines, Ministerial Community Visit to Tampines Changkat - Station 2, Tampines Street 11, Singapore. 2004 Registered Pabha Creation with ACRA. Began working on Contemporary Artist Pendants with Siew Hooi and creating 3D artwork of Huat Kueh. 2004 Published selective collections of painting images on web site www.prabhakara.com 2004 Exhibited in the Seventh Annual National Teochew Art Exhibition. Teochew Building, Singapore. 2004 Invited to exhibit in Olympic Arts Festival, Olympic Truce: Pieces of Peace, Washington DC at The Delegation of the European Commission, Washington DC. The USA. 2005 Painting featured in the art book - I'm Creative, Art and Crafts for Primary School 5, (Page 2: Art For the Senses) published by SNP Panpac. 2005 Painting featured in the art exhibition - A Wealth of Visions, Gallery, The Arts House at the Old Parliament. Singapore. 2005 Painting featured in The Singapore Art Show - A Different Light - Works from Selected Collections. Organized by the National Arts Council, National Library Building, 5th Level, Singapore. 2005 Exhibited in Eighth Annual National Teochew Artist & Chinese Calligraphy Exhibition. Ngee Ann Cultural Centre, Teochew Building, Singapore. 2006 Created a series of small paintings of 3.5 x 2.5 inches in size. Published New Paintings Gallery on the internet. 2006 Created a series of 3D artworks, launched by Pabha Creation. 2007 Started artist blog at http://my.opera.com/pabha (Moved blog to http://pabha.wordpress.com in 2014.) 2007 Exhibited in the Tenth Annual Teochew Art Art Exhibition. Ngee Ann Cultural Centre, Teochew Building, Singapore. 2007 Participated in the Art Market, organized by National Park Board, Singapore, at Fort Cunning Centre, Fort Cunning Park, under PABHA. 2007 Participated in Metta Charity Walk cum Family Carnival under PABHA. 2008 Participated in Singapore Arts Street 2008, showcasing Artist Pendants at Clarke Quay and North East under PABHA. 2008 Exhibited in Nanyang 70 Years After - A Reunion of Artists in the Academy. Nanyang Academy of Fine Art Galleries, NAFA, Singapore. 2008 Invited to exhibit in the Telok Kurau Studio Annual Exhibition. Telok Kurau Studio Art Gallery, Singapore. 2008 Participated in Metta Charity Walk cum Family Carnival under PABHA. 2009 Joined Facebook http://www.facebook/artpabha 2009 Participated in Singapore Arts Street 2009 @ South East, showcasing Artist Pendants under PABHA. 2009 Began art sessions programmes at Tampines home Pabha Studio. Participants come from different nationalities, ages and professions. Published website at http://pabha.com/artclass.htm 2009 Participated and received a certificate of appreciation for support and contribution to Metta Charity Walk cum Family Carnival. 2010 Exhibited in the Singapore Art Society 60th Year Anniversary Exhibition cum Launching of Artists Directory. 2010 Paintings featured in Singapore Art Society Artists Directory 1949-2009. 2010 Published artworks at www.pabha.com 2010 Participated and received a certificate of appreciation for support and contribution to Metta Charity Walk cum Family Carnival. 2010, 2011 Ongoing Painting and drawing sessions programmes at Pabha Studio. 2011 Participated and received a certificate of appreciation for support and contribution to Metta Charity Walk cum Family Carnival. 2012 Ongoing Painting and drawing sessions programmes at Pabha Studio. 2013 Published Featured Artists from Pabha Studio website and My Pabha Shop website. 2014 Moved artist's blog from my.opera.com to http://pabha.wordpress.com 2013, 2014 Ongoing painting and drawing sessions at Pabha Studio. 2014 Published Participants Works Gallery. 2015 Paintings exhibited in art exhibition The UOB Art Collection - Drawing from the past, framing our future. Nanyang Academy of Fine Art Galleries, NAFA, Singapore. 2015 Online art exhibition "30 Paintings from 30 Years" 2015 Ongoing painting and drawing sessions at Pabha Studio. 2015 Published Participants Works Gallery. 2015 Successfully completed Create Something Every Day - 100 Days Art Project. 2015 Renamed "My Pabha Shop" to "Online Shop". 2015 Published paintings 2015 online. 2015 "Early Works - An Online Exhibition". 2015 Exhibited in the Singapore Art Society 65th Year Anniversary Exhibition cum Launching of Artists Directory. The Painting is featured in Singapore Art Society Artists Directory 1949-2014. 2016 Ongoing painting and drawing sessions at Pabha Studio. Participants come from different nationalities, ages and professions. 2016 Started art project "100 Day Art Practice Challenge" and published works online. 2016 Published Participants Works Gallery 21 and 22. 2016 Published paintings 2016 online. 2017 Published Biography on the website. 2017 Completed art project "100 Day Art Practice Challenge" and successfully published works online. 2017 Published paintings 2017 website. 2017 Ongoing painting and drawing sessions at Pabha Studio. Participants come from different nationalities, ages and professions. 2017 Published Participants Works Gallery 23. 2017 Joined Patreon and started posting at www.patreon.com/artpabha 2018 Initiated and participated in "5 Works in 1 Month - An Online Art Exhibition by 6 Artists". 2018 Ongoing painting and drawing sessions are being held at the home Pabha Studio. 2018 Initiated and participated in "5 Works in 1 Month: 7 Contemporary Artists". An online art exhibition. 2018 Published "A Retrospective Exhibition - 45 years of art- making" online art exhibition. 2018 Accept appointment as a trainer with the People's Association on 25 July 2018. 2018 Published paintings 2018 website. 2019 Published 2019 Programmes online. 2019 Published Paintings with Words online. Featuring 100 paintings in which calligraphic lines and words form a significant element of the design in the composition. 2019 A Retrospective Exhibition - 46 Years of Art Making. Online art exhibition. 2019 Published Paintings 2019 Website. First time showing digital art online. 2019 Ongoing Art Sessions 10th Anniversary. 2019 Published Participants Gallery 24. 2020 Art sessions were held at the artist’s studio and were also available online. 2020 Held a Virtual Exhibition during COVID-19 Circuit Breaker Period. 2020 Held a ‘Post Circuit Breaker Period Art Exhibition’ titled ‘New Relationship’. This was an online virtual exhibition that ran from June 26 to August 6. 2020 Held a National Day Celebration Art Exhibition titled ‘Rejoice’. This was an online virtual exhibition that ran from August 9 to August 22. 2020 Held held a Small Painting Online Art Exhibition from November 20 to December 19, 2020. 2021 Continue to host ongoing art sessions to share the drawing and painting experience with participants in the home studio. 2021Exhibited at the Singapore Art Society’s annual art exhibition, ‘Art is Essential’ - a digital online presentation. 2021 The Artwork Collection website has been published at www.pabha.com, replacing all previously published painting websites. 2022-2023: Continue to host ongoing art sessions to share the drawing and painting experience with participants in the home studio. Update the Artwork Collection website and www.pabha.com • 2024: Expand the scope to encompass the quintessence of songwriting, painting, and video artistry, integrating these forms into the tapestry of creative expression.