The Cathay Gallery

A COMPANY OF BIRDS

PHOTOGRAPHS OF BIRDS TAKEN BY DATO LOKE WAN THO BETWEEN 1944 TO 1958

A man of many talents and passions, the late Dato Loke Wan Tho was an avid adventurer, photographer and ornithologist. Whenever time permitted from his busy business schedule, his passion for the wild beyond would take him on many great expeditions: Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, India, Pakistan, the Hindu Kush, Kashmir, Sikkim, Australia and Europe, always with his camera in tow to capture unusual sights or photographs of birds. Often on his ornithological expeditions, he would be in the company of his great friend and renowned Indian ornithologist, Dr Salim Ali.

Many of Dato Loke’s photographs on birds have won awards the world over including the United States, Australia and Europe. In 1957, Dato Loke published a book A Company of Birds with a foreword by his good friend the Rt Hon Malcolm MacDonald, then Commissioner-General for the United Kingdom in South East Asia. In the book, Dato Loke relates his experiences photographing birds in the many countries he travelled to and illustrated them with many stunning photographs and detailed descriptions of the various species.

Dato Loke’s photographs feature birds both on and above ground. To capture the birds above ground, towers, some more than 130 feet high, were built on which Dato Loke would patiently and quietly perch, covered by a canvas shelter, so as not to alarm the birds, awaiting the right moment to capture them at their most natural. Of particular interest, especially to ornithologists of the time, were photographs of birds nesting. One of his most famous photographs is of the White Bellied Sea Eagle taken in 1949 in Johor Bahru. These photographs won numerous photographic exhibition awards in the UK, USA, India and Australia. The majestic birds were photographed high above in the tree at their nest which was some 8 to 9 feet across and 4 feet wide. As far as it was known then, no successful photographs had ever been taken of these beautiful birds of prey in their natural nesting habitat.

The 80 odd photographs featured in this exhibition which will run till the end of May are reproduced from the originals.

The Cathay Gallery is located at 2 Handy Road, #02-16 The Cathay
Open Mondays to Saturdays, 12noon to 8pm. Closed on Sundays & Public Holidays. Admission is Free.
For more information, email corporate_services@cathay.com.sg