Category Archives for "Blog"

0 Inmates take part in meaningful art exhibit

A new art show is proving to viewers that inmates are just as deserving of compassion and understanding as people who have never been to prison. The show highlights different pieces of art created by both male and female inmates in the Changi prisons. As a whole, it provides a window into the experiences of these individuals, and shouldn’t be overlooked. The show ends early in September.

Nearly one hundred pieces of art by inmates are on display as a part of the special exhibition, showcasing everything from the desire to fit in to the necessity to focus on the positive. Created by both former and current inmates, the masterpieces offer a valuable insight into prison culture and the importance of accepting people’s mistakes. Everything from ceramics to traditional canvas pieces are on display, each with its unique message and background. A superintendent of one of the prisons remarked that inmates’ experiences in prison color much of the art pieces, lending meaningful storytelling to the work. Art can be a way for inmates to work through and process their feelings about the crimes they committed and the incarceration they must endure as punishment. Even after the punishment phase in complete, consequences continue. Many former offenders find they must still win back the trust of their loved ones upon being released from prison.

The highlight of the art show is from a former inmate who now runs his own art gallery. His body of work shows that though concrete steps are taken to move forward, the darkness of the past crimes remains ever-present. It is important, then, to keep focus on the good and positive in life to avoid returning to that dark place.

A government official who attended the opening night of the show expressed interest in the intrinsic healing nature of art for inmates. Expressing themselves in sculpture and on canvas might prevent them from feeling left out of society. It might even dissuade them from falling through the cracks in the prison system and embracing crime from behind bars.

Perhaps the most visible piece of art at the show is a giant boat. The wood on the sides is emblazoned with batik designs in different stains and the sail is actually a painting of a traditional fishing scene. Thought impressive itself as an art piece, the story behind it is even more powerful. The women and men in the different prisons collaborated on it, showing just what can be achieved if people simply work together toward a common goal.

Art can be a very powerful way to examine your feelings and experiences, and you might be surprised at the outcome once you’ve completed a project. Visit SGArtClass.com today to see a vast listing of all the different art classes you can take. It doesn’t matter where your interests lie — ink drawing, watercolor painting, 3-D sculpture, and more. You will be able to explore your own experiences through art.

Read more about the special exhibit by visiting http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/art-exhibition-showcases-inmates-emotional-journeys.

0 Performance art immerses participants in escapism

An art collective has taken advantage of the popularity of so-called escape rooms by tooling their own creative experience to match the kinds of things participants might be asked to do. Escape rooms are so-named because they require of participants to take part in exercises, actions, and puzzles to try to unlock and leave a room within the allotted time. What the LGB Society of Mind is doing reflects just how popular such entertainment is right now by asking for participation by more than one hundred people at the same time.

I Am LGB, the name of the experience, starts out by closely mirroring public school practices in Singapore and the broader Southeastern Asian region. In many public school experiences, students are asked to conform to expectations, achievements, and social norms, and are rewarded for doing so. Members of the art collective organize participants into large groups, encouraging them to do such activities as dance. Even if people are not accomplished dancers, they begin to find comfort in the fact that everyone in their group is dancing, and conform in that way. Throughout the experience, participants’ decisions affect the outcome. If someone conforms too enthusiastically, for example, then they might lose out on access to viewing a challenging piece of art that might not have conformed to expectations. As the experience goes on, less and less emphasis is placed on conformity, and more focus on individuality is encouraged. Art itself is a celebration of individuality — individual thoughts and reflections on culture, events, and society. Even if people stand out, it is often to the betterment of their communities that they do so. Thinking outside of the box is a great way to bring a different understanding to the table and encourage others to do the same. With more diverse interpretations of a single thing we have, there is a greater chance of understanding it from all possible angles.

The I Am LGB experience encourages participants to think and analyze their actions. What are they doing in the moment? What does that action signify? What would happen if they take apart that action and think about it in that way, completely deconstructed? Gradually, the big groups are broken down as a part of the experience and the individual is celebrated with role-playing based on real Singaporean performance artists.

Art can span many genres and take on many forms, and there is sure to be a focused study that appeals to everyone. Find your artistic niche by enrolling in an art class via SGArtClass.com. From artistic photography to video art, you will be led on a creative journey by an expert teacher. It doesn’t matter if you’re an experienced artist or someone just getting started on their push for knowledge and experience. You will learn the skills necessary to understand your chosen genre and continue to grow in it, completing interesting projects.

To read more about the innovative performances, go to http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/arts/singapore-international-festival-of-arts-i-am-lgb-is-real-escape-game-from-singapore.

0 Hundreds of Singapore artists unite for Noise festival

This year’s Noise Singapore Festival is sure to attract new devotees to music and art, as it will be the site of many performances and exhibits. Hundreds of young artists across multiple creative genres will be taking part as a way to continue to promote art within the next generation.

The event, which will span more than a month, will completely transform two areas of Singapore into art and music venues. Everyone from casual passers-by to those excited about the festival itself will be able to visit and enjoy events scheduled throughout the time period. One of the most exciting exhibits will be a showing of artworks by participating creative minds. The unifying theme behind all of the art will be “Uncharted,” meaning that artists will be able to interpret it based on their own lives and experiences. Uncharted can signify many different mindsets, including going off the beaten path, exploring places you or other people have never ventured into before, or simply embracing ideas that might never have been addressed before.

The approach for the festival includes incorporating both visual and auditory art. The aim behind this is to draw as many people in as possible. If Singaporean youths are interested in musical performances but might not yet be willing to attend art shows, they will be exposed to new sights once they see the art that will accompany the bands and singers they came to see. Likewise, people who normally visit art museums might discover that they are fans of some of Singapore’s best new talent in the musical scene by stopping by a performance.

While visitors are definitely a focus of the event, artists and musicians themselves are part of the primary aim. The organizer of the festival emphasizes the fact that Noise Singapore Festival works to encourage young and emerging artists to really embrace their creative side. The festival also provides a venue for artists who have not necessarily enjoyed the visibility of a solo show to get their work out into the public eye. As there are many artists taking part, the festival serves as a way for creative minds to collaborate and become inspired by one another, ensuring that art will continue to be an important part of Singaporean culture for generations to come.

You might be surprised about all the benefits practicing art could give you. From enhancing your creative skills to helping you relax after a stressful day at school or work, practicing art is a wonderfully healthy hobby to develop. Visit SGArtClass.com to see all the different art classes you could take. From fashion drawing to nail art, or oil painting to pencil portraits, SGArtClass.com has loads of art classes suited to every interest. Expert art teachers will be able to help you find your passion and create art masterpieces to celebrate it.

To read more about Noise Singapore 2016, go to http://ca.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/1481802/200-artists-come-together-for-noise-singapore-festival-2016.

0 Singapore’s art boom has surprising roots abroad

Just like Singapore itself may be considered to be a place full of rich cultural collisions and international dealings, art in Singapore shares many of the same roots from around the world.

In the 1950s, a group of artists traveled abroad. When they returned, they brought with them the Nanyang style of art, which became formative to Singapore’s art style and history. Though art in the country since then has changed dramatically, all of it sprang from this singular style, which remains important and significant to this day.

This theme of taking inspiration from other places has persisted in Singaporean art. In the 1980s, Singaporean artists started incorporating experiences and learned techniques from their time in other countries into the art they developed in Singapore itself, inspiring both viewers of the art and other artists to continue thinking outside the box of their own understanding and experiences. In the next decade, the Singaporean government began to promote artists and fund them to help them grow and create more prolifically. The art boom took off, and continued to blossom throughout the 2000s and beyond. This has enabled Singaporean art to be seen and sought after on an international scale, including highly lauded art show and world-renowned auction houses.

Even though art in Singapore is always reaching outward into the world, Singapore has been promoting artists from the inside. Multiple fairs and festivals around the year seek to promote Singaporean artists’ works. There are many venues that celebrate both homegrown creative minds and young and emerging artists, providing them with the platforms they need to be seen and grow as artists. At the same time, art organizers in the country have been bringing in experts and festivals from around the world. This means that established Singaporean artists can enjoy a brand new international audience and show their works in festivals attended by prominent art dealers and collectors — people willing to invest capital into their masterpieces.

Singapore itself is ideally located in Asia to be a hub for international travelers and businesses. This has also become an advantage for artists, galleries, and museums. Experiences and dealings with other countries in the Southeastern Asian region and beyond have worked to inspire and steer artists’ creations, adding highly valuable collaborations to the repertoires of people who previously only had art experience within their own minds.

If you’ve always wanted to experiment with art but weren’t sure where to start, visit SGArtClass.com. SGArtClass.com is a highly comprehensive website that compiles a vast list of art classes you can quickly and easily sign up for. Whether you’re interested in 3-D art, acrylic painting, or pastel drawing, you will be matched with a teacher well suited to take you through whichever projects are most interesting to you. It doesn’t matter if you’re a seasoned artist or if you’ve never drawn anything since your childhood.

To read more about the history of Singapore’s most recent art scene boom, go to http://www.todayonline.com/entertainment/arts/national-day-special-2016-home-not-always-where-art.

0 Don’t miss family-friendly art installations around Singapore

Singapore is enjoying one of the most exciting artistic renaissances throughout the entire world. From brand new art galleries and a highly impressive museum to art initiatives responsible for giving artists the extra push to be able to create masterpieces for a living, the nation has become known as something of an art destination. This has served to transform the way people consider Singapore — which used to be only known as a shopping and business mecca. Now, people are traveling to Singapore with the purpose of enjoying its art and culture. It’s easy to visit a museum for a day, but some people might overlook the hidden gems of Singapore’s family-friendly art murals and installations, which are located all over the city.

In one such mural, a barber gives a boy a haircut in a highly realistic painting on a wall bordering a road. A dog slumbers in the corner, ready for attention from one of the barber’s customers, while a broom and dustpan are poised to collect the clippings from the trim. Another boy — perhaps the brother, cousin, or friend of the one getting the haircut — is reading a comic with historical and cultural significance to Singapore. The perspectives and shadows make the entire scene so realistic that passers-by might believe it to be a pop-up shop on a sidewalk.

Another scene depicts a woman washing laundry with a washboard and metal tub. Pieces that have already been cleaned are hanging to dry — fabrics in wild patterns and brightly colored shirts. A small child peeks out from beneath one of the skirts, and a family of chickens peck around the ground for something to eat.

A food store is the subject of yet another mural. Chock full of spices and grains heaped in overflowing bags, as well as shelves stocked with cans, tins, and boxes, the store looks inviting and well-provisioned. Fish and other food nag from the ceiling, and a hyper-realistic puddle drains into an actual water drainage system on the road where the mural is positioned. A moped is parked just outside the shop, adding an extra dose of realism.

Other murals around Singapore depict larger than life animals ranging on the art spectrum from highly stylized to photo realism. Children at rest and play decorate other walls, including two racing in real shopping carts and another prankster holding money from a string. Everywhere you look, art is present, so don’t miss anything on your next journey through the streets of Singapore.

Mural painting is one of the most visible and accessible forms of fine art, removing the gallery or museum from the picture and giving the art directly to the public. If you’re interested in this art form, consider taking a class on mural painting via SGArtClass.com.

To learn more about the wide variety of murals and other family-pleasing art around Singapore, go to http://travel.asiaone.com/travel/destinations/kid-friendly-street-art-singapore-4-places-visit.

0 Children affected by Japan disaster get gift of art

It was a disaster with effects that were felt around the world — a devastating earthquake and tsunami that triggered the worst nuclear meltdown since the Chernobyl incident in Russia in the 1980s. The Fukushima disaster in Japan highlighted just how fragile life was at the time, disrupted by the threat of radiation, whole towns uprooted and moved away.

Perhaps some of the individuals most affected by the fallout were the children of those towns, forced to move again and again to different hotels as their parents scrambled to find new accommodations safe from the disaster. Friendships suffered, and even as towns were cleared and residents allowed to move back, many declined to. In the schools these children now attend, many desks sit empty, reminders of the community that had been lost to the disaster.

With many children at risk of developing or already showing signs of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder from the event and what happened afterward, Singapore teamed up with Japan to offer a special art therapy camp program for the children, flying them to Singapore to stay and sort through their feelings while having fun with other peers and art. Children have full camp days, staying busy in their stress-free time away from home. In Singapore, art therapy is a recognized benefit for all, enabling organizations to build upon the perks and develop special regimens for the children who suffered through the disaster.

However, children who take part in the art therapy aren’t asked overtly to create art pictures detailing their personal traumas. That might instead cause the children to shut down to protect themselves and their memories and fears. Instead, children are encouraged to keep a scrapbook of art that they contribute to every day, a safe place to express their feelings and their experiences. Art therapists organizing the events say that occasionally, traumatic images do pop up in the projects — references to the earthquake, tsunami, or the people lost in the disasters — but that children are allowed to process the events on their own terms and time. Using art to sort through the feelings on the disaster is a good way for children to heal without invasive techniques or added trauma. Instead, they’re laughing and playing with each other, learning about new art forms like calligraphy, dry pressing, collage, and much more.

Art is therapeutic in of itself, whether you take a class specifically designed for therapy or if you just pick up a pencil and piece of paper and sketch out whatever’s on your mind. Think about taking an art class today to glean all the benefits associated with art, including stress reduction, a boost in creative problem solving skills, and increased communication. Visit SGArtClass.com today to browse the many classes available with teachers who know exactly how to help you seize new art skills and derive the benefits associated with them.

To learn more about the art program helping the Fukushima children, go to http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/cnainsider/healing-art-for-fukushima/2990722.html.

0 Art car on display as part of exhibit

A Singapore artist’s body of work is now on display as a part of a special exhibit, but it’s not only his signature batik paintings and metal etchings that are hanging from the walls. In the middle of the exhibit space, a classic car that the artist painted is parked for all to see and enjoy.

The artist, Singaporean Chieu Shuey Fook, painted the car as a part of a charity auction nearly thirty years ago. The painted beauty on wheels was borrowed from its current owner to be a part of the exhibit of Chieu’s works. The artist said he was surprised and delighted that the automobile’s colors have been so brightly preserved. Many tens of hours went into the design and execution of the car’s artsy paint job, and the end result is still impressive after all these years. The classic car is decorated in wild swirls of blues, yellows, oranges, reds, whites, blacks, and purples, making it seem like it leapt off a canvas or magazine page or childlike fantasy and straight into the exhibition. If driven in the streets today, it would certainly turn heads, though it is perhaps best preserved as what it is — a work of art.

Chieu is perhaps best known for his batik paintings, which account for his earliest works of art. Prior to becoming a full-time artist, he first worked in advertising. And when he realized that keeping and maintaining a full set of paints for his work was quite expensive, he turned to metal work, including etching, as a way to both cut costs and stand out from the rest of the artists emerging in Singapore at the time. Not many practiced cutting designs into metal sheets for a creative living, allowing Chieu to stand out and make his name in that genre.

Chieu has also recently compiled a book detailing his artistic history and creative works. He said it was the dream of his wife, who died several years ago, that he publish such a tome, giving honor to the hard work and masterpieces he has brought to life over the decades of his illustrious career. The art car is just a colorful blip in the long history of Chieu’s creative mind.

Painted art cars are just one facet of everything art can be. Perhaps you’ve always been interested in automobiles but are just realizing that you have an interest in art, as well. Painting a car — or murals of vehicles, or oil landscapes that include cars zooming down winding roads — might be right up your alley, opening a new avenue of creative expression. Consider signing up for an art class in your preferred art genre via SGArtClass.com. SGArtClass.com is a one-stop shopping website for all things art, connecting you with talented teachers who will help you complete art projects you’re most interested in.

To read more about the painted car and the rest of the art on exhibit, go to http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/arts/artwork-on-wheels-for-beautiful-singapore.

0 Singapore artist to take part in Indonesia event

With the success of Art Stage Singapore, the Art Stage festival itself is looking to put down roots in other locations around the Southeastern Asian region. This year, Jakarta, Indonesia, will be the host of its first Art Stage experience, drawing new attention and art establishments to prominence. That doesn’t mean that the spotlight is off of Singapore quite yet, though, as a number of art galleries and artists are preparing to participate in the Jakarta leg of the Art Stage journey. Ink artist June Lee Yu Juan will be one Singaporean artist on display in Indonesia.

This emerging artist has already attracted international acclaim after catching the eye of a newspaper reviewer amid a display in France. She uses Eastern influences and historical skills in ink painting to help bring a contemporary twist to her pieces. She hopes that her pieces will help younger generations remember their pasts and where they came from, decrying the notion that the youth don’t care about their heritage. Her rich works of art will help anyone start getting in touch with their own personal histories.

The artist has a particularly exciting set of masterpieces rendered in breathtaking innovation. She has created ink calligraphy that has then been transformed into metal sculptures, then transformed again into photographic portraits, creating multi-layered and multi-dimensions in the work. The photo itself, though flat, takes on a three-dimensional appeal, the folds of metal almost as delicate as a fine mesh, the lighting in the photograph making the viewer’s eye strain for additional details outside the primary illumination.

Another ink drawing depicts spots of stars and swaths of galaxies brightening a night sky. The irregularity of the ink medium beautifully reflects the organic nature of the universe, and as a viewer gazes at the canvas, they are likely to remember the last time they really peered into the night sky and wondered about their own existence.

Yet another piece that will be on display combines the flowing nature of ink with decidedly geometric shapes. Sharp edges of triangles and other parallelograms contrast with blotches reminiscent of star clusters, moss, and other atmospheric elements. It is strange to equate dusk, or sunset, with an art piece recreated in blacks, grays, and whites, but the artist manages to evoke a sense of ending in the composition.

Embrace your creative side by enrolling in an art class today. Visit SGArtClass.com to investigate all the many different classes you could take to either further explore an already existing interest or develop a new one. From 3-D sculpture to calligraphy art, or photographic art to artistic printing, expert art teachers will help guide you through projects and genres of your specific interest. It doesn’t matter if you’re an existing art student looking for a creative boost or someone who’s never picked up a paintbrush before.

To read more about the Singaporean artist’s participation in the upcoming event, go to http://sea.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/1460591/singaporean-artist-june-lee-yu-juan-heads-to-art-stage.

0 Singapore festival to include art performers on the move

Singapore is prepared to embrace the night with the return of this year’s Singapore Night Festival. In years past, the innovative event has been dominated by feats of talented acrobatic acts and mesmerizing light shows. This year’s festival will still included these popular attractions, but it will go another step forward to offer participants additional quality entertainment.

What’s new at this year’s Singapore Night Festival is the inclusion of theater acts and performances that will be on the move throughout the city. There are a number of different zones in which people can enjoy the displays that will be a part of the event, and these performances will roam throughout them, offering all those interested a chance to continue to watch the shows they put on. Theater troupes from across the world will be taking part in this exciting festival, putting on their unique acts for all who care to see them.

The theme for this year’s festival can be described as a mashup of technology and history, a tale of innovations to come and the danger inherent of tinkering with life and the world. Science and all of its considerations will influence the acts and displays, and it will be a celebration of the hard work and genius that goes into making our world modern.

The roaming theater acts will be adhering to this theme in several exciting ways. One troupe from the United Kingdom is putting on a show that has been described as a love story — only set in a post-apocalyptic world. Two people travel together, their clothes shabby and worn, wearing dark goggles and scarves concealing their faces. This perhaps reflects the idea that something terrible has happened to the environment or atmosphere. Accompanying them is a large wheel in which all of their worldly possessions — and the things they need to survive — are stored. The show combines engineering and acrobatics in addition to the love story that lies at the heart of it.

Another pair of performers hailing from France will roam the streets of the Singapore Night Festival in ordinary suits, looking perfectly normal except for one crucial detail: they’ll be wearing fishbowls on their heads. This act will address themes of communication — or the lack thereof — and common courtesy in today’s world of social media and text messages.

Performance art is a fantastic opportunity to explore the boundaries — and push through them — of traditional art and the way we understand it. To continue — or begin — your journey of art appreciation, think about signing up for an art class via SGArtClass.com. Classes on assemblage art, video art, theater art, and much more will help you learn about all the different art forms that can go into performance art. Teachers will help you pursue your specific art goals of learning about costume design, fashion, recycled art, and wherever else your imagination takes you.

To read more about the acts expected to participate in this year’s Singapore Night Festival, go to http://news.asiaone.com/news/lifestyle/roving-art-performances-hit-streets-singapore-night-festival-2016.

0 Artist’s still-life exhibit in Singapore previewed ahead of show

Next month will see the art exhibit of a talented Malaysian watercolor painter hosted at a Singaporean gallery. The show will be the first in a series organized by a Singapore art group ahead of the upcoming ASEAN Day, which is a celebration of arts from across the Southeastern Asian region.

Lok Kerk Hwang is a highly talented artist well-versed in what it takes to make watercolors leap to life on paper. His show, which is an exploration of light that illuminates everyday objects, is an extremely detailed examination of textures and patinas emanating from his subjects. A collection of the artist’s pieces that will be on display were made available to preview ahead of the show.

One of these paintings leaps to life in everything from the background to the subject itself, a plate of grapes picked fresh from the vine. The painter uses light to play with the globes of the bunch of grapes, which includes twists remnants of vines and vibrant leafs, still green from the recent picking. Each and every grape has been faithfully reproduced, rich in color and texture, from the brightest, whitest greens picked up by highlights from the light source, to brown-speckled grapes concealed in shadow. Even the grain in the wood table the grapes are presented on looks true to life, and the dark green brushed background is a perfect compliment.

Another watercolor painting takes on a technically challenging subject — water itself. The vertical painting plays with the reflection of a battered boat at dock. The boat itself only takes up perhaps the top third of the canvas, but its longer reflection in the harbor reveals more of the details of what the vessel actual looks like. However, ripples and light in the water obscure the viewer’s vantage point, concealing more details about the boat’s appearance. The water itself appears true to life, milky and beset by ripples and waves — and perhaps even raindrops flinging themselves down from the cloudy sky.

A third intimate portrait by the artist is of the back tire and seat of a bicycle. However, the bicycle isn’t new, or even recently purchased. It is a mode of transportation that has been used and used by whoever last loved it, then put out to pasture, so to speak. It is impossible to tell what the frame might’ve once been painted, as most of it has been eaten away with rust and exposure to the elements. The viewer can imagine what such roughness feels like under hand, as the rust is thoughtfully speckled and textured by the talented artist.

Watercolor is one of the most accessible forms of painting, and a great way to start your artistic journey if you’re thinking about signing up for an art class. Visit SGArtClass.com for more information about watercolor painting, including tips and techniques, and connect with teachers for additional instruction.

To read more about the upcoming show, go to http://sea.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/1468426/datebook-lok-kerk-hwang-at-ion-art-gallery-singapore.