Art, as you like it

Posted by yesterday.sg under Blogging, Exhibitions, Lifestyle, art
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IMPRINTS, red dot design museum, 6-11 May 2010

Dingy prison cells, pop-coloured soldiers, ubiquitous tea ceremonies - these are inspirations drawn from memories, emotions and nostalgia for a group of young artists as they showcase their sentiments in Yesterday.sg’s first art exhibition, Imprints.

Co-organised by Singapore Contemporary Young Artists (SCYA), Imprints hopes to encourage readers of Yesterday.sg, as well as youths who have interest in the arts and culture, to discover the joys of art appreciation. With Yesterday.sg centred on nostalgia and moments of the past, eight SCYA artists - Aiman Hakim, Angela Chong, Ee Shaun, Hilmi Johandi, Jackyln Soo, Jacqui Rae, Kelvin Atmadibrata and Tay Jiun Lin - were selected to reinterpret these relatable themes and develop them into art works that are both heartfelt and diverse.

Angela Chong's installation work

The concept behind the exhibition stemmed from Yesterday.sg’s wish to create an awareness of the local arts scene and cater a show for the uninitiated, who otherwise are intimidated by the elusiveness of art. Featured artist Angela Chong quips, “Many artists want to reach out to all kinds of people who are not really in the industry because we always see the same audience. We want new feedback or interaction with the real public and the real community.”

Jacque Rae's ceramic works

Showcasing their works at red dot design museum - a former traffic police headquarters, has also added another dimension to the exhibition. The artists’ works, seeped with ideas of the past, interact with the space and create an intimate dialogue with this iconic and historically profound building. Jacqui Rae, a sculptor-in-training, is particularly intrigued by museum spaces and her delicate ceramic pieces explore this notion in Imprints. She says, “The idea of a museum and the idea of a clinical space - thats a boundary long waiting to be broken.”

Aside from being an effort to bring the online community to the offline realm, Yesterday.sg hopes that this exhibition would further encourage the public to not just check out the artists’ works, but to visit the museum’s galleries and gradually explore the idea of visiting museums.

“Thinking back of life and growing up in Singapore - these are not just for the older generation. The young too have a very different take which is showcased in this exhibition which entails a multi-sensory experience. We believe the growing interest in art here will inspire more young people who rarely visit art exhibitions, let alone museums, to appreciate art and our heritage,” says Ms Cheryl Koh, Deputy Director of Corporate Communications and Industry Promotions at the National Heritage Board.

eeshaun's works are lush, evocative landscapes of colour

While many perceive art to be subjective, it also takes on many forms and is closer to life than we realise. Artist Tay Jiun Lin thinks it is only natural to be attracted to beautiful things, he says, “You start to wonder why do you appreciate them and what is in the mindset of the people who create them.” Even the simplest things like toys we played as children or our first heartache, are matters of such ephemeral quality. Art is in a sense, an attempt to condense these feelings or portray them in a medium that best expresses it.

As young artists, these featured eight from SCYA struggle with Passion vs Practicality. As they grapple with stereotypes that artists are poor, or art is a career path for the academically weak, these artists are optimistic. While agreeing that the arts landscape has evolved, painter Aiman Hakim believes this exhibition is a good effort to reach out to new audiences. “I think the art scene is growing, it’s better than it was compared to 10 years ago, but there’s always room for improvement in making the public understand what we, as artists, actually do.”

The IMPRINTS artists share what art means to them, their thoughts on the perceptions of art, and the intrigue behind museums spaces!

Imprints is held at the red dot design museum from 6 - 11 May 2010. Admission is free. All Yesterday.sg readers are invited to the opening night on 6 May, 7.30pm featuring a live performance by artist Kelvin Atmadibrata.

RSVP to this event on Feacebook here!