Tag: Singapore

  • World School Art Exhibition (Taiwan & South-East Asia) 2021.

    World School Art Exhibition (Taiwan & South-East Asia) 2021.

    The COVID-19 pandemic has changed our lives. Although social distancing and the new normal now define the way we live, the innocence of children, like art, never fails to touch our hearts. The Taipei Representative Office in Singapore, with the assistance of the Association For Education Through Art of the Republic of China (Taiwan), selected 80 award-winning children’s paintings from Taiwan and Southeast Asian countries, including 3 from Singapore, to be displayed at this three-month-long exhibition. In the midst of the pandemic, may we find gentleness in the one-metre gap between people, and together, build a world of love and co-prosperity.

    關於「世界兒童畫展台灣與東南亞」

    新冠疫情改變了我們的生活,社交距離與新常態規範了我們的界線,然而兒童的純真與藝術總能感動人心。駐新加坡台北代表處在中華民國兒童美術教育學會協助下,精選台灣與東南亞國家80幅得獎兒童畫作,包括來自新加坡3幅,於本地展出3個月。期盼在疫情中,透過小朋友們的視界與畫筆,找回「1公尺間的柔軟心」,建立互愛共榮的美力新境界。

    World School Art Exhibition (Taiwan & South-East Asia) 2021.
    World School Art Exhibition (Taiwan & South-East Asia) 2021.

    About World School Children’s Art Exhibition
    In their endeavours to promote international cultural exchange and spur the development of fine arts education for children, the Association For Education Through Art of the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the National Taiwan Arts Education Center have jointly organised the World School Children’s Art Exhibition since 1966. Over half a century of its history, the Exhibition has attracted the participation and support of people from all over the world.

    關於世界兒童畫展

    為促進國際文化交流與兒童美術教育的發展,自1966年迄今,中華民國兒童美術教育學會與國立臺灣藝術教育館共同舉辦「世界兒童畫展」逾半世紀,並廣受世界各國熱情參與和支持。

    The Taipei Representative Office is located at mTower, level 23, 460 Alexander Road (former PSA Building). They are open daily from Mon – Fri, close on weekends.

    By appointment only:
    Interested visitors, please call 6500 0114 or 6500 0136 to make an appointment to view the exhibition. A guided tour is available. Each group should be in groups of 5. Closed at lunchtime.

  • Boo Sze Yang: Dancing with the Wolves

    Boo Sze Yang: Dancing with the Wolves

    Dancing with the Wolves is an exhibition featuring works rummaging around.

    Plato’s notion of an ideal society consisting three main classes of people, producers, auxiliaries, and guardians. A society is just when the relationship between these three classes is harmonious. Each group must be in the right position of power with the others and perform its function appropriately. Aristocracy is the form of government advocated in Plato’s Republic. A philosopher-king rules this regime and thus is grounded on wisdom and reason.

    Boo Sze Yang: Dancing with the Wolves
    Boo Sze Yang – Ai Wei Wei, See No Evil, 2014, oil on linen,120 x 150-cm.

    Life is a constant state of conflict and struggle, driven by the pursuit of desires, power, money, and fame. To find meaning and happiness in our lives, we are constantly challenged by the darker side within ourselves. The root of evil to many of the sufferings, violence, and unjust comes from the wolves within each one of us.

    We give powers to our politicians, hoping that they will do what is right and just. We trust the law enforcers to protect and keep us safe. We hope our fellow citizens are cooperative and play by the rules. But, according to Thomas Hobbes, humans are selfish, destructive, unprincipled, and at war with each other. The vision of an ideal society where people lived in a relatively untroubled society is a myth, like a romantic Korean drama.

     

    Boo Sze Yang: Dancing with the Wolves
    Boo Sze Yang: We Don’t Need Another Hero, 2021, oil on linen, 122 x 152cm.

     

    Boo Sze Yang: Dancing with the Wolves
    Boo Sze Yang: Baby, Come out of the Clouds, 2021, oil on linen, 150 x 200 cm.

     

    All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players”. Shakespeare draws our attention toward the drama everyone lives throughout our lives, equating the life of human beings to a stage performance. Every one of us is an actor, playing our assigned roles at different stages of our life.

    Seeing is believing, but nowadays, we see the world mostly through the television screen or digital devices. We used to be able to visit and witness the processes and happenings backstage. In the digital era, the content that streams through this flattened stage is highly curated, edited and repeatedly broadcasted to get its message through. We may have become passive receivers of what stream through our lives daily, but we need to be active thinkers to sift through the lies.

    Boo Sze Yang: Dancing with the Wolves
    Boo Sze Yang: Leader of the Loyal Opposition, 2021, oil on linen, 122 x 152 cm.

    Good actors effectively communicate the character they are playing to an audience, provoke emotional reactions in their audience, and make people think. Taking references from digital images uploaded on the internet on political situations and social unrest worldwide, the paintings served as comic observation of the drama in the world we live in.

    If life is a stage where we performed for an audience, we must be the author of our story.

     

    Boo Sze Yang: Dancing with the Wolves
    Exhibition Period: 2 – 21 July 2021
    Venue: artcommune gallery, 76 Bras Basah Rd, #01-01, Singapore 189558
    Opening hours: 12 – 7 pm (daily)

  • Free 1 year Insider Membership Pass to the National Gallery

    Free 1 year Insider Membership Pass to the National Gallery

    As part of Singapore’s celebration of its nation’s 55 years of independence, the National Gallery is giving away free 1-year Insider Membership to all Singaporeans and Permanent Residents.

    The annual Insider membership, worth up to $120 in value, provides unlimited and priority access to all exhibitions and 15% discounts on dining and shopping!

    The offer ends on the 31st of October 2020. Click here to claim your free membership, and now there’s no excuse not to visit the museum for some cultural stimulation.

    Exterior of National Gallery Singapore facing the Padang
    The exterior of the National Gallery Singapore facing the Padang. Aaron Eng took the photo.