Headline Singapore Art Week Whimsical works Publication THE STRAITS TIMES Date 2019-01-15 Section LIFE Page Number A1 & D1 & D2 Article Size 3696.757 cm2 Journalist [email protected] (Akshita Nanda) TUESDAY JANUARY 15, 2019 SINCE 1845 AVE $ 43104 | THE STRAITS TIMES | TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2019 INSPIRED BY SUNGEI BULOH D Unusual writing residencies Home 32 Top of the News Life Overcoming WP aims for Oeat across Singapore Add D4&5 the odds Maths one-third of works at for O levels scripts Parliament A7 S’pore Art go Sport missing Week True greatness D1&2 can’t be hurried B1&2 C9 Top of the News IHiS disciplines sta over cyber breach A6 • Opinion Ensuring peace of mindSingapore over Arthospital Week bills A16 Unique and intimate art experi- 590,000 viewers, according to the ences feature prominently in this arts council. but it was overshadowed by other year’s Singapore Art Week (SAW) – Ms Linda de Mello, director, issues that subsequently arose. They the biggest visual arts celebration sector development (visual arts), S’pore to discuss issues with KL will meet again to continue discus- here. National Arts Council, said: “We’re sions, he said. Apart from mega light shows very encouraged that the visual arts WhimsicalThe transport ministers from both organised by National Gallery Singa- community continues to be excited countries have also agreed to meet pore and big-ticket contemporary by Singapore Art Week – over the later this month for further discus- art fairs such as Art Stage Singapore past few years, we’ve increasingly calmly, but will guard its turf: Vivian sions on the airspace dispute. and S.E.A. Focus, there will be a seen more home-grown artists and MPs had filed 14 questions on the number of quirky exhibitions, in- groups keen to be part of SAW. disputes with Malaysia, and seven cluding an interactive installation “Their ground-up initiatives members had supplementary ques- about household chores called uncover new presentation spaces tions for Dr Balakrishnan. Home(work), and one where artists and push creative boundaries in the sures and counter-measures.” READ MORE propriate international third party Concluding his speech, he said: create site-specific works at Sim intersections of art, culture, tech- Countries can expect consequences if they On Malaysia’s extension of port RTS Link project likely to be delayed. dispute settlement worksprocedure if “The strength of Singapore’s diplo- Lim Square – better known for sell- nology, design and heritage. These limits, he said it goes beyond even TOP OF THE NEWS A5 such negotiations fail, he said. macy depends on domestic unity ing functional electronics than dis- innovative ideas also reach out to embark on ‘antics’ against Republic, he says the territorial sea claims in its 1979 Replying to a question from Mr and resilience, and the fact that we playing art. those new to the arts, making the map, which Singapore has rejected S’pore to review adoption law Vikram Nair (Sembawang GRC) on cannot be intimidated or bought.” Running from Saturday to Jan 27, visual arts even more engaging for Linette Lai Last October, Malaysia unilater- consistently. “The inescapable con- and look into surrogacy issue. what actions Singapore could take This is why Total Defence and in- this is the seventh edition of Singa- all.” Political Correspondent ally extended the Johor Baru port clusion is that the new Johor Baru TOP OF THE NEWS A6 if there were further intrusions into vestment in the Singapore Armed pore Art Week, a joint initiative by limits into Singapore’s territorial wa- port limits transgress into what are its waters, Dr Balakrishnan said: Forces are so important, he added. the National Arts Council, Singa- [email protected] ters off Tuas. It has also objected to indisputably Singapore territorial “We will always takeSweep appropriate the floorResilience, to createhe said, includes art and im- exchange items for Robot Coins at Akshita Nanda pore Tourism Board and Singapore Singapore will do its best to discuss the implementation of new landing waters,” said the minister, highlight- sions do not help Malaysia’s legal measures to safeguardIT our mall interest, Sim proving Lim Singapore’sSquare atwater this supply year’s offbeat exhibits and installations Economic Development Board. • For the full Singapore Art Week all outstanding bilateral issues with procedures for Seletar Airport. ing how Singapore has long exer- case. All they do is to raise tensions and any country dealing with Singa- infrastructure, namely Newater and Last year’s Art Week drew calendar, go to www.artweek.sg Malaysia in a calm, reasonable and fo- “Both of these sets of sudden ac- cised sovereignty and patrolled the and endanger navigational safety in pore must not assume that it is desalinated water, strengthening cused manner, Foreign Minister Vi- tions upset the status quo that has disputed waters without any protest the area,” he said. cost-free to embark on any adven- food security by diversifying food vian Balakrishnan told Parliament been in place for many years,” Dr Bal- from Malaysia. Dr Balakrishnan and his tures or antics against us. There will sources, and ensuring a strong, diver- yesterday. But he warned of “conse- akrishnan said in his statement, He also pointed out that daily in- Malaysian counterpart had agreed be consequences.” sified labour market. quences” if other nations embarked where he set out the facts of each is- trusions into these waters by last week to form a working group to He also addressed theQuirky 1962 Water Astake a small state with limited re- on “adventures and antics” against it. sue and highlighted steps that both Malaysian government vessels since discuss matters and de-escalate the Agreement, which Malaysia wants sources, the quest for security and re- Dr Balakrishnan also said he does sides have taken to find a construc- November have continued despite situation in the waters off Tuas. to revise. The attorneys-general on silience has been “a constant, relent- not expect a quick or smooth resolu- tive way forward. “These actions did the Malaysian Foreign Ministry While Singapore believes that mar- both sides had met last onmonth tochores bet- less imperative” since indepen- tion to these issues with Malaysia, not bode well for our bilateral rela- declaring that it would take “all effec- itime boundary delimitation is best ter understand each other’s position dence, Dr Balakrishnan noted. which include disputes over mar- tionship. They created the risk of a tive measures” to de-escalate the sit- resolved through negotiations, it is on whether Malaysia still had the itime and airspace boundaries. dangerous downward spiral of mea- uation on the ground. “These intru- prepared to settle disputes via an ap- right to review the price of water, [email protected] What is the value we assign to domestic labour and how creative can we get while doing household chores? Bangkok faces a polluted new year Artist collective Proxy puts a quirky spin on these questions through its interactive installationThailand is set Home(work) at the National De-to deploy sign Centre for Singapore Artcloud-seeding Week. planes, South The four-member group – MelvinKorea is Wong, Charmaine Poh, Ong Lijiestopping old and Lim Cheng Jun – is creating acars from being “showflat” in a space that is roughlydriven on the 50 sq m. However, this small flatroad and Britain has certain quirks. The fridge doorwants to phase leads to another room, for example,out diesel-only and visitors can play with reimag-trains as nations ined domestic tools. A light installa-fight back to tion is also a kinetic sculpture and areduce air broom has colour pencils in place ofpollution bristles. shrouding their Sweeping the floor is often seencities at the as a menial chore, but sweeping thestart of the new floor in Home(work) will create art.year. Bangkok “We mimic household chores in a(left) has been fun way,” says Proxy memberhit by persistent Melvin Wong, 29, who, like his fel-smog caused by low artists, has been moppinga mix of exhaust floors and scrubbing bathrooms atfrom vehicles, home for more than a decade. the burning of Ong, 25, says: “Why is it whenfields by farmers somebody says: ‘I’m a homemaker’,outside the city we think: ‘That’s not a job and it’sand pollutants not creative’? We want to ask ourfrom factories. viewers how do we value labour inPHOTO: Charmaine EPA-EFE Poh of Proxy models a coat studded with colour pencils and nails designed by the collective for Home(work), an installation about domestic labour and creativity. ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR the context of the household and domesticity.” SEE WORLD A10 Proxy has also opened its showflat to works created by artists Yang Jie, Fiona Seow, Emma Sim Lim VIEW IT / SIM LIM SQUARE Chong, Joseph Chiang and Izzad ART RESIDENCY Radzali Shah, all of whom used or reimagined household tools like Square’s WHERE: 06-53/31 Sim Lim sponges or cups. Square, 1 Rochor Canal Road Three performance artists, Ila, artists WHEN: Until Jan 27, studios Ben Yap and Isabel Phua, will also open noon to 6pm daily, use the space. Ila’s interactive per- CapitaLand buying Temasek unit Ascendas-Singbridgeformances in on Saturday $11b and Jan 26deal exhibition launches on Jan 22 look at how maintaining a house- ADMISSION: Free hold is an art form, and Proxy is Heard of Robot Coins? Taiwanese looking for volunteers to take part. artist Ko Tzu-an is planning to INFO: There will be a guided tour on Saturday. Go to Grace Leong group chief executive of Capita- 40.8 per cent to about 51 per cent.