Boey Kim Cheng
Encyclopedia
Boey Kim Cheng is a Singapore
-born Australia
n poet
.
He is of Chinese descent. As a student he won the National University of Singapore
Poetry Competition and has since received the National Arts Council's Young Artist Award (1996). He currently lectures in Creative Writing at the University of Newcastle
in Australia
.
and graduated with Bachelor of Arts and Masters of Arts degrees in English Literature from the National University of Singapore
. In 1993, he won a scholarship from the Goethe-Institut to pursue German Studies in Murnau. In the following year, he was sponsored by the United State Information Agency to attend the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa. Boey embarked on a doctoral programme with the National University of Singapore which he later discontinued. He entered the workforce and was employed by the Ministry of Community Development as a probation officer. Disillusioned with the state of literary and cultural politics in Singapore, Boey left for Sydney with his wife in 1997. While in Australia, Boey completed his Ph.D. studies with the University of Macquarie. Boey is currently an Australian citizen and teaches creative writing at the University of Newcastle.
Boey's works are highly regarded by both the academic and writing communities in Singapore. Writer Shirley Lim remarked that he is the "best post-1965 English language poet in the Republic today". His own sense of restlessness about life in Singapore is reflected prevalently in his poems. According to him, Singapore's rapid growth and swift economic success are achieved at a cost. Feelings of displacement and disconnection with the past occurred precisely because places where one experienced his or her sense of belonging, through their childhood are fast disappearing.
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
-born Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
.
He is of Chinese descent. As a student he won the National University of Singapore
National University of Singapore
The National University of Singapore is Singapore's oldest university. It is the largest university in the country in terms of student enrollment and curriculum offered....
Poetry Competition and has since received the National Arts Council's Young Artist Award (1996). He currently lectures in Creative Writing at the University of Newcastle
University of Newcastle, Australia
The University of Newcastle is an Australian public university that was established in 1965. The University's main and largest campus is located in Callaghan, a suburb of Newcastle in New South Wales...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Early life
Boey Kim Cheng was born in Singapore in 1965. He received his secondary education at Victoria SchoolVictoria School
Victoria School in Singapore is a government secondary school for boys, founded in 1876, at Siglap Link, about one kilometre from affiliated Victoria Junior College....
and graduated with Bachelor of Arts and Masters of Arts degrees in English Literature from the National University of Singapore
National University of Singapore
The National University of Singapore is Singapore's oldest university. It is the largest university in the country in terms of student enrollment and curriculum offered....
. In 1993, he won a scholarship from the Goethe-Institut to pursue German Studies in Murnau. In the following year, he was sponsored by the United State Information Agency to attend the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa. Boey embarked on a doctoral programme with the National University of Singapore which he later discontinued. He entered the workforce and was employed by the Ministry of Community Development as a probation officer. Disillusioned with the state of literary and cultural politics in Singapore, Boey left for Sydney with his wife in 1997. While in Australia, Boey completed his Ph.D. studies with the University of Macquarie. Boey is currently an Australian citizen and teaches creative writing at the University of Newcastle.
Literary career
In 1987, Boey won first prize at the National University of Singapore Poetry Competition while studying as an undergraduate. At age 24, he published his first collection of poetry. Somewhere-bound went on to win the National Book Development Councils (NBDCS) Book Award for Poetry in 1992. Two years later, his second volume of poems Another Place received the commendation award at the NBDCS Book Awards. In 1995, Days Of No Name, which was inspired by the people whom he met in the United States, was awarded a merit at the Singapore Literature Prize. In recognition of his artistic talent and contributions, Boey received the National Arts Council's Young Artist Award in 1996. After a long hiatus, Boey returned with his fourth volume of poetry in 2006. After the Fire deals primarily with the passing of his father in 2000. Boey's works have also appeared in anthologies like From Boys to Men: A Literary Anthology of National Service in Singapore, Rhythms: A Singaporean Millennial Anthology of Poetry and No Other City: The Ethos Anthology of Urban Poetry.Boey's works are highly regarded by both the academic and writing communities in Singapore. Writer Shirley Lim remarked that he is the "best post-1965 English language poet in the Republic today". His own sense of restlessness about life in Singapore is reflected prevalently in his poems. According to him, Singapore's rapid growth and swift economic success are achieved at a cost. Feelings of displacement and disconnection with the past occurred precisely because places where one experienced his or her sense of belonging, through their childhood are fast disappearing.
Works
- Somewhere-bound, (1989)
- Another Place, (1992)
- Days of No Name, (1996)
- Losing Alexandria, (Giramondo, 2003)
- Calling the Poems Home, (2004)
- Plum Blossom or Quong Tart at the QVB, (Melbourne University Press, 2005)
- After the Fire: New and selected poems, (2006)
- Report to Wordsworth, (Unknown Date)