Water Ends Where It Began. “After the Rain” is Lian Ng’s solo exhibition on his watercolour works on paper, where the protagonist knows no bounds, yet contained by unseen borders. In his paintings in watercolour, the work shown is both a study in patience and in meditation – in the sense that the subject matter is neither representative nor with deliberate expressiveness. Instead, he allows evaporation to dictate the distribution of tones in his work, creating pools of colour with random bits of pigments.

Incapable of escaping his background in graphic design, most of the work utilised geometric shapes as a container for the starting point – relying on surface tensions to create a borderless structure to keep the watercolour in place. As the air around the pools of water slowly evaporates, what’s left behind is a subtle field of colour and the remnants of sediments from previously dried cakes of watercolour. The slow process of allowing the water to dry naturally to reveal itself, creates a calmness in this body of work both for the artist and the viewers.

Artist Statement 

My background in Mathematics and Computer Science influences my art and design, which often incorporate mathematical algorithms, typography, and architectural references. I’m particularly drawn to the boundaries from which forms emerge—the perimeters that define shapes—and the generative patterns that allow simple elements to evolve into complex systems. This fascination with structure, order, and variation informs much of my creative process.

Most of my work begins with an underlying formal structure—often rooted in logic or geometry—but intentionally resists becoming rigid. I aim to balance precision with spontaneity, allowing each piece to retain a sense of organic fluidity. In this way, my practice is a dialogue between the analytical and the intuitive, the constructed and the accidental. Whether through repeating motifs, algorithmic structures, or grid-based layouts, the work reflects a quiet tension between control and openness—between rule and resonance.

Artist Biography 

Lian Ng grew up in Malaysia before moving to the U.S. for his studies. He started as a graphic designer in print collateral, branding, packaging, retail graphics, and environmental design. He has worked with brands such as RH, Uber, Nike, Kohler, and Starbucks. In addition to being a designer, Ng is an artist working in printmaking and watercolor. His work tends to lean towards Abstract Minimalism and the Concrete Art Movement. 

Ng’s design and artwork has been recognized internationally and is in the permanent collection of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Academy of Art University San Francisco, Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts China, Tipoteca Italiana di Cornuda Italy, Biblioteca Civica di Rovereto Italy, Archivio Tipografico di Torino Italy and Druckwerk Basel Switzerland. His work has won numerous awards and has been published in the Type Directors Club, Print International, and Communication Arts. Ng has participated in various artist residencies that have taken him to Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Cuba, and the Netherlands. 

Lian Ng’s international artist residencies inspired a visit to Portugal in 2021. A year later, the process of relocating began, and since 2023, Porto has become his new home. Drawn by its natural and historic beauty—timeless, abundant, and quietly powerful—Ng finds daily inspiration in the city’s textures, tones, and compositions. Each walk from home to studio offers effortlessly poetic moments. Porto’s layered history, intricate design details, and understated magic continue to inform and shape his evolving artistic practice.

Exhibitions

2026
After The Rain / Manywhere Gallery, Porto (PT)

2025
From a Single Line / Manywhere Gallery, Porto (PT)
Absence of Light / Manywhere Gallery, Porto (PT)
A Graphic Journey / Manywhere Gallery, Porto (PT)
HERE/AQUI / Manywhere Gallery, Porto (PT)

2024
What Colour Will My Skin Be Under The Water / Kasko Gallery, Basel (CH)

2023
Hidden / Can Serrat, El Bruc, Barcelona (ES)

2021
California Society of Printmakers 107th Annual Exhibition / Online Virtual Show (US)
Awagami International Print Exhibition / Hall of Awa Museum, Tokushima (JP)
Travel, Print & Exchange / Weissenfels (DE)
Übergang / Papiermühle, Basel (CH)
Druckwerk Eindruck 2021 / Basel (CH)
Stillness, Movement, Chaos / Rochester, New York (US)
Kala Art Institute at West Coast Print Fair / Online Virtual Show (US)

2020
CSP 106th Annual Exhibition / Center for the Arts, Piedmont (US)
10th International Printmaking Biennial Douro / Douro Valley (PT)
Dasein / Salon at Atelier Mondial, Basel (CH)

2019
Bone Black / DZine Gallery, San Francisco (US)
FIG / Palacio Euskalduna, Bilbao (ES)
Dimension Druck / Salzhaus, Brugg (CH)
Strata / Salon at Atelier Mondial, Basel (CH)
Awagami International Print Exhibition / Hall of Awa Museum, Tokushima (JP)
Water Music / DZine Gallery, San Francisco (US)

2018
Hush: Silence After Noise / Papiermühle, Basel (CH)
Dimension Druck / Salzhaus, Brugg (CH)
The Void and the Perimeter / de Bouwput Gallery, Amsterdam (NL)
Tracks and Echoes / DZine Gallery, San Francisco (US)

2017
Legacy of Letters / Tipoteca Italiana, Cornuda (IT)
Printed in Cuba / 688 Sutter Gallery, San Francisco (US), Kasko Gallery, Basel (CH),
Havana Galerie, Zurich (CH), Taller Experimental de Gráfica, Havana (CU)

2016
Rock+Paper+Scissors / DZine Gallery, San Francisco (US)
HewnX / San Francisco Design Center, San Francisco (US)

Artistic Residencies

Can Serrat / Barcelona (ES)
Kala Art Institute / Berkeley (US)
Edition Basel at Druckwerk / Basel (CH)
AgaLAB / Amsterdam (NL)
Tipoteca Italiana / Cornuda (IT)
Taller Experimental de Gráfica / Havana (CU)
Venice Printmaking Studio / Venice (IT)

Education

BS Computer Science and Mathematics (US)
AA Visual Communications (US)