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Celestial Water Carrying No Boundary Five Continents Sharing One Origin (天水无居·五洲同源)

After indulging in a long weekend of China’s national holiday (Labour Day), the Power Station of Art held a grand opening ceremony of Celestial Water Carrying No Boundary Five Continents Sharing One Origin 天水无居·五洲同源 by China artist, Angeliqúe Shidi ( 诗迪 ). It is an exhibition commemorating the Three Years anniversary of the World Expo Shanghai and a presentation of the artist’s works at the Power Station of Art in Shanghai. The opening event was a grand ceremony which many well known Chinese politicians and figures came to support the artist.

Artist Angeliqúe Shidi posed against one of her 10 meter long artworks

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May 8, 2013
“Iran – Unveiled” by Zann Huang

The NUS Middle East Institute is proud to present their first ever photo exhibition featuring the works of a local photographer, Zann Huizhen Huang, who travels regularly to various parts of the Middle East. After 7 years of floating around Europe, the USA, Australia and parts of Asia, the exhibition Iran~UnVeiled, spanning a period of 5 years, allows visitors to see the realities of life in Iran from the Caspian Sea region to the Persian Gulf. Zann had taken considerable risks as a solo female photographer to gain access to people and places in Iran that are prohibited to local women. Zann shared her escapades in Iran at TedX KL 2012.

I asked Zann, “How was this exhibition curated?”

Zann replied, “All my work had been carefully selected by myself which I had sent in for open calls for submissions. The judges will then choose the strongest portfolio of works to be exhibited, among international participants. Following that, I will send my works in high resolution and my artist bio/essay on my work to the festival organisers. My personal selection of images to be displayed for IRAN~UNVEILED has been chosen by myself based on my previous experiences of picking the photos and sequencing them for other major festivals overseas. I believe that I had been through a lot (over 5 years and 20 trips) to document contemporary Iranian society and I personally know which are the strongest and most meaningful images for the audience to see. Since Iran has already been shown in many countries before touching home in Singapore, I am confident of my own curating skills. Many photographers had curated their own SOLO shows and I do not see any conflict of interests in this.”

I followed up with the question, “Why not a third party curator?”

Zann: “As for a third party curator, it may work better for a group exhibition where a few photographers are involved. To ensure fairness and to avoid conflicts of interest, unless it is agreeable with all parties involved in an exhibition, a participant in a group exhibition may, instead of curating the works independently on behalf of his or her team, like to engage a third party curator for a GROUP exhibition.”

I nodded and said, “Yes, I get your point. A Photojournalist present at an event is the best person to tell the story from his eyes. The third party curator might not understand the flow of event, despite having some insight to the topic.”

I asked, “How do you prepare for your trips to these sensitive areas?”

Zann: “There is no sure way to prepare. I just need to be aware of the environment and play by ear.”

Ms Zann Huang will be presenting at Objectifs – Centre for Photography and Filmmaking, on 11 May 2013, 2-4pm. There are limited seats for this talk, so do sign up early to get a seat. This talk is free, but do email [email protected] to pre-register.

Get a glimpse of what it is like to be a photojournalist covering stories in various countries. In this seminar, photojournalist, Zann Huang will be sharing about her experiences covering humanitarian and socio-political issues in countries like Iran, Iraq, Israel and the Palestinian Territories, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, China, Turkey, Tunisia, Thailand and the Philippines.

During the talk, she will also share about how she does her research on the places to go and how she prepares for each trip. You will also get tips on how she goes around getting her stories when she is at a new place.

ABOUT ZANN:

Zann Huizhen Huang began her first serious foray into photojournalism after the tsunami in January 2005. She has covered humanitarian and socio-political issues in Iran, Iraq, Israel and the Palestinian Territories, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, China, Turkey, Tunisia, Thailand and the Philippines. Her images have been published in Time magazine, Le Monde, Geo Italia, L’expresso and other publications in the US, Europe and Asia.

Her works have garnered various awards such as the UNICEF Photographer of the Year 2007 (Honourable Mention) and Le Grand Prix Care Internationaledu Reportage Humanitaire Award 2007 – Top 5 finalists.

Zann has also spoken about her self-initiated and self-funded projects at TEDx Singapore 2012 and about her photo documentation of Iran at TEDx Kuala Lumpur 2012.

Zann’s works had been exhibited at
1. Noorderlicht Photofestival 2006 – Another Asia “Cambodian Glue Kids”
2. Visa Pour L’image Photojournalism Festival 2007 “Cambodian Glue Kids”
as part of the Care Internationale du Reportage Humanitaire Award 2007 – Top 5 finalists
3. New York Photo Festival 2009 “Cambodian Glue Kids” and
“Iran~30 years behind the veil” slideshow.
4. Singapore’s Gallery 2902 in 2009 “Qash’qai Nomads of Iran”
5. Espace Dupon in Paris 2010 “Wedding~Iranian Style”
6. “Child labor project” in collaboration with the ILO-International Labour Organization, exhibited in Holland 2010.
7. Reportage Australia 2010, “Iran~Children of the Revolution”
8. StripBillboard in Melbourne’s Federation Square, Australia in May 2011
“Cambodian Glue Kids”
9. 7th Angkor Photo Festival 2011, “Iran~Children of the Revolution”
10. Arles Photography Salon, 2012 at Les Rencontres D’Arles,
“Iran~Children of the Revolution”
11. Photo Romania in May 2012, “Cambodian Glue Kids”
12. “DISplaced” about the plight of refugees around the world, July 2012 at the Arts House at the Parliament, Singapore.
13. “Women in Iran”, CHOBI MELA 2013, evening slideshow curated by Francoise Callier.
14. “REMEMBER SHATILA” as part of the theme of “RECOVERY”exhibited at the Tenshin Okakura Gallery, supported by the JAPAN Foundation and Goethe Institut, March 2013.
15. “IRAN-Unveiled”, The Arts House at the Parliament, Singapore
from 29 April – 8 May 2013.
16. “Iran~Unveiled”, Photosynthesis Gallery, Month of Photography-Sofia, Bulgaria, 28 May – 15 June 2013.
17. “Iran~Children of the Revolution”, slideshow at Obscura Photofestival, Penang, Malaysia from 21-30 June 2013.

Zann has also covered “Mental Health Issues” in Singapore and was featured in the Asia Exposed 2 series in late Sept 2011 on Channel News Asia which won a silver medal in the Best Social Issues/Current Affairs category at the New York Festival International TV and Film Awards 2012.

Happening 29Apr – 8May 2013 at The Arts House at The Old Parliament
1 Old Parliament Lane, Singapore, Singapore 179429

Ms Zann Huang’s Website:
http://www.eyeofzann.com/

May 7, 2013
The Beauty of Blue: Nuit Sano

The exuberance and expressiveness of myriad shades of blue is brought to dazzling life in the works of Nuit Sano. ‘Nuit Sano: Abstract in Blue’ is the Japanese painter’s first solo exhibition in Singapore held at Nikei Fine Art.

Blue is integral in Sano’s oeuvre. In her paintings, it represents the colour of the sky that she gazed upon while waiting for snow to melt down from the slopes of Mount Iwaki located in her hometown. Inspiration comes from memories and past emotions and these manifest themselves in abstract maps of blue. Mysterious and alluring, Sano’s palette of colour has come to be known as “Sano blue” in the Japanese art world.

In an email interview, Sano discusses her life in art.

Geraldine Lee (GL): When did you become interested in art?

Nuit Sano (NS): Before painting, I was interested in colours. I was brought up in a confectionery shop, and every day you could see a lot of colour. I started with liking colours. My birthday is on November 16, which in Japanese also sounds like ‘nice colour’. My brother inherited the family business. I am the oldest daughter.

In elementary school the whole class had a painting session. Our paintings were put up in the classroom and everyone voted for the best painting. I won the competition, even though I felt the painting next to the winning one was better. It turned out that I had also painted this second painting. I decided that I should paint differently from others. Something had to be done to create a characteristic identity to my work. I painted items scattered on the floor and made use of the items in my art to make it different from others who were painting flowers and scenery. You should not paint as others do, but should strike out on your own to be recognised.

My parents wanted their daughter to have the best education and engaged a good teacher for me. I improved under guidance and became the best artist in my class.

GL: Tell us about your experience in Paris.

NS: My first year in junior high was the year that Japan lost in the world war. Everything was grey, and colour only returned slowly. As it returned, it excited me and my love for colour. European and American movies also came to my village in Northern Japan after the war. It was very exciting. After watching the movies I dreamed about going to Paris, to sit in the streets and watch the world go by. I asked my parents how I could realise this dream, and they advised me that art would be the quickest way to get there.

It was a struggle to go to Paris and to live there. When I entered university in Japan I became a lecturer in the hope that I would make it to Paris one day during my vacations.

I did not go to Paris for my education. I just wanted to go there and walk in the streets and admire the art. At that time I was not thinking about abstract art. When in Paris, I had no intention of going abstract. It was all about traditional art. When impressionist abstract art became popular in the US I became interested, and did both abstract and figurative paintings. I came to realise that my style is abstract.

GL: What sort of techniques do you apply in your works?

NS: I use many types of media. The key is that I use whatever I like. Much of the art is in oils and acrylics.

GL: How do you maintain the ‘freshness’ in your works when you are essentially focusing on one colour?

NS: I use blue as my inspiration. In North Japan the colours of the art are very dark. I wanted to break away from that practice although I come from North Japan. I like to paint strong art that arouses viewers. I like to excite them. Blue is a very strong colour, in my opinion. It represents the region I came from, whereas other colours symbolise warmer regions.

GL: What do you think of anti-conceptual art?

NS: I am in complete agreement with Mr Kato (Hiroshi Kato, Director of Nikei Fine Art) on anti-conceptual art. I express myself on the canvas, and not ‘behind’ it. If the viewer looks at it and likes it, that is very important.

GL: How is your philosophy in life linked to your style of painting?

NS: What is important for me is that I accumulate experience and over a long period, that becomes culture. I believe that once you reach that stage, you can show your works in any country, as they are universal works.

GL: What are your future plans?

NS: To paint, only that. Tomorrow I want to paint better art than today. That’s what I want to do. I would like to paint all that is displayed here (at Nikei Fine Art Gallery Raffles Hotel) in one year, but that’s not possible with my age. What troubles me is how and when I am going to complete works-in-progress, there is still something missing for these. What has been displayed here are the ones which are already complete and the ones I like best. I have 10 works in my studio. Two are going to be finished. It is possible they will be completed next week, but it could take some time before I feel they are completed.

Nuit Sano (seated in blue outfit) posing for a shot with owner of Nikei Fine Art’s owner, Mr Hiroshi Kato and his family

‘Nuit Sano: Abstract in Blue’ (A Solo Exhibition) runs till 20 June 2013 at Nikei Fine Art.

Address: Raffles Hotel Arcade, 328 North Bridge Road, #01-34, Singapore 188719
Operating Hours: 12pm to 6pm (Sun -Tue); 11am to 7pm (Wed – Sat)
Email Address: [email protected]
Contact No: +65 6338 9073

May 6, 2013