By Willy Wilson | Nov 2, 2009

Susanna Goho-Quek - addicted to antiques

A keen interest in decorating propelled Susanna Goho-Quek into the exhilarating world of antique furniture and collectibles despite having been trained in fashion design in London. The passion for aesthetics led to the setting up of House of Suzie Wong in Starhill Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, in 2005. (The House of Suzie Wong has since relocated.)

The native Singaporean's journey into becoming a respected name in this unique business, however, was quite a rollercoaster ride. From the corner of her eclectic shop, the 67-year-old tells Star Property about her unique career, exotic Oriental antiques and why she wants to open a museum one day.

A Cultured Lady
It is hard not to be in awe when in the presence of Susanna Goho-Quek. Susanna, who is of Chinese and Indian descent, does not only look particularly youthful, but she also exudes a magnitude charisma and eccentricity that spell culture.

Her career choices justify this; before establishing herself as one of the most respected names in the antiques and collectibles market, Susanna was an interior decorator, art exhibition planner and a fashion designer. She also occasionally paints, a hobby-cum-profession that she has been doing for decades.

Although varied, all of these jobs fall under the same category: art. And Susanna has her family to thank for her innate artistic talents.

“It all happened by accident,” says Susanna of her diverse career choices.

“I grew up with antiques in the house,” she adds, “Tradition, culture and arts were big parts of my upbringing.” Admittedly, the love for arts and tradition run in her family. Her grandmother, who came from China, was one of thousands of Chinese women who abided the bound foot tradition; her late brother was a Chinese Opera performer whose intricate costumes inherited by her; her son Kenneth is a talented photographer and has been helping her with the antique business for years.

But young Susanna never really appreciated the artistic surroundings growing up, including the valuable antiques and collectibles in her family house.

“I never had the intention to own them. But my mother gave me some when I got married,” she says. Susanna, who had planned to live in a modern house with her husband, was reluctant to receive the antiques her mother passed to her.

“My mother told me ‘Keep them and one day you will be grateful’”, Susanna recalls, “And she was right.”

Fell in Love with Antiques
Of her job as a professional decorator, Susanna comments, “By fluke or plain luck, I don't know. I guess it just happened, again, by accident”. Susanna, however, credits her first painting exhibition, where she managed to sell about 30 pieces, as being an eye-opener for her natural ability in decorating a house.

“Strange, right?," she chuckles, "See, I would send my painting to my customers myself. And I would insist to arrange the position of the paintings in their house. I didn't redecorate the whole house; but just the rooms where the paintings were. It is an ego thing as an artist.”

Her sharp instinct in aesthetic soon became popular. Many of those who bought her paintings hired her to decorate the whole house.

One satisfied client after another, Susanna quickly become a preferred name as decorator in the elite circle. Her clients would give her money to shop for the furniture and furnishing products, and let her decorate their houses as she wished. It was during this period that Susanna learnt about her natural style in decorating spaces.

“I began to realise that my sense of aesthetic came from the tradition and culture that run in my family,” says Susanna, “Only at that time I realised that I had fallen in love with antiques.”

Her new-found love of antiques has since brought her to unexpected lands in the name of treasury hunting. She travelled through China, Mongolia and Tibet, and all the way down to Sulawesi (Indonesia).

Susanna admits that she has a soft spot for China, especially Beijing, for its magnificent culture. Despite her limited Chinese proficiency, Susanna would travel through the villages with trains and rented cars. "It is really fun!" she enthuses.

During expeditions like this that she found some of her most favourite items. There are foldable neck pillow, hatstand, Chinese Islamic rug to Lotus shoes (Chinese bound foot shoes) and tableware and porcelains from the Ming dynasty.

Lotus shoes / Bound foot shoes.

"I have over 1000 pairs of bound foot shoes in my personal collection," she says.

Down to Business
“Over the years, I had collected a large collection of antiques for my clients,” she says, “But many of which were too hard to let go. So I keep them and showcase them in museums,” she says.

"But business has not been good for the past six months or so," she laments. The current economy crunch causes a slowdown in the antique and collectible market. Though it may have temporarily damaged her business, Susanna is not a quitter. In fact, she is already planning to hold a major exhibition once the economy gets better.

"I want to do Chinese Opera costume exhibition to pay tribute to my brother, who had left me his gorgeous performance costumes when he passed away," she says.

Susanna explains the exhibition is still at a very early stage. But she is quick to add that she is open for collaboration with a third party, should anyone be interested.

Of her long-term plan, Susanna enthuses she would love to have her own museum to display all her antiques. As the lady speaks, I could not help but thinking about the old adage that goes 'life begins at 40'. Evidently Susanna Goho-Quek has proved the saying wrong.

New lamp with antique carving (far left), foldable head rest (mid left), portable hat hanger (mid right) and foldable Tibetan table (far right).

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