Singapore's 10 Unmissable Art Exhibitions In Summer 2014

With its growing contemporary art collections and its power to attract international artists, Singapore has positioned itself as the art hub of Asia. Its vibrant art galleries, museums and numerous art spaces showcase both prominent and emerging international and Asian artists. Here are the art exhibitions that Singapore’s art scene has in store for art lovers this summer.

1. Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer’s Life 1990-2005 at Art Science Museum

Museum

Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer’s Life 1990-2005 at Art Science Museum

18 April – 19 October
Annie Leibovitz is one of the most celebrated photographers of our times, and is mostly known to the general public for her celebrities’ portraits for Vogue and Vanity Fair. The Art Science Museum at Marina Bay Sands displays 200 photographs that Leibovitz has taken over 15 years. They will include portraits of movie stars such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Jamie Foxx, Demi Moore, Scarlett Johansson, Nicole Kidman and Brad Pitt. Images from the photographer’s personal life, her reportage of the siege of Sarajevo and Hillary Clinton’s election to the United States Senate will also be included.
Art Science Museum, Marina Bay Sands, 6 Bayfront Avenue, Singapore, +65 6688 8888

2. Genesis at the National Museum of Singapore

Museum

26 April – 31 August
For the first time in Asia, world-renowned Brazilian photojournalist Sebastião Salgado is presenting 245 black and white images of our planet at the National Museum of Singapore. Salgado worked on Genesis from 2004 until 2011, a period during which he visited over 30 countries shooting photographs of landscapes, wildlife and tribes. The artwork is organized and divided through five geographical sections and reflects on the intricate connections and dynamics between human beings and nature.

Adriana Molder: The Light in the Heart at Art Plural Gallery

Ceramicship at One East Asia

1 July – 8 August
Five ceramic artists from different regions in Southeast Asia — Ahadiat Joedawinata (Indonesia), Alvin Tan Teck Heng (Singapore), Bathma Kaew-Ngok (Thailand), Jon Lorenzo Pettyjohn (Philippines) and Peter Low Hwee Min (Malaysia) — have been exchanging artistic views, methodologies, processes, production and ideas about ceramics. For the show Ceramicship at One East Asia, the artists work with clay but each piece strongly carries the tradition and personal style of the artist. Moreover, they challenge the idea of ceramics as art as opposed to craft.
One East Asia, 5 Scotts Road #05-08/09, Thong Teck Building, Singapore, +65 6737 1819

3. Nature, in Process at Space Cottonseed

Art Gallery

11 July – 17 August
Through media such as painting, photography, sculpture and natural materials, four artists – Jeong Lok Lee, Joon Kiat Ng, Hannah Tan and Victor Tan – explore the representation of nature in art, which has changed from idealized Chinese landscapes to the more realistic Western form. In Nature, in Process the artists conceptualize the layers and multiple metaphorical meanings embodied in nature, including politics, pollution, social critics, and memory.
Cottonseed was born in Seoul in 2010 as a non-profit art space and subsequently went to open the Space Cottonseed in Singapore, a gallery specializing in contemporary Korean and Asian artists.

4. Sweet Paradox at Mizuma Gallery

Sweet Paradox at Mizuma Gallery

11 July – 10 August
Sweet Paradox at Mizuma Gallery is a Japanese group exhibition curated by father and daughter, Sueo and Yukari Mizuma. Featuring 22 artworks from five leading Japanese artists — OHATA Shintaro, ITO Enpei, YODOGAWA Technique, YOSHIDA Akira and WATANABE OSAMU — the exhibition displays vibrant and animated artworks that hide serious social issues underneath. Through this lexicon, the artists want to underline the deceptive power of appearances as well as invite the public to be less afraid to discuss issues within their society.
Mizuma Gallery, 22 Lock Road, #01-34, Singapore, +65 6570 2505

5. Untitled by Jaime Roque at Michael Janssen Gallery

Art Gallery

12 July – 22 August
Untitled is the first solo exhibition by Filipino artist Jaime Roque outside of his native country. The show includes a series of abstract vibrant and colorful artworks that highlight the artistic progression of the artist towards abstraction and optical art. Roque was an exponent of the Magic Realist movement in the Philippines, which took inspiration from the realist style of American artist Andrew Wyeth. Over the years, however, his artistic style evolved and became unique in its own terms, through influences from Filipino’s artistic heritage and culture.

6. Behind New World Order at Tomio Koyama Gallery

Art Gallery

25 July – 14 September
Tomio Koyama Gallery presents work by Indonesian artist Muhamad ‘Ucup’ Yusuf in Behind New World Order, an exhibition comprising the artist’s recent drawings, paintings and woodblock prints. Social issues in his native country are at the centre of Yusuf’s inspiration. For his current exhibition, he ponders the perception of the new world that has come to appear like a dream. However, the majority of people are confused and unaware of the fact that these changes are brought upon them by capitalism and by governments, says Yusuf, mostly with the intention to exploit both the old world and the new one.

7. Sensorium 360° at Singapore Art Museum (SAM)

Museum

Sensorium 360° at Singapore Art Museum (SAM)

31 July – 19 October
Sensorium 360° is an art exhibition presenting commissioned works as well as loans from Singapore, Southeast Asia and more. The exhibition proposes a look at the world through the senses, particularly on how human beings understand themselves and the world around them through their ability to detect pain, time and movement. It will cross the fields of art, cognitive psychology and philosophy.
Sensorium 360° will take place at the established Singapore Art Museum, holder of one of the largest contemporary Southeast Asian art collections and of an always growing international art section.

Singapore Art Museum, 71 Bras Basah Rd, Singapore, + 65 6332 3222

Two Different Times, One World by Pu Jie at ShanghART Gallery

18 July – 24 August
Pu Jie’s solo exhibition Two Different Times, One World at ShanghART Gallery features 17 artworks based on the artist’s memories and experiences to represent the fragmentation and ever-shifting nature of life. In his images, he introduces concepts derived from the history of China and its culture. Pu Jie’s images are strong monochrome of red, yellow, green, and blue characterized by a dual visual angle intended to evoke the extremes in contemporary Chinese urban areas.
ShanghART Gallery, 9 Lock Road, #02-22, Singapore, +65 6734 9537
By Silvia Buonpadre

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