26 March – 30 June 2015 Over 70 programmes across 7 cities
Singapour en France – le festival presents an opportunity to discover the art, culture and heritage of Singapore – one of the most unique city-states in the world. The Festival marks a special year celebrating 50 years of Singapore’s Independence, as well as 50 years of diplomatic ties between Singapore and France.
Singapore has historically been a gateway to Southeast Asia and the larger Asian region beyond. As a major trading post for the exchange of goods and ideas since the 14th century, Singapore has always participated in the wider world beyond its shores, while remaining rooted to its region. The multi-ethnic and multicultural mix of its people reflects this geographical context and historical experience. Attributes such as the country’s openness to the world, a “can-do” attitude, as well as a sensitivity to the nuances of local cultures have nurtured an artistic and creative community that draws inspiration from international movements and influences, while at the same time striving to create expressions that push beyond the boundaries of western artistic canons and forms. Artists in Singapore have become adept at both looking forward and looking back; at adapting and experimenting. The youthful and adventurous spirit of this festival is expressed through the ability of our artists to invent and push into new areas of expression.
Singapour en France – le festival is co-organised by the National Heritage Board (Singapore), the National Arts Council (Singapore) and Institut français (IF), France’s agency for international arts and cultural projects, and supported by Singapore’s Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development, and Ministry of Culture and Communication in France.
For more information on the Festival, please visit: www.singapour-lefestival.com.
About Singapore
If there is one dish to describe Singapore, it would be rojak.
Rojak describes a local dish we love: a vegetable and fruit salad, with a savoury-sweet dressing made from prawn paste, sugar, peanuts and lime. The mélange of flavours mirrors how our different origins, religions, and cultures have blended over the years to create a unique Singapore identity.
Rojak also loosely suggests “mixed” in Malay, one of our four official languages. We even speak a distinct form of English, known as Singlish, so you can tell who’s a Singaporean by the “lahs”’ and “lehs” he uses!
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Singapore is a fast-paced, modern nation but this little city of 5.3 million embraces the old as much as the new.
Colonial-style bungalows, conserved pre-war flats and rustic shophouses contrast with sleek skyscrapers and modern architecture. Traditional coffee shops, known as “kopitiams”, are as popular as hipster cafes selling artisanal coffees. Western classical paired with Chinese orchestra? No problem. We also love shopping the big brands, as much as trawling flea markets and quirky shops for indie labels and unexpected finds. Formula 1 racing or firewalking? You can get both in Singapore.
This is why we’re “rojak” and loving it.
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March 2015
1. Paradis sans promesse | Paradise with no promises Presented by FRAC des Pays de la Loire in collaboration with the National Heritage Board (Singapore) and the National Arts Council (Singapore)
Dates: Residency – 5 January to 8 March 2015 Exhibition – 7 March to 10 May 2015 Venue: FRAC des Pays de la Loire, Nantes
The XXIXᵉ Ateliers Internationaux du FRAC des Pays de la Loire presents five young artists from Singapore: CHUN Kai Feng, Godwin KOAY, JOO Choon Lin, LOO Zihan and Kray CHEN Kerui.
The respective works of these five young artists from Singapore each reflect, in their own way, the tensions inherent in this pragmatic and piecemeal utopia—tensions between a cosmopolitan society at the crossroads of many cultures and the conformism of morals and manners that holds sway there; between economic liberalism and the authoritarianism of power; between blatant individualism and constant reference to the community; between democratic aspirations and the search for stability; between the power of a state-of-the-art globalised metropolis and environmental and geopolitical vulnerability; between openness to the world and its flux and the crystallisation of national identity. As such, it is a society in the making, where a whole generation of young people is seeking a vocation and a common interest over and above the mere sum of interests in common.
2. Residency at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Studios Presented by the National Heritage Board (Singapore) in collaboration with Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) Studios
Dates: 1 – 30 March 2015 Venue: Cité internationale des arts, Paris
Speak Cryptic and Angie SEAH embark on a residency at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Studios at the Cité internationale des arts in Paris to create new works for the exhibition Archipel Secret at the Palais de Tokyo.
3. Singapore-France Writing Residency at the ECLA Aquitaine, Bordeaux Presented by National Arts Council (Singapore), in collaboration with the ECLA Aquitaine, and managed by Arts House Limited
Dates: 2 March – 13 April 2015 Venue: ÉCLA Aquitaine, Bordeaux
The National Arts Council (Singapore) and ÉCLA are pleased to present Mandarin poet and writer CHUA Chee Lay at the ÉCLA Aquitaine in Bordeaux, France.
4. Singapour et l’Asie du sud est à l’honneur – ART PARIS ART FAIR 2015 | Art Paris Art Fair: Singapore-Southeast Asia Platform A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
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Dates: 26 – 29 March 2015 Venue: Grand Palais, Paris
Seven member galleries of the Art Galleries Association Singapore (AGAS) will attend the Art Paris Art Fair: Art Plural Gallery, Chan Hampe Galleries, Element Art Space, iPreciation, Singapore Tyler Print Institute, Sundaram Tagore Gallery and Yeo Workshop. An additional Singapore gallery Intersections will also be participating.
The Singapore gallery sector, a nexus for Southeast Asian contemporary art, is currently experiencing unprecedented international exposure. Integral to this growth is the integration of Singapore galleries into international art fairs. The galleries participating in this edition of Art Paris Art Fair represent the diversity of the gallery sector in Singapore, and present to this audience a unique perspective of contemporary art production in Singapore and the Southeast Asia.
In addition to exhibiting at Art Paris Art Fair, artist CHEN SAI Hua Kuan (represented by iPreciation) will present a new work Ling Ting No.2 at the front of the Grand Palais, AGAS will be hosting a symposium on Thursday 26 March, 2pm at the auditorium, Grand Palais and the curator of the Singapore Southeast Asia Platform, Iola LENZI, will be hosting two tours on Wednesday March 25th, 11am and 3pm.
5. Archipel Secret | Secret Archipelago Co-produced by Palais de Tokyo (Paris, France) and National Heritage Board (Singapore)
Dates: 26 March to 17 May 2015 Venue: Palais de Tokyo, Paris
Secret Archipelago excavates ideas and practices in contemporary art by artists from the Southeast Asian region through newly commissioned artworks. Covering an area of more than 2 million km2 and traditionally known as the Malay Archipelago, Southeast Asia, a resource-rich land and sea mass, is the largest of its kind. It is the region where Singapore finds itself pivoted in, performing a role akin to an axis of political, economic and cultural developments and exchanges even before European colonisation in the 17th century. This large-scale exhibition is the second project by NHB at the Palais, one of the most inspiring contemporary art centre in Europe. Besides the new works and installations, Secret Archipelago includes a series of appearances and interventions by invited artists, performance art pieces and curator talks.
For more details on the artworks, please refer to the file in: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/nnl0om37wp6f4a6/AAAsSr4-OlhJBKIXNMU1UHDZa?dl=0
Artists: Ahmad ABU BAKAR, Reza AFISINA, Ruangsak ANUWATWIMON, LIU Cheng Hua, Chris CHONG Chan Fui, Mideo CRUZ, Kawayan DE GUIA, Dex FERNANDEZ, Azmy HASSAN, ISE, Aung KO, Aye KO, Zai KUNING, LE Brothers, Gerald LEOW, Kamin LERTCHAIPRASERT, Lynn LU, Tran LUONG, Vendy METHODOS, Hayati MOKHTAR, NADA, Zaki RAZAK, Tisna SANJAYA, Svay SARETH, Angie SEAH, Shirley SOH, SPEAK CRYPTIC, Rich STREITMATTER-TRAN, Dennis TAN, Jedsada TANGTRAKULWONG, Ryan VILLAMAEL, LEE Wen, Andrée WESCHLER, Iwan WIJONO, Anida YOEU ALI.
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6. The Incredible Adventures of Border-Crossers Co-commissioned by Singapour en France – le festival and the Singapore International Festival of Arts. Directed by ONG Keng Sen, Festival Director, Singapore International Festival of Arts With support from the National Archives of Singapore
Dates: 26 and 27 March 2015 Venue: Palais de Tokyo, Paris
Picture Of A Chinese Lady In An English-Styled Dress Fixing Her Hair Before A Full Length Mirror (1900-1930). Image from Lee Brothers Studio Collection. Courtesy of National Archives of Singapore.
On invitation by Palais de Tokyo for the opening of Singapour en France – le festival in Paris, Ong Keng Sen creates The Incredible Adventures of Border-Crossers, a new performance forged in collaboration with creative talents specialising in design, photography, film and sound (Chris Lee of Asylum, Reckless Ericka, Brian Gothong Tan, Francis Ng, Kaffe Matthews). It tells a story of past-present-future through the voices of border-crossers. Real-life border-crossers who have never acted before (from Europe, the Americas, and the Asia-Pacific) are invited to be performers in this piece. Sharing their everyday stories as incredible adventures, they inhabit the installation as singing, dancing, re-performing pioneer travellers who are captured by the Lee Brothers Studio in Singapore, a unique photo salon of 1910.
The Incredible Adventures of Border-Crossers is a stunning combination of visual culture, live film, fashion, documentary and photo-performance that envisions communications in a not-so-distant future megapolis, a heterotopia of individuals.
The Incredible Adventures of Border-Crossers will be re-staged in Singapore in September for the 2015 Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA).
7. Made in Asia Festival – Singapore Edition A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival. Presented by tchin-tchine, with support of City of Toulouse, City of Blagnac, Département of Haute-Garonne, Region of Midi-Pyrénées, Institut français, So Toulouse, Asia, Eyekard
Dates: 27 March to 12 April 2015 Venue: Various venues in Toulouse
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The Made in Asia Festival, a unique event taking place in the southwest of France, is aimed at promoting a better understanding of contemporary Asia, and at building bridges between Eastern and Western countries.
On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Singapore (the Lion City), Made in Asia #8 is a partner event of Singapour en France - le festival, which is organised by the Institut français, the National Heritage Board (Singapore) and the National Arts Council (Singapore).
The Festival will feature how Singaporean artists embrace modernity and technology but are influenced by their strong cultural traditions.
Programmes a. Short films, a programme proposed by The Substation 31 March 2015 Cinema ABC, Toulouse
A selection of short-films made by the young film-maker generation. They show the Singaporean society with no concession.
b. Ilo Ilo by Anthony Chen 8 April 2015 Cinema ABC, Toulouse
The movie shows a Singaporean family’s everyday life, in the late 1990’s, at the time of the economic crisis.
c. Tatsumi by Eric Khoo 12 April 2015 Cinema ABC, Toulouse
Post-war Japan through the work and life of the mangaka Tatsumi.
d. The Singapore Video Collection 27 March – 12 April 2015 Espace Croix-Baragnon, Toulouse Médiathèque Cabanis, Toulouse
This programme is a collection of artistic videos, cartoon movies, photographies and installations shown in the city venues. It draws the sensitive portrait of a more contrasted country than it seems to be.
e. WE: Defining Stories, exhibition with the support of The Straits Times and National Museum of Singapore 2 April – 3 May 2015 Médiathèque Jose Cabanis, Toulouse
These photographies reveal the history of a young country, from its struggle for freedom, to its multicultural construction.
f. Singapour/Toulouse insolites, photography exhibition 24 March – 17 April 2015 Alliance française de Toulouse, Toulouse
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Alliance française students in Toulouse and Singapore will take photographies of the city they live in. One theme is proposed: “A strange city”. The Singapore exhibition will be part of the Semaine de la francophonie.
g. Foundin Residency and Solo Exhibition 27 March – 26 April 2015 Fondation Ecureuil pour l’art contemporain, Toulouse
A city installation of 700 miniature plastic figurines left in public places to be found by passers-by. This public art and web connected installation created at the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2014 engaged over 8,000 participants and 31,000 online viewers on the project website. Tan Wei Keong holds a diploma of Fine Arts in Digital Animation from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Tan Wei Keong is part of the digital art new generation.
h. Talk by CHOY Ka Fai with students of Université Paul Sabatier, Toulouse 27 March 2015 Université Paul Sabatier, Toulouse
i. Notion: Dance Fiction by CHOY Ka Fai 2 April 2015 Studio du CDC, Toulouse
At the intersection of art, design and technology, Choy Ka Fai tries to understand the conditioning of the human body, its intangible memories and the forces shaping its expressions. Graduated from the Royal College of Art London, he was granted the Singapore Young Artist Award in 2010.
j. Earth by HO Tzu Nyen 1 – 12 April 2015 Chapelle des Carmélites, Toulouse
Ho Tzu Nyen, one of the major directors in Singapore, creates films, videos and performances often related to historical and philosophical texts and artefacts. Inspired by Le radeau de la meduse, Earth takes us to an unreal world created with hypnotic images. Earth evokes Noah’s Ark, or the survivors after an air crash, between historic reference and science fiction.
k. Atelier des chefs 27 March – 12 April 2015
Made in Asia offers cookery classes to discover Asia’s gastronomy. A festival of culinary tastes that will appeal to everybody!
l. Focus by Kham Companie in collaboration with two Singapore dancers 2 April 2015 Espace Bonnefoy
In this French-Singaporean creation, Olé Khamchanla shows the body memory, using the dancers’ eclectic backgrounds inspired by Malay, Chinese or Indian dances. The aesthetics of hip-hop, bûto or traditional dances meet in the dancers’ total commitment.
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m. Residency for Debbie DING, Zul MAHMOD and Espaces sonores and Je de cartes exhibition 2 – 26 April 2015 Maison Salvan-Labege, Toulouse
The three artists present a sensitive geography of Singapore with maps, interactive installations, sound testimony and geographical location devices. A sound map will also be available on the Web (Radio Aporee) with new sounds on a daily basis. A contribution to the Singapore patrimony.
n. Vibrational by The Observatory and Guitarkestra 9 April 2015 Metronum, Toulouse
The Observatory is a major art rock band based in Singapore. The band’s philosophy is the perpetual change with progressive sounds, heavy guitar riffs and lyrical tension. Vibrational unites 15 French guitarists and their amps with the Singaporean band to create beat frequencies. Like a modern ritual Kecak performance from Indonesia.
o. Music performance by T’ang Quartet 10 April 2015: Chapelle des Carmélites 11 April 2015: Abbaye de Belleperche, musée des arts de la table
The T’ang Quartet group’s musical dexterity has surprised and delighted. The T’ang Quartet’s creation is an artful blend of East and West. The members’ charisma and intuitive connection as a group serve a smart, sharp and cosmopolitan music.
p. China-Singapore relationship forum 30 March 2015 Université Jean Jaures, Toulouse
q. Passeport pour l’art
Workshops and interventions in primary school classes, on the history and the cultures of Singapore, meetings with artists of the festival.
8. Est-Ouest / Nord-Sud Organised by Orchestre Symphonique de Bretagne Conducted by Darrell ANG, featuring Singapore Chinese Orchestra Pipa Principal, YU Jia
Date: 28 March 2015 Venue: Philharmonie de Paris
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Darrell Ang. Photo courtesy of Darrell Ang.
True tour of the musical world, this concert is inspired by the four cardinal points, with, as anchor, a new work by Ibrahim MAALOUF. The programme will open with a baroque piece of Rameau, inspired by the Orient as far away as fantasised, will continue with the Rio carnival atmosphere with music by Darius Milhaud the traveller, then will stop in contemporary China by composer TAN Dun, before ending with the creation of the first symphony by Ibrahim MAALOUF.
Conducted by Darrell ANG, this programme will feature Singapore Chinese Orchestra Pipa Principal , YU Jia.
9. Urban Fork, a photography and design exhibition A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Date: March to June 2015 (TBC) Venue: TBC (Please check updates via the website: http://urbanfork.com)
Urban Fork is echoing the quote by Michel Serres: “The change of meaning, even minimal, is creating meaning… and if there were no forking, there would be no meaning … “. Following an original work on the Peripheric Boulevard in Paris, Philippe Diversy, in duo with photograph Bob Lee (李欣赏), is now concentrating his attention on the large building that have been built in Singapore back in the 60s.
The architectural heritage of a city or a territory is more than the simple collection of elements that have been gathered in a place: it is an evolving process by which, generation after generation, a community builds the narrative that provides a meaning to its uniqueness. It is also the mark of the successive blendings and sedimentations that have forged the unique character of the territory. It is eventually the result of the multiple eyes that have been contemplating this irreplaceable element.
In 2013, Philippe Diversy diverted the messages on light advertisements installed on a number of buildings next to the peripheric boulevard, as a way to attract attention on their heritage value
The “Samsung” neon sign that ornates one of the buildings from the “Cité Universitaire Internationale” was thus transformed and replaced by mention of the name of the architect of the building: « Claude Parent ».
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By doing so, Philippe Diversy’s objective was to enhance (as a way to regain ownership) the heritage value of the building, by ostensibly signing them with the name of their creator. It thus enables anyone to decipher, interpret and meditate while watching his work: « Urban Fork » à Paris : http://urbanfork.fr
In Singapore, due to the growth of the population (from 1.6 million inhabitants in 1960 to more than 5.3 million today) the government ordered the construction of large buildings. Today, the architectural heritage from this period is of much interest.
Jean Wee, Director (Preservation of Sites and Monuments), National Heritage Board, explains that some buildings from the 60s and 70s are interesting because they are testimonies from Singaporean architects efforts to create their own style. As such they are part of the city-State history.
Nevertheless, the constructions from this period tend not to be appreciated by Singaporeans as much as they should. It is this very situation that on the first place stirred the attention of the parisian graphic designer Philippe Diversy and the Singapore based photograph Bob Lee (李欣赏).
How can we help the Singapore inhabitants regain ownership of this heritage? The answer is to be found in the continuity of the work realized in Paris back in 2013: « Urban Fork » in Singapore: http://urbanfork.sg
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April 2015
10. Verticalité | Verticality Organised by Centre Intermondes in collaboration with NHB for Singapour en France – le festival.
Dates: 1 April – 15 June 2015 (Singapore-France Land Art Residency) 5 June – 30 October (Exhibition) Exhibition Venues: Les jardins du Centre Intermondes, le «jardin des Simples» de l’Hôtel d’Orbigny-Bernon et le jardin de l’hôpital Marius Lacroix.
11. Deux Monologues Singapouriens | Two Singapore Monodramas A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates / Venue: 28 March 2015 at Vingtième Théâtre, Paris 2 April 2015 at Horizons du Texte festival at Université Paul Valery, Montpellier 3 April 2015 at Théâtre Libre, Saint-Etienne 15 June 2015 at Théâtre Montansier, Versailles (TBC) 12 and 13 June at Le 104, Paris
Written in 1985, twenty years after Singapore's independence, Stella KON’s Emily of Emerald Hill and KUO Pao Kun’s The Coffin is Too Big for the Hole profoundly marked the history of the Singapore theatre.
Stella KON's monologue depicts a matriarch as fierce and as fragile, funny and touching, her personal fate often overlapping with the modern history of Singapore. KUO Pao Kun’s play evokes a world torn between its roots and its development through a Kafkaesque situation at a funeral.
Deux Monologues Singapouriens offers the French public to read these texts in the raw state, without scenery or costume, by Brigitte Damiens and Stephen Szekely under the direction of Marc Goldberg (who also translated the two texts), opening a window on a country, a culture and a theatre of the young city-state.
12. Akalika 7 Presented by Kham Compagnie in collaboration with Frontier Danceland
Datess: 8 to 11 April 2015 Venue: Le Tarmac, Paris
Frontier Danceland. Photo by Justin Koh
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Akalika 7 is a work that explores the different emotions evoked in choreographer Olé Khamchanla when he first encountered the expressionless, yet energetic paintings of visual artist and painter Gilbert Cam, alias Akalika. First created as a solo on himself, Khamchanla has experimented with a half-length version of Akalika 7 during his residency with Frontier Danceland (Singapore) in February/March 2014.
The full-length version of Akalika 7 will now be developed through a unique collaboration between Frontier Danceland (Singapore) and Kham Compagnie (France), and will be performed by Khamchanla and dancers from both dance companies. Akalika 7 will be premiered at the Les Hivernales Festival, Avignon in February 2015, before a series of performances in the Le Tarmac Festival, Paris.
13. Singapour Underground | Singapore Underground Presented by The Observatory, Gaïté Lyrique, Paris, and Le Lieu Unique, Nantes
Dates / Venue: 10 April 2015 at Gaïté Lyrique, Paris (The Observatory, Tara Transitory aka One Man Nation, and DJ Ujikaji)
11 April 2015 at Le Lieu Unique, Nantes (The Observatory, Tara Transitory aka One Man Nation, SA (仨), and DJ Ujikaji)
Singapore group The Observatory was formed in 2001. Throughout their journey from folk electronica to dark wave, across Bangkok and Bergen, and through multiple line-up changes, The Observatory has never looked back.
The Observatory - a name that seemingly implies passive objectivity, but which really describes a band whose musical output is an impassioned response to the society it is enmeshed in, a society divided, a society in tumult -- where new forms of oppression must be actively met with new strategies for resistance. The heart and soul of The Observatory is in its constant reinvention. With each release, the members have persisted in their experimental take on the pop songform.
Texturally complex and viscerally emotional, The Observatory's music crosses wasted borders to parallel polarities within human existence, provoking and inspiring in a deeply enigmatic way. The gang of four are huge music fans, drawing inspiration from their Southeast Asian roots and contemporary heroes of new music and art, to create a stirring concoction of potent and powerful extremes.
As part of the Festival programme, The Observatory will team up with fellow Singapore underground artists DJ Ujikaji and Tara Transitory aka One Man Nation and avant Chinese ensemble SA (仨) to present two evenings of music that transcends boundaries, giving the audience an experience like no other.
14. Art Garden Presented by National Heritage Board (Singapore) and lille3000 (France) 12 Information correct as of 3 March 2015
Dates: 15 April to 6 September 2015 Venue: Gare Saint-Sauveur, Lille
Once Upon A House by Dawn Ng, 2010, photograph, 80 x 117cm. Image courtesy of artist.
Presented by the National Heritage Board (NHB) in collaboration with lille3000 at the Gare Saint-Sauveur, Art Garden is a family-friendly contemporary art exhibition of interactive and engaging works by Singapore artists and animation filmmakers. This exhibition is part of NHB’s popular Art Garden series in Singapore. Art Garden examines the metaphor of the Garden as a construct that extends and transforms the essence of what is artificial and real. Inherent in Art Garden is a balance between acts of intervention and unpredictability, the orderly and the untamed, knowledge and invention. The line between reality and illusion blurs in this Art Garden journey that is full of curiosity, humour and irony.
The exhibition will occupy a 2000 m2 space at the Gare Saint-Sauveur, a former train station for goods in Lille. The city of Lille was appointed the European Capital of Culture in 2004. For more details on the artworks, please refer to the file in: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/nnl0om37wp6f4a6/AAAsSr4-OlhJBKIXNMU1UHDZa?dl=0
Artists: Daniel YU, Dawn NG, JOO Choon Lin, LEE Wen, Mojoko and SHANG Liang, Mojoko and Eric FOENANDER, MUHAMMAD Izdi, Ryf ZAINI, Sandra LEE, Sheryo, Zulkifle MAHMOD, and various filmmakers.
15. Open Sea Presented by National Heritage Board (Singapore) in collaboration with Museum of Contemporary Art, Lyon (France)
Dates: 17 April to 12 July 2015 Venue: Musée d’art contemporain de Lyon, Lyon
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Female Flying Angels by Heri Dono, Artist’s Collection, image courtesy of artist.
The exhibition Open Sea borrows as an allegory, the fluid and porous character of Southeast Asian lands and seas, introducing and inviting visitors to position themselves amidst situations, statements and ideas of its art and artists from recent times. In a combined presentation of existing and newly commissioned artworks as well as ‘live’ performance art pieces, artist and curator talks, the exhibition illustrates the contemporary psyche, aesthetics and inter-connectedness of Southeast Asia.
Historically known for its maritime routes which were an alternative to the more well- known over-land Silk Route, the Southeast Asian region were channels for global trade, travel and migration. Since the 1500s, the use of vernacular languages, especially Malay, as the traditional lingua franca of the trading communities of the region has nurtured the exchange of goods, people and ideas. This has in turn stimulated the meeting and hybridisation of cultures and languages, the import of religions, diverse spiritual beliefs and an emergence of syncretic practices that are still visible and remain in the consciousness and daily practices of its people and art today. Yet, despite the apparent synchronous qualities, strong nationalist and ethnic traits, propelled by the struggle for independence and modernisation of the region within the past century, are also prominent features of the region. As a regional axis of exchange, Singapore has been a witness to and inevitably hosting a multitude of transfers and exchanges that have left lasting imprints and reservoirs of cultural knowledge. Although physically small, the position of Singapore as a pivot to the region remains till this day. Artists from the region flock to Singapore to meet and dialogue through exhibitions, forums, fairs and other cultural programs in what is often viewed as a fairly neutral and conducive ground for discourse. It is this very basis of openness and collectivity that Open Sea is composed and presented.
Spread over 2000 m2 of gallery space at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MAC) in Lyon, Open Sea invites visitors to be introduced to, and be immersed in ideas percolating the artworks through workshops, artist and curator talks as well as ‘live’ performance art events. For more details on the artworks, please refer to the file in: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/nnl0om37wp6f4a6/AAAsSr4-OlhJBKIXNMU1UHDZa?dl=0
Artists: Lina ADAM, Anida YOEU ALI, Apotik Komik, BOO Junfeng, CHANG Yoong Chia, Chris CHONG Chan Fui, CHONG Kim Chiew, Louie CORDERO, Marisa DARASAVATH, Heri DONO, Jeremy HIAH, YEE I-Lann, Sutee KUNAVICHAYANONT, Charles LIM, Nasirun, Dawn NG, NGE Lay, Uudam TRAN NGUYEN, Jun NGUYEN-HATSUSHIBA, Sherman ONG, Akshay Raj SINGH RATHORE, Navin Rawan CHAIKUL, Pinaree SANTIPAK, Angie SEAH, SHEN Shaomin, Yudi SULISTIYO, Vertical Submarine, Entang WIHARSO, Ming WONG, MUHAMMAD ‘Ucup’ Yusuf 14 Information correct as of 3 March 2015
16. Focus A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Date: 21 April 2015 Venue: Châteauvallon - Centre National de Création et de Diffusion Culturelles
A collaboration between Kham Compagnie, and Singapore dancers, Sze-Wei CHAN and Jian Hao LEONG, Olé Khamchanla brings out the memory of the body, and focuses on the technical details that give an identity to dance. Drawing from the eclectic course the Singapore dancers, this confrontation derives rich differences and influences from hip hop, bûto as well as Chinese and Indian traditional and contemporary dance.
17. Urban Explorations: Snapshot of Two Cities A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates: 27 April to 31 May 2015 (Residency) 3 to 14 June (Exhibition) Venue: Atelier Damien Valéro, Paris
Urban Explorations is an ongoing investigation of how people of various communities around the world relate to aspects of their urban environment through the senses. The project brings together a group of artists/researchers/scientists to participate in urban sensing, an art-science approach to exploring the conditions of an urban space through data collection from low-tech tools and equipment. Their findings will then be transfigured into designed objects or artifacts that come together in a molecular group exhibition representing snapshots of a particular city at a particular time in both an objective (data collection) and subjective (artifact) manner. Urban Explorations takes into account the emerging trends of Citizen-science and the Maker Movement as the context behind its concept. Citizen-science reflects the current demand for a community driven bottom up approach to science that focuses on hands- on interactions with scientific methods and solutions. This model overlaps with the Do-It- Yourself practices of the Maker Movement that prioritizes independent innovation and self-reliance in the creation process.
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May 2015
18. Soul Journey by Siong Leng Musical Association (Singapore)
Dates & Venues: 11 May 2015 - Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord, Paris 12 May 2015 - La Comète, Châlons-en-Champagne 13 May 2015 - Le Lieu Unique, Nantes
Siong Leng Musical Association
Soul Journey seeks to provide a rejuvenating experience for the senses and nourishment for the soul and mind with the gentle charm of Nanyin. In this performance, traditional Nanyin is merged with its Zen influences, and with other elements such as vocals, percussion and liyuan dance, to bring new life to this ancient art form. We aim for Soul Journey to be a musical experience which will engage the 5 senses and captivate the audience's body, heart and soul. Recognised by UNESCO as a masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of humanity, Nanyin is included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
19. When Equation Dance - TANGO A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates: 28 May 2015 Venue: Le Cube, Issy-les-Moulineaux
When Equations Dance – TANGO is a project containing a dozen 30-second pieces inviting viewers to a journey through 3D image equations and music generated by the artist LIN Hsin Hsin, who choreographs them in real time via her phone. While this digital choreography takes shape on the screen, viewers see spinning, twirling images. Whether these consist of the silvery weaving of floating Adagios into a monotonous melody or arabesques in movement, nothing is accidental and everything is the result of orchestration via a mobile phone. LIN Hsin Hsin had predicted this style of mobile life in her painting Voices of the Future in 1994, and her poem Mobility in 1999.
20. Singapour mon Amour A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates & Venues: 12 June 2015 and 3 July 2015 (TBC) - Cinematheque francaise, Paris 16 Information correct as of 3 March 2015
4 June 2015 - Musée du Quai Branly, Paris 5 and 7 June - Eglise Saint Merry, Paris 6 June 2015 – Centre Pompidou, Paris 17 June to 12 July 2015 - Le Point Ephémère, Paris
Original text in French:
Au-delà de la puissance flamboyante de Singapour, des artistes de cet état-cité explorent les conséquences sur la vie de ses habitants de cette parure, en apparence, majestueuse qui en cinquante ans a radicalement métamorphosé leur ville et leur culture. Pour faire découvrir leur regard, leur questionnement Singapour mon amour est conçu comme un parcours artistique dans Paris où le public français est invité, à chaque étape, à s’approprier une facette de la culture contemporaine de Singapour.
Singapour mon amour est une invitation à explorer l’univers de la jeune scène singapourienne sous la forme d’un parcours artistique dans Paris. Le visiteur pourra s’imprégner pleinement, à son rythme, des diverses démarches présentées : des performances à l’Eglise St Merry, une exposition d’art visuel accompagnée de lectures de poèmes au Point Ephémère, des projections de films d’avant-garde à la Cinémathèque Française, des colloques scientifiques au Centre Pompidou et au Musée du Quai Branly.
Chaque événement a été pensé par Silke Schmickl, commissaire générale de Singapour mon amour, pour exister par lui-même tout en entrant en dialogue avec les autres. Les liens subtils qui existent entre les différentes préoccupations, pratiques et disciplines exposées sont mis en perspective de telle sorte à former un portrait polyphonique et inattendu de Singapour.
L’autre originalité de Singapour mon amour est d’être conçu à partir d’un dialogue entre les artistes, historiens de l’art, intellectuels singapouriens et leurs homologues français. En croisant les perspectives et en dépassant le contexte local, les participants invités réfléchiront à la capacité des artistes à se saisir des phénomènes urbains, sociaux et politiques. Dans ce jeune pays où l’histoire de l’art est à peine en train d’être écrite Singapour mon amour souhaite contribuer à présenter et à collecter le plus de sources, de témoignages et de réflexions possibles.
Translated text via Google Translate for reference:
Beyond the blazing power of Singapore, the artists of this city-state explore the impact on the lives of the inhabitants of this adornment, seemingly majestic that in fifty years has radically transformed their city and culture. To discover their look, their questioning Singapour mon amour is conceived as an artistic career in Paris where French public is invited, at each step, to appropriate a facet of contemporary culture in Singapore.
Singapour mon amour is an invitation to explore the world of the young Singaporean scene as an artistic journey in Paris. Visitors can immerse themselves fully at their own pace, various approaches presented: performances at the Church St Merry, a visual art exhibition accompanied by poetry readings at Point Ephemere, film avant-garde films the French Cinémathèque, scientific conferences at the Centre Pompidou and the Musée du Quai Branly. 17 Information correct as of 3 March 2015
Each event was conceived by Silke Schmickl, Commissioner General of Singapour mon amour, to exist by itself while entering into dialogue with others. The subtle links between the different concerns exposed practices and disciplines are put in perspective so as to form a polyphonic and unexpected portrait of Singapore.
The other original Singapour mon amour is to be designed from a dialogue between artists, art historians, Singaporean intellectuals and their French counterparts. By combining the perspectives and beyond the local context, the invited participants will reflect on the ability of artists to enter urban phenomena, social and political. In this young country where art history is barely being written Singapour mon amour wishes to contribute to present and collect as many sources of evidence and possible reflections.
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June 2015
21. Kosmopolite Art Tour Street Art Festival A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates: 1 – 10 June 2015 Venue: Bagnolet
The project will allow collectives of street art (such as Singapore collective street artists RSCLS) to meet around the creation of a fresco in the street and to create a work dedicated to the brotherhood between French and Singaporean peoples. The project also serves as an opportunity for an exchange of ideas, styles and techniques between the Singaporean and French artists through the collaboration.
22. Contemporary Ceramics Residency A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates: 1 – 30 June 2015 Venue: La Tuilerie de Pouligny, Cheniers
Residency and exhibition organised by Focus Ceramic Services in Singapore. Featuring new works by Hetty LIE SCHRICKE, Steven LOW Thia Kwang and NG Yang Ce.
23. Vertical Submarine in residence - Fondation la Roche Jacquelin A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates: 5 June – 20 July 2015 Venue: Fondation la Roche Jacquelin, Daumeray
The La Roche-Jacquelin Foundation was established in 2007 by Singapore-based Iola Lenzi and Jean-Louis Morisot. The Foundation is a visual-art-based philanthropic initiative for promoting cultural and artistic exchange between Southeast Asia and Europe. Its mission includes the sponsorship of annual residencies for Southeast Asian artists and other cultural players at the Château de La Roche Jacquelin in the rural Anjou region of France’s Loire, the building of a specialist library of Southeast Asian art and culture, and the creation of an oral history archive documenting regional cultural participants from the late twentieth century to the present. The Foundation collection is dominated by socio-politically engaged Southeast Asian contemporary art. The Foundation is currently setting up a private museum at La Roche Jacquelin open to visitors by appointment.
Artists and other Southeast Asian art professionals in residence at La Roche-Jacquelin Foundation since 2007 include Tawatchai Puntusawasdi (Thailand), Arahamaiani (Indonesia), Pinaree Sanpitak (Thailand), Bui Cong Khanh (Vietnam), Jason Lim (Singapore), Jakkai Siributr (Thailand), Paul Khoo (writer in residence, Singapore).
The residences have two goals: firstly to introduce the European public to Southeast Asian contemporary art along with the practitioners who produce it. Secondly to offer Southeast Asian artists, whether established or emerging, the opportunity to explore the French cultural scene on-site through a living and practicing experience ranging in duration from three to eight weeks. Relationships with local artists, curators, and institutions can be nurtured during the residence period so providing the resident or 19 Information correct as of 3 March 2015
residents creative and professional bridges to the European art world that can be tapped once he or she returns home.
The residence takes place in Anjou, Maine et Loire, roughly 250 km South West of Paris, in an 18th century chateau surrounded by bucolic grounds. Overseen by Singapore- based curator of Southeast Asian contemporary art Iola Lenzi, the residence is open in nature, the artists working with Lenzi to set the pace and content of their stay’s creative agenda. A public vernissage or reception at the Chateau marks the end of the project or stay.
24. Butterfly Devised and directed by Ramesh MEYYAPPAN Presented by International Visual Theatre (Paris, France)
Dates: 9-14 June 2015 Venue: International Visual Theatre, Paris
Photo by Ben Tan
A striking adaptation of Madame Butterfly, exploring themes of love, disappointment, loss and hope, created by Ramesh Meyyappan (Snails & Ketchup), on tour following a sell out run in Singapore.
This haunting piece uses visually poetic narrative, beautiful handcrafted puppets (by Gavin Glover) and music (by David Paul Jones) to tell the tale of Butterfly, a female kitemaker, whose life has been shattered following the departure of her lover. Meyyappan’s established visual style is complemented by the outstanding puppetry, creating a lush, textured, innovative piece of theatre.
25. Between Choreographed by Christina CHAN (Frontier Danceland, Singapore). Invitation from Centre Chorégraphique National de Tours (CCNT), France.
Dates: 10 June 2015 Venue: Centre Chorégraphique National de Tours (CCNT), Tours
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By Bernie Ng
A place, a time, a thing.
Between was first presented at Sprouts All Stars 2012, a national choreographic competition organised by the National Arts Council and Frontier Danceland. It was then presented at SIDES 2013 - Moving in all directions, converging to one point, a Frontier Danceland mainstage production that comprised of works by both local and international choreographers.
This work was one of Christina CHAN's earlier compositions for Frontier Danceland, and was very well-received. Since then, there have been various local studio showcases of Between, and it eventually grabbed the attention of the Centre Chorégraphique National de Tours (CCNT), France, when they were visiting Singapore in 2013. Christina CHAN has since been invited to present Between at Tours d' Horizons in June 2015.
26. Lear Dreaming Presented by Théâtre de la Ville (Paris, France) and TheatreWorks (Singapore)
Dates: 10-13 June 2015 Venue: Théâtre des Abesses, Paris
Lear Dreaming (2012). Photo by Albert K S Lim. Courtesy of TheatreWorks (S) Ltd
In Lear Dreaming, ONG Keng Sen, 2010 Fukuoka Prize for Arts and Culture recipient, revisits his Lear (1997) to create a new performance, distilled and visionary, entering one man’s mind, a past king and his memories.
In a present time where giants fall and lines of power are redrawn, Lear Dreaming reimagines this tragedy on patriarchy and succession through the pristine philosophy of Japanese Noh theatre. The turbulence of King Lear’s humanity, time’s passing, and transience become an allegory of the world today. 21 Information correct as of 3 March 2015
Ong’s Lear brought stunning discourse to the place of Asia and its art, both traditional and contemporary, in Shakespeare, and remains a classic referenced internationally.
Noh master Umewaka Naohiko will re-enact his role as Lear. The only actor on stage, he is accompanied by some of the brightest stars of Asia’s music cultures: Kang Kwon Soon, a leading vocalist in traditional Korean court music, junga; pipa artist Zhang Yin; Piterman, a specialist in the Minang musical theatre of Sumatra; electronica expert Toru Yamanaka; and celebrated composer Rahayu Supanggah with his contemporary ensemble of gamelan musicians. (With original pipa music composed by Wu Man).
Lear Dreaming also features creations by Ong’s long-standing collaborators in design by Justin Hill (set), Scott Zielinski (lights), Mitsushi Yanaihara (costumes) and newcomer to the ‘live’ stage, graphics artist Hanson Ho.
Anticipate a spectacular experiment in intercultural music theatre and performance.
Performed in Bahasa Indonesia, Japanese, Korean and Mandarin with French subtitles.
27. 1000 Singapours - Huits Points de la Ville Compacte | 1000 Singapores: Eight Points of the Compact City by DesignSingapore Council in collaboration with Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine (Paris)
Dates: 15 June to 14 September 2015 Venue: Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine, Paris
1000 Singapores by DesignSingapore Council. Photo courtesy of DesignSingapore Council.
A small island city-state. One compelling housing model from a place in Southeast Asia. Organised by the DesignSingapore Council, 1000 Singapores: Eight Points of the Compact City (1000 Singapores) presents Singapore’s proposal for an effective model of a compact and sustainable city for the future that embraces economic viability, liveability and social equity. Originally presented at Venice Biennale International Architecture Exhibition 2010, the exhibition is updated, and expanded for the Singapore Festival in France 2015.
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In the new content, 1000 Singapores will illustrate, through a series of diagrams, drawings, photographs and physical models, Singapore's unique urban model of land intensification, planning strategies and export urbanism as well as draw some comparisons between Singapore and the French metropolitan region.
Complementing the exhibition, a public forum will be organised on 17 June 2015 to provide opportunities for dialogue between architects, planners and designers from both cities.
1000 Singapores is curated and designed by KHOO Peng Beng, Erik G. L’HEUREUX and Florian SCHÄTZ. This exhibition will be re-exhibited in Singapore in early 2016.
28. 50 films singapouriens | 50 Singapore Films Presented by National Museum of Singapore in partnership with La Cinémathèque française and the Singapore Film Commission. Supported by National Archives of Singapore and in association with Singapour mon Amour film project
Dates: 10 June to 17 July 2015 Venue: La Cinémathèque française, Paris
On the occasion of the jubilee celebration of the 50th year of the independence of Singapore, the National Museum of Singapore, the Singapore Film Commission and the prestigious Cinémathèque française will co-organise a special retrospective programme showcasing 50 Singapore films. 50 Singapore Films seeks to encourage new perspectives in appreciating Singapore Cinema both at home and abroad. The programme journeys through 50 significant Singaporean feature length and short films to chronicle the story of Singapore Cinema.
The films selected in the programme collectively charts the development of Singapore’s filmic landscape through iconic films produced by the nation from the earliest surviving Singaporean film to the latest offering from the burgeoning Singapore film industry. A diversity of films will be included ranging from P. Ramlee and Cathay-Keris studio classics, landmarks from beloved genres as varied as horror, melodrama, socio- comedies and historical epics to avant-garde artist-films and home-grown works which garnered international and commercial success. In addition, the programme will unveil new 4K restorations of critically lauded films of the past.
The programme also include a bilingual catalogue detailing the 50 key films as well as essays by Singaporean and French critics providing contextual studies of the selected films.
29. Saveurs de Singapour sur les Berges de Seine A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates: 18 – 21 June 2015 Venue: Berges de Seine (Pont Solférino), Paris
Operated by Temasek Polytechnic, Les Berges at the Seine will see the set-up of a street food festival showcasing a range of delectable signature hawker centre dishes from Singapore. Visitors to the event can also try traditional kampung (or village) games of yesteryear such as chapteh, five stones and kuti-kuti. Take your fill and indulge in
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some fun and games – there will be something exciting for everyone. The programme ends on 21 June – which coincides with International Music Day.
30. Berlioz’s Te Deum A collaboration between Singapore Symphony Children’s Choir and Maîtrise de Radio France Dates: 20 June 2015, 4pm Venue: Philharmonie de Paris
The Singapore Symphony Children’s Choir (SSCC) will be collaborating with Maîtrise de Radio France, and musical director Sofi Jeannin to present Te Deum by Berlioz at the new Philharmonie de Paris.
Since its debut performance in 2007, the Singapore Symphony Children’s Choir (SSCC) has given many successful concerts, including appearances with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) in its ever-popular Christmas Concerts and in the great choral masterpieces such as Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Mahler’s Third Symphony, Berlioz’s Damnation of Faust, Orff’s Carmina Burana and Britten’s War Requiem.
Currently led by Wong Lai Foon, the Singapore Symphony Children’s Choir nurtures and provides young singers aged between 8 and 18 years with a comprehensive initiation into the art of classical singing.
The choir will also perform in Paris at the closing reception of the Singapour en France – le festival.
More information on: http://www.maisondelaradio.fr/evenement/concerts-du- soir/berlioz/te-deum and http://philharmoniedeparis.fr/fr/activite/concert-vocal/14240-te- deum?date=1434808800
31. Cuisines et Critiques | Eat and Crit A Partner event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates: 27 June 2015 Venue: Private apartment, Paris
After New York, the series ‘’Cuisines & Critiques: Une écologie au sens large’’continues in Paris. A pop-up show will bring together artists, foodies and critics to explore the relationships that bind us to the art and cooking.
32. One Man Nation A Partner Event of Singapour en France – le festival
Dates: 28 June 2015 Venue: Les Sièstes Eléctroniques, Toulouse
The festival is proud to present one of the best Singaporean experimental musicians: One Man Nation.
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Singapour en France – le Festival is presented by:
Programme Partners
With the support of the Economic Development Board (Singapore) and Singapore Tourism Board
Official Hotel Official Airline Supporter
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