Yuen Kum Cheong began his career as a landscape architect and planner, contributing towards Singapore’s Garden City, at the National Parks Board (NParks). After a stint in greenery policy-making at the Ministry of National Development (MND), he changed course to the arts and culture industry with the National Arts Council (NAC). His last position in the public sector was Director of Public Relations, Public Outreach and Enterprise Development at the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS). While in public service, he completed the Asia-Pacific Executive MBA programme at the National University of Singapore.

With a strong interest in culture and language, and putting the 20 years of public and private sector experience together, Kum Cheong started his translation company, Yuen Studio 袁译坊 (yuensdo.com), in 2013. In 2018, he completed the Master of Arts (Translation and Interpretation) at the Nanyang Technological University, including the Advanced Translator / Interpreter Training Programme at the Beijing Foreign Studies University.

Kum Cheong currently takes on English-Chinese and Chinese-English translation and interpretation assignments for various industry domains for public agencies and local private companies with their sights set on the Chinese market. He also provides other language-related services, including copy-editing, transcription and language advisory.

Kum Cheong has been involved in translation in the following publications:
• Pulau Ubin – Our Heart And Soul 《情牵石岛 心系敏江》 – Chinese-English translation, 2019.
• Many Chinese-English translations for ThinkChina 思想中国 (thinkchina.sg), an English language e-magazine with a China focus and powered by Singapore Press Holdings’ flagship Lianhe Zaobao, including, among others:
o Wuhan coronavirus: China needs less politics, more science 《何时能见到一个科学生活的中国》 by Prof Zheng Yongnian, Jan 2020; re-published in South China Morning Post (7 Feb 2020) and Business Times (5 Feb 2020).
o Why the BRI needs global private investors? 《一带一路如何吸引私人部门的参与》 by Prof Gu Qingyang, Oct 2019; re-published in Business Times, 23 Oct 2019
• Garden City Singapore – The Legacy Of Lee Kuan Yew (Sponsor Edition) 《掀开花园城市的绿幔 – 李光耀的愿景与硕果》（赞助商版） – English-Chinese translation of selected portions, 2013.

Kum Cheong is an Associate instructor in translation at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (2018 till present) as well as a guest instructor in Translation and Localisation at the Nanyang Technological University (2020 till present). He is a member of the Chinese Resource Panel of the National Translation Committee under the ambit of the Ministry of Communications and Information (2018 till present). In 2018, he was also a recipient of the Translation Talent Development Scheme Co-Sponsorship Grant awarded by the Ministry of Communications and Information.

He currently also paints wall murals and commissioned artworks, with completed murals and displayed canvas paintings in various parts of Singapore, including a display in Floral Fantasy at the Gardens By The Bay. (yuenkcgallery.com)

Kum Cheong is keen to work with like-minded people on publications, translation and interpretation and the arts. Email: yuenkc@yuensdo.com