In May 1999, Artistic Endeavours brought together Kow Leong Kiang and Chong Choon Woon. Staged in the immediate aftermath of Kow’s 1998 Philip Morris ASEAN Art Award win—a prize secured with an overtly political work addressing the Asian Financial Crisis—this exhibition offered a more formalist counterpoint. Kow’s contributions, including oil paintings and charcoal studies on newsprint, utilized a romanticized realism to depict pastoral scenes of the Malaysian East Coast, exploring themes of idealized femininity and regional identity. In contrast, Chong Choon Woon’s practice reflected his extensive academic training in China, specifically at the China National Academy of Fine Arts. His charcoal works on paper engaged with the structural and atmospheric sensibilities of traditional Chinese ink landscapes, translated through the weight and texture of Western draftsmanship.