Out of Season

By Ng Yi-Sheng

Rather than zooming in on a big budget musical or an experimental foray this month, I’ve decided to have a look at Singapore’s oldest surviving theatre group: the amateur British expatriate dominated Stage Club.

Since 1945, this troupe has performed seasons after seasons of shows, mostly classics from the old country: Shakespeare, Wilde, Coward, and on this occasion, someone a little more contemporary: the popular, prolific playwright Alan Ayckbourn.

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Aesthetic Contrasts of Asia

By Gillian Nelson

I may have mentioned in the past that pretentious exhibition titles are a sure-fire way to get a critic's pointed attention. Very often, the presentation falls far short of the extravagant claims that rise from the grandiose exhibition titles. In relation to the exhibition I saw recently at Fill Your Walls gallery though, the quality of the work is actually significantly better than might be suggested by the rather far reaching, if somewhat dry, title. Presented by duo Kirsty Furniss and Mathieu Augereau collaborating as KA'a, the exhibition spans maybe fewer than ten pieces and sits in the strange but engaging antechamber to the classroom at Fill Your Walls. 

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Monochromatism

Works by Tan Teng Teng

By Usha Nathan

12 - 31 Dec, Mulan Gallery Pte Ltd

Aspiring artist Tan Teng Teng, who completed her studies in fine arts at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) in 2007, will be having her first major solo exhibition of her new as well as early works at Mulan Gallery this December. We spoke to the artist to find out more about these works and her art practice.

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New Image

Works by Chieu Shuey Fook

By Rofan Teo

19 Dec - 18 Jan, Black Earth Art Museum, N° 352B Joo Chiat Road

It was in the 1970s. A milestone period in the history of telecommunications as the first invented computer filled the world with exhilaration mixed with anticipation of what was to come. Though having grown accustomed to finding fault with internet, computers and mobile phones, it would be hard imagine the glorious and rarefied moments when the popularity of such technology took hold of the world. This sentiment is impressed on the metal relief by the notable and earliest work of Singapore pioneering artist Chieu Shuey Fook.

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Artists as university residents?

In July this year, The Substation and Singapore Management University embarked on an experi-ment: placing artists-in-residence at a university. The partnership programme called the SMU-ASEAN Artist Residency sees artists from S’pore and Southeast Asia spending up to three weeks at a time at SMU until January 2010.

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Seeing the Invisible

An Insight to Conservation

By Syed Muhd Hafiz

In the exhibitions-making world, objects and artefacts often take centre stage. Artists, curators and the exhibition teams would be the next ones to be in the limelight, as visitors would mingle with them on opening nights exchanging name cards and quizzing those involved on their creative processes and inspirations.

Seeing the Invisible is an exhibition with a contrasting approach. For the first time, an exhibition has been mounted to highlight a group of individuals whose efforts are paramount in executing a successful exhibition.

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Uncovering An Original

Through Professional Conservation

By Bob Feldman

For more than a decade, Renate Kant has been tirelessly conserving paintings in Singapore for art collectors at international standards and with the highest quality. In her new studio, tucked away in a quiet area near Novena Square, magic can happen. What was hidden is revealed, what was torn is seamlessly touched up, what was broken, faded, flaked away or yellowed becomes newly refreshed with reversible media to its originally intended splendour.

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ECAL Luxury and Design

Between Form, Function and Status

By Syed Muhd Hafiz

Design has been said to be an informal indicator of economic performance, cultural regeneration and social well-being. This statement is vindicated when one observes the proliferation of design festivals in our regional neighbours. The third edition of the Bangkok Design Festival saw 27 events happening a few months ago in October. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia also held its inaugural KL Design Week earlier this year between March and April.

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