Educated at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Khoo Sui Hoe was among the earliest established art practitioners in Malaysia. His works are very poetic, transporting the viewer into a dream state. Notable and commanding are his choice of bold, emotive colours that are melodious and rich in hues. Influenced by the post impressionists, symbolists, and surrealists, his stylized figures are imbued with a sense of mystery and enchantment. He bridges the real and imaginary in this composition through the depiction of a couple floating above a lake surrounded by a red enigmatic landscape. One of the faces is depicted in profile, a hallmark of the artist’s unique style. The reflections in the water enhance the atmosphere of the scene to create a tranquil effect. Love is in the air, romance at its peak, such is true love, where the two become one! For more than six decades, Khoo Sui Hoe has been a practicing professional artist, ever since he graduated from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) in Singapore in 1961. His career is topped by a Retrospective, The Painted World of Khoo Sui Hoe, given by the Penang State Art Gallery in 2007. Wisma Kebudayaan Soka Gakkai Malaysia, honoured him with another retrospective. His two-part Overview exhibition, was held in Singapore in 2015. After NAFA, he furthered his art studies at the Pratt Graphic Centre in New York in 1974, under the John Rockeller III Fund. Sui Hoe, the spiritual leader of the now defunct Utara Group, had won Honourable Mention in the Salon Malaysia in 1969 and 1st Prize (Oil) in the Malaysian Art and Craft competition in 1965. It is a great loss to the art scene when Khoo Sui Hoe passed away on 31 May, 2026.