This is an exciting month for the arts, with Singapore Contemporary Art Show, Singapore Art Week and many more happening. Just when you think you can’t possibly stuff any more art into your calendar, we’re here to tell you that you can and should, especially with so many intriguing small-scale events involving Singaporean and Southeast Asian artists.

Solid Prayers

2015’s Young Artist Award recipient Chun Kai Qun is back with a solo exhibition involving interpretations of prayers superimposed onto objects, a comment on human beings’ tendency to project their identities onto inanimate things.

When: Jan 13-Feb 19 (artist’s talk on Feb 17)
Where: FOST Gallery

We Are the World, These Are Our Stories

Cultural Medallion award-winner Amanda Heng is having an artist panel discussion about her first-ever solo gallery exhibition, We Are the World - These Are Our Stories, presented with STPI as part of Singapore Art Week. This exhibition is a collection of twelve personal stories by twelve individuals inspired from her iconic performance piece, Let’s Chat.

When: Jan 7-Feb 25
Where: STPI

hyP3<y<lu5

If you can’t figure out the exhibition title, this actually means hypecyclus, the word for Indonesian husband and wife duo indieguerillas’s view on the current socio-economic state in Indonesia and indeed the rest of the world. Traditional motifs from folk tales, vibrant colors and social media/digital influences all come together in their pieces.

When: Jan 13-Feb 19
Where: Mizuma Gallery

Greetings from Singapore

Local envelope-pushing artist Samantha Lo, aka Sticker Lady, is famous for her tongue-in-cheek slogans posted along town, and the eternally hilarious “My Grandfather Road” paint job. This time, she has put together photographs of her works over the years, compiling them into a book called Greetings from Singapore, which will launch in conjunction with this exhibition.

When: Jan 10-31 (artist’s talk on Jan 18)
Where: One East Asia

Fantasy Islands

Photo credit: Evelyn Pritt
 

Batam is a go-to spot for Singaporeans escaping city life on the cheap, but there’s a much longer history between the two islands. If you have ever wondered about the relationship between Singapore and Batam, seven contemporary artists from Singapore and Indonesia have collaborated to put up an exhibition that went through eight months of research where they view the relationship between the countries. See photographs of abandoned buildings on both islands by Evelyn Pritt, a mobile sound installation by Wu Jun Han and more.

When: Jan 11-26
Where: Chapel Gallery, Objectifs Centre for Photography and Film

Intersection

Prolific Singaporean poet and photographer Marc Nair and British artist Nicola Anthony have been tinkering with this project for years, and now you can finally see their exploration comparing neighborhoods in London, Singapore and Yangon. Expect a two-by-two meter sculpture, and super limited edition artist book and other drawings. 

When: Jan 11-Mar 5 (various activities are happening over the period)
Where: Intersections Gallery and Suntec Singapore and Convention Centre

Body Politic

Film Still detail from Long Live. 2011-12. Photo credit: Yao Jui-Chung

Across four exhibitions at the Esplanade, four different artists from Singapore and Southeast Asia interpret the theme, Body Politic, examining the rights bodies have to occupy space. You can expect to see sculptures, wall murals,  installations, multimedia screenings from the four exhibitions.

When: Jan 13-Apr 2 (with the exception of The Genius of the Crowd which ends on Mar 17)
Where: Various places in Esplanade