By Laura Shen
These articles were first published on a.m.post, Hong Kong, Nov 2014 issue
Lens-Based Life Spy
Singapore International Photography Festival 2014, 3, Oct-30 Nov, 2014
National Museum of Singapore, ArtScience Museum, Singapore Art Museum, Chapel Gallery, Public Libraries and so on
Under the theme of “The Infinity”, Singapore International Photography Festival 2014 celebrates the endless possibilities that ideas and collaborations can bring. Not only hosted by museums and galleries scattered around the city, but also public libraries within communities. Exhibitions consist of Chinese, Southeast Asian and worldwide photography open showcases, Singapore local photographer’s visual dairy as well as theme exhibitions Types: After Becher and An Ocean of Possibilities. Artists and curators including Gu Zheng, Ark Fongsmut, Erik Vroons, Sim Chi Yin and Gwen Lee talk on special turn in Chinese contemporary photography, Thailand photography trends, printing photo books and magazines from Europe, and how to be a photography collector. In this interactive festival, visitors practice portfolio review, signature development, day out camera experiment, photojournalist skills and self-publishing through miscellaneous professional workshops and education programs. A festival easily touched in neighbourhood, residents go to community public libraries on weekends to enjoy photographic treasure hunt, photo zine making workshop, guided tours, and vision hunt night out. Opening ceremony, party, book show, film screening, campus replay and evening presentation are also alive. The festival is pushing boundaries to present refreshing and meaningful content as well as going beyond the ordinary to create a memorable experience for all.
Explore Art Expression Forms
Appreciating Art Lecture Series, Fridays, 10 Oct, 17 Oct, 24 Oct, 21 Nov, 5 Dec
7:30 p.m-9: 00 p.m
Glass Hall & Moving Image Gallery
Singapore Art Museum and SAM at 8Q
From traditional painting and drawing, to currently popular photo-media, until the avant-garde performance and installation, through history, artists continue to explore different forms of art expression. This autumn, Appreciating Art Lecture Series in Singapore Art Museum holds a series of public conversations covering five topics of painting, photography, performance, drawing and installation, a panorama discussion of diverse art forms with Singapore’s leading artists, curators, writers, educators and lecturers. In Painting in the Past, Present and Future, Tony Godfrey discovers how new technology, different materials and methods influence painting, the most traditional art form. When camera and lens become the most prevalent tools for today’s digital age, David Teh reminds people not to ignore the special power behind this media, why and under what theme that it makes sense in Beyond Representation: Photo-media in Southeast Asia. Loo Zihan explores how performance art can be viewed by its spectator in Materiality, Performance and the Spectator. Joshua Yang proposes the question of whether drawing is a noun or verb, an act or a thing in Drawing from Life. Finally, Twardzik Ching Chor Leng examines the origins, current scenario and future of installation art, especially its relationship with human being’s sensorium through From Lascaux to Bras Basah: Installation Art and its Origins.
