Tai-Heng Cheng And The Art Of Justice

Courage is the defining trait in Tai-Heng Cheng's career. Not his legal education, borne of degrees from Yale and Oxford, nor his Chinese and English silver tongue, but the self-possession, drive, and track record to stand strong enough to be his authentic self. Cheng is more than an internationally ranked lawyer . Rather, upon reflection, he has built the courage to simply be himself. Courage wins his legal cases; courage has built his art collection; courage has allowed him to find and promote causes that matter.

Cheng openly straddles cultural lines in his philanthropic pursuits. As an openly gay man originally from Singapore, he helped to successfully decriminalize homosexuality in his home country as an American national. A partner at the esteemed global firm Sidley Austin, he commemorated Sidley's 40th anniversary in Asia with the commission of young Singaporean contemporary artworks for the office lobby. Among them was Amanda Lee Koe , an award-winning novelist and short story writer who created a light sculpture protesting the criminalization of gay sex.

AMANDA LEE KOE AMANDA LEE KOE

"Tai is a global citizen with an uncommon ability to transcend professional silos and cultural barriers in the multiverses of law, education, and the arts," extolled friend and colleague Vijaya Kumar Raja S.C. (styled as V. K.), who served as Attorney General of Singapore from 2014 to 2017. "He lights up every space he enters."

In New York, where he has called home for nearly 25 years, Cheng underwrote the first ever Pride at the Frick, a historic Old Master institution known for its black tie galas. The funding also encompassed a book, Living Histories: Queer Views and Old Masters , authored by Aimee Ng, Xavier F. Salomon, and Stephen Truax, and including a foreward by Hanya Yanagihara. This book forever memorializes the oft-undiscovered history of openly queer artists, showcased in a revolutionary way alongside Old Master paintings.

Living Histories: Queer Views and Old Masters

Cheng is a trustee at the Frick Collection, where he hosted the first American Society of International Law (ASIL) gala as Vice President. The event was attended by his friends George and Amal Clooney, who have also previously attended an ASIL event at his home in Chelsea.

The Frick was also his wedding venue with partner Cole Harrell . Although they are currently separated as romantic partners, they remain dedicated to their philanthropy practices through the Cheng-Harrell Institute for Global Affairs, which sponsors a scholarship for graduate interns at the Smithsonian Institute's National Museum of Asian Art (formerly the Freer Sackler Museum). The fund looks for people of diverse backgrounds to contribute to and benefit from the ever-evolving institution. Launched in April 2023, the institute hosted a panel discussion in tandem on the ethics of cultural property protection in conflict zones.

Cheng is also an art collector, having quietly acquired archaic Chinese bronzes and ancient ceramics for nearly three decades. His Old Master paintings include the widely published David and Goliath by Alessandro Turchi. Like his personal evolution, the collection spans East and West, old and new, timelessly encapsulating intellect and sophistication.

"Tai has curated a remarkable collection of art, documents, and fine objects, but to characterize him merely as a collector would be an understatement," explained Ian Ferreyra de Bone, Managing Director of Global Books, Science, Pop Culture, and Real Estate at Sotheby's. "In my experience, he is someone who thoughtfully curates the world around him."

Cheng has some incredible tales from his storied legal career, from his negotiations with the National Rifle Association to the vintage Ferrari collector who introduced him to the Pope. But it is his dedication to cultural consciousness that will have staying power, as well as his ability to sync art and law so effortlessly.

In the contemporary sphere, Cheng recently commissioned Dutch portraitist Philip Akkerman to paint him into of 17th century florals by Nicolaes van Verandael. The floral painting was unfinished for hundreds of years, as it typically would have included a portrait. Cheng saw the work on view at Hoogsteder & Hoogsteder in the Hague and decided to complete it.

Cheng was the presiding arbitrator for the Peace Palace in the Hague during a dispute deciding whether China violated a treaty, when he noted that the International Court of Justice was simultaneously conducting a hearing on Gaza. He arranged for Mauritshuis, home of Vermeer's Girl with the Pearl Earring, to remain open for the judges of the Hague to privately enjoy.

"Having served on international tribunals, I was well aware of the weight of decision in these cases that affect entire countries," Cheng recalled. "I hope that the private social gathering of judges and arbitrators of the various international courts to enjoy art at Mauritshuis provided a brief respite that allowed them to return to their duties refreshed, and enhanced collegiality among themselves, which can be so helpful in working through complex international problems and achieve consensus on a tribunal wherever possible."

And that's just it. The transcendent power of art is a conduit to justice, and vice versa. Next up, Cheng's philanthropy will conquer London. The Cheng-Harrell Institute commissioned four permanently installed murals at St James's Church Piccadilly in 2023. They commemorate the 250th anniversary of Ottobah Cugoano's freedom, the first emancipation of an enslaved African in England, where he was baptized as a free man to ensure its permanence. Cugoano subsequently became an abolitionist and helped many others.

"It was particularly meaningful to me that a friend who descended from the family that freed Cugoano attended the commemoration dinner," Cheng recalled. "A moment of truth and reconciliation!"

Cheng continues to support his alma mater, St. Edmund Hall at Oxford University. "Tai's support is instrumental in allowing us to complete our new environmentally sustainable student accommodation block and within this creation of a shared social space, with the provisional name of the 'Cheng-Harrell Junior Common Room'," said Baroness Katherine Willis, Principal at St Edmund Hall. "Many of the beneficiaries of Tai's support will themselves go on to join him in making meaningful and impactful contributions to society as a result of the opportunities he has enabled for them. We feel honored and privileged to have Tai as an alumnus of St Edmund Hall."

So, with the courage to be himself, to stand up for justice, Cheng has created multitudes of pathways for others to do the same. That is indisputably the largest part of his longstanding legacy.