6 must-catch events at Singapore Art Week 2023

The upcoming Singapore Art Week will take place from Jan 6 to 15 and feature over 130 art events online and across the island.

By Lauren Tan / 4 Jan 2023

Botanical Installation celebrating the launch of ART SG, Southeast Asia_s largest ever art fair. Conceptualised by London-based design studio The Plant, with tropical foliage native to Singapore composed by Thi — Photo: ART SG

January Issue 2023, Singapore Art, Singapore Artists, Visual Art

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A clear sign of Singapore’s vibrant visual arts ecology, S.E.A Focus is returning for its fifth showcase, and will be joined by ART SG — the largest art fair to launch in the Asia-Pacific region in the last decade — as the anchor events for Singapore Art Week (SAW).

Unlike South-east Asian contemporary art fair S.E.A Focus, which is commissioned by the National Arts Council and run by non-profit art practice STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery, the new entry is part of The Art Assembly, a group of major international art fairs, including Taipei Dangdai, India Art Fair, Sydney Contemporary and PHOTOFAIRS Shanghai.

Taking place from Jan 12 to 15 at Marina Bay Sands Expo and Convention Centre, ART SG is presenting over 150 leading galleries from around the world, many of which are making their Singapore debut. They will be accompanied by a line-up of art installations, panel discussions, and experimental film.

Centred around the theme “a world anew”, S.E.A. Focus 2023 explores the vast potential that can be found in humble sources as the region looks forward to new opportunities post-pandemic. It also introduces Collaborations, a new platform within the exhibition space for large-scale works that are made possible through collaborative and synergised efforts. This year, the fair also moves beyond static imagery to shine a spotlight on short films, animations, and video works at the Fringe Film Programme, titled OFF Focus, curated by Objectifs – Centre for Photography and Film, and organised in collaboration with The Projector. S.E.A. Focus returns to Tanjong Pagar Distripark from Jan 6 to 15.

Besides the two highly anticipated fairs, SAW offers a programme of over 130 art events featuring new works and transnational collaborations across the island and online. Other highlights include the return of the Singapore Pavilion from the 59th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia (Biennale Arte 2022) and the ongoing Singapore Biennale, which runs through March 19.

Lines in Space by Tiffany Loy (Jan 4-22)

Lines in Space by Tiffany Loy

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Singaporean textile weaver Tiffany Loy’s art is beautifully intricate, complex, and when site-specific, plays on our perception of depth to create a heightened sense of how we navigate space. An original commission by Art Outreach, Lines in Space by Tiffany Loy is an installation of suspended plaited cords that turn weaving into a sculptural form. The Gillman Barracks showcase also features Loy’s process pieces and past works. Her works have been exhibited at the Singapore Art Museum, National Museum of Singapore, Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art, and La Triennale di Milano.

Find out more here.

Artwalk (Jan 6-15)

Artwalk

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After two years of hybrid events, the multidisciplinary public arts festival wants to engage with you on-site and in person. Set in the precincts of Little India and Katong-Joo Chiat, ARTWALK surfaces the vibrance of our local heritage through wall murals, workshops, live music and performances. In Katong-Joo Chiat, marvel at the wall mural Dekat di Mata, Jauh di Hati by ZERO, attend a stamp carving workshop, and take a private tour of Kim Choo Kueh Chang to immerse yourself in Peranakan culture. Little India is likewise a hive of activities with performances by Damaru Singapore, art installations and rangoli workshops, among others.

Find out more here.

Related: Singapore International Festival of Arts returns amid new curbs

Venice, Pulp III: A Short Biography of the Banished Book (Jan 6-24)

Venice, Pulp III: A Short Biography of the Banished Book

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After a successful seven-month run at the Biennale Arte 2022 in Venice, Pulp III: A Short Biography of the Banished Book by Shubigi Rao has returned home. The presentation marks the midpoint of the artist’s ongoing 10-year project, Pulp, which explores the history of book destruction and its impact on the future of knowledge. Presented for the first time at the ArtScience Museum, visitors can engage with Shubigi Rao’s work through daily screenings of her film, Talking Leaves, and a presentation of her book, Pulp III: An Intimate Inventory of the Banished Book, Volume III of V.

Find out more here.

Light To Night (Jan 6-26)

Light To Night

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The crowd favourite day-to-night visual arts festival is back, and its Art Skins on Monuments Facade Light Projections promises to be brighter and bolder than ever before. To be projected onto the National Gallery facade and the dome of its Rotunda Library each evening till late, new commissions include Changing Landscapes, a collaboration between Cultural Medallion recipient Han Sai Por and projection mappist Flex, depicting the deforestation and biodiversity loss in our environment, and Botanica by British multimedia artists Studio McGuire. Some 60 other programmes are on the line-up.

Find out more here.

January Issue 2023, Singapore Art, Singapore Artists, Visual Art