Leo Hee Tong's development of the genres of academic landscape and still life painting to semi-abstracted compositions may be the hallmark of his painting career. Using unusual colour combinations to accent his work, Leo's compositions have been based on an academic drawing approach to which he has applied modern cubist expression.
 
Leo’s works are often composed from images of local scenes. Following in the tradition of the Nanyang style of composition, Leo appropriated subjects from his Singapore Chinese culture for his paintings. He also tried to ‘modernise’ the treatment of the painted surface with the use of textured mixed media. Leo was a proponent of the semi-abstract painting which was popular with some artists in the 1980s and 1990s. This painting New Year Celebrations is a semi-abstracted still life that celebrates the local Chinese cultural traditions.

Other works by Leo Hee Tong in the Singtel collection include Moonlight (1991), Crimson Celebrations (1991) and Twinkle Night (2010).