Curatorial Advisory Board
Prof. Ute Meta Bauer, Founding Director, NTU CCA Singapore and Professor, School of Art, Design and Media NTU,María Jocelina Cruz, Director & Curator, MCAD Manilla, Prof. Patrick Flores, Professor, Department of Art Studies, University of Philippines and Curator, Vargas Museum Manilla, Asst. Prof. Sophie Goltz, Deputy Director, Research & Academics Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media NTU, Khim Ong, Deputy Director, Curatorial Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore.
]]>Curatorial Advisory Board
Prof. Ute Meta Bauer, Founding Director, NTU CCA Singapore and Professor, School of Art, Design and Media NTU,María Jocelina Cruz, Director & Curator, MCAD Manilla, Prof. Patrick Flores, Professor, Department of Art Studies, University of Philippines and Curator, Vargas Museum Manilla, Asst. Prof. Sophie Goltz, Deputy Director, Research & Academics Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media NTU, Khim Ong, Deputy Director, Curatorial Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore.
The Public Art Education Summit is the first of its kind in Singapore and part of a larger engagement of NTU CCA Singapore in professional education of public art. It focuses on cultural place-making and building communities through artistic practices. It aims to stimulate a debate between art professionals, policy makers, urban developers and other local stakeholders, on how and for whom art creates public spaces in our built environment. Any artistic or curatorial initiative in “public space” must address the question of how to construct “a public” and with it, how to encounter identity. Any difference—be it regional and local, ethnic and religious, economic and social—generates its own cohabitation of urban space and public culture to communicate with. The challenge for art in the public sphere lies in its openness to existing and yet, imagined communities of civic urbanism. Ranging from corporate cultural engagement in privately owned public spaces to urban regeneration, the invited speakers draw connections to the beginnings of community engagement in public art with its fluid methods. Furthermore, they suggest a critical look at different artistic and curatorial practices which reflect on “artists as citizens.” Or, how any space called public, first and foremost, is created by the different people inhabiting that space.
Guest-of-Honour: Prof Wang Dawei, Executive Dean, College of Fine Arts, Shanghai University
With contributions by: Ute Meta Bauer (Germany/Singapore), Richard Bell (Australia), Lewis Biggs (United Kingdom), Antonia Carver (United Kingdom/United Arab Emirates), Lilian Chee (Singapore), Amanda Crabtree (United Kingdom/France), Daniel Mudie Cunningham (Australia), Catherine David (France), Eileen Goh (Singapore), Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Limin Hee (Singapore), Kok Heng Leun (Singapore), Richard Lim (Singapore), Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore), Massamba Mbaye (Senegal), Alecia Neo (Singapore), Alan Oei (Singapore), Nikos Papastergiadis (Australia), Jasmeen Patheja (India), Lorenzo Petrillo (Italy/Singapore), Milenko Prvački (Ex-Yugoslavia/Singapore), Ashley Thompson (United Kingdom), Philip Tinari (United States/China), Katherine Ann Leilani Tuider (United States), et al.
With capability-development workshops by Amanda Crabtree (United Kingdom/France), Daniel Mudie Cunningham (Australia), Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore) and Katherine Ann Leilani Tuider (United States).
Held in association with Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts, Shanghai University, and Institute for Public Arts, London. Supported by Mapletree Investments and, additionally, by Public Art Trust, an initiative of National Arts Council Singapore.
Programme for Public Art Education Summit
Thursday, 17 October 2019, 9.00am – 7.30pm
Venue: The Single Screen, Block 43 Malan Road
8.45am Registration and Coffee
9.00am Opening addresses by Low Eng Teong (Singapore), Assistant Chief Executive, Sector Development, National Arts Council Singapore, Ute Meta Bauer (Germany/Singapore), Founding Director, NTU CCA Singapore and Professor, NTU ADM, and Guest-of-Honour Wang Dawei (China), Executive Dean, College of Fine Arts, Shanghai University followed by Introduction by Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Deputy Director, Research & Academic Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
9.45am Context is Everything, Presentation by Lewis Biggs (United Kingdom) Chair, Institute for Public Art, London
10.15am Making Art, Making Society, Presentation by Amanda Crabtree (France), Director, artconnexion
10.45am Community-First Public Art, Presentation by Katherine Ann Leilani Tuider (United States), Executive Director and Co-founder, Honolulu Biennial Foundation
11.15am Coffee Break and Discussions
12.00pm Public Art and Community Building
Roundtable Discussion with Eileen Goh (Singapore), Assistant Manager, Art-in-Transit at Land Transport Authority; Richard Lim (Singapore), Manager, Art Management, Project Development, CapitaLand; Lorenzo Petrillo (Italy/Singapore), Director and Founder, LOPELAB, moderated by Lilian Chee (Singapore), Associate Professor, Department of Architecture, National University of Singapore
1.00pm Lunch Break
2.00pm Capability-Development Workshops
Venue: Studios, Block 37 Malan Road
#Activating#Communities New Patron Model for Public Art Commissioning, Workshop by Amanda Crabtree (France), Director, artconnexion. Register at tiny.cc/amandacrabtreeworkshop.
#Building#Communities, Fundraising as Community Engagement, Workshop by Katherine Ann Leilani Tuider (United States), Executive Director and Co-founder, Honolulu Biennial Foundation. Register at tiny.cc/katherinetuiderworkshop.
5:30pm End of Workshop
On the occasion of NTU CCA’s International Advisory Board annual meeting, invited members share their knowledge and experience.
6.00pm Lecture by Nikos Papastergiadis (Australia), Professor, School of Culture and Communication, University of Melbourne
6:30pm Lecture by Ashley Thompson (United Kingdom), Hiram W. Woodward Chair of Southeast Asian Art, SOAS University of London
7:00pm Roundtable Discussion with Antonia Carver (United Kingdom/United Arab Emirates), Director, Jameel Arts Centre; Catherine David (France), Deputy Director, Research and Globalisation, MNAM/CCI, Centre Pompidou; Philip Tinari (United States/China), Director, UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, moderated by Ute Meta Bauer (Germany/Singapore), Founding Director, NTU CCA Singapore and Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
7:30pm Reception
Friday, 18 October 2019, 9.00am – 5.30pm
Venue: The Single Screen, Block 43 Malan Road
8.45am Registration and Coffee
9.00am Introduction by Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Deputy Director, Research & Academic Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
9.15am A Railroad Switch in Time: South Eveleigh Case Study, Presentation by Daniel Mudie Cunningham (Australia), Director, Programs, Carriageworks
9.45am Biennials as Public Space, Presentation by Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore), Associate Professor, Taipei National University of Arts
10.15am Action Sheroes, Heroes, Theyroes. Resonate #NeverAskForIt, Presentation by Jasmeen Patheja (India), Founder, Blank Noise
10.45am Beyond Education, Beyond Community, Presentation by Milenko Prvački (Ex-Yugoslavia/Singapore), Senior Fellow, LASALLE College of the Arts, artist and founder, ART WALK Little India
11.15am Coffee Break and Discussions
12.00pm Art, Public Space, and Urban Development
Roundtable Discussion with Kok Heng Leun (Singapore), Artistic Director, Drama Box; Alecia Neo (Singapore), artist and co- founder, Brack; Alan Oei (Singapore), Artistic Director, The Substation, moderated by Limin Hee (Singapore), Director, Research, Centre for Liveable Cities
1.00pm Lunch Break
2.00pm Capability-Development Workshops
Venue: Studios, Block 37 Malan Road
#Supporting#Communities Urban Communities and their Stakeholders, Workshop by Daniel Mudie Cunningham (Australia), Director, Programs, Carriageworks.
#Educating#Communities Biennials as Public Space: Between Artistic Approaches and Public Demands, Workshop by Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore), Associate Professor, Taipei National University of Arts.
5:30pm End of Workshop
Saturday, 19 October 2019, 9.00am – 1.00pm
Venue: The Single Screen, Block 43 Malan Road
8.45am Registration and Coffee
9.00am Introduction by Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Deputy Director, Research & Academic Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
9.15am Participation in Practice: Artists as Ally, Presentation by Alecia Neo (Singapore), artist
9.45am The Village of the Arts of Senegal, Presentation by Massamba Mbaye (Senegal), lecturer, Dakar Cheikh Anta Diop University & Virtual University of Senegal
10.15am Aboriginal Tent Embassy, Presentation by Richard Bell (Australia), artist
10.45am Coffee Break and Discussions
11.15am Roundtable Discussion with Richard Bell (Australia), artist, Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore), Associate Professor, Taipei National University of Arts, Massamba Mbaye (Senegal), lecturer, Dakar Cheikh Anta Diop University & Virtual University of Senegal, and Alecia Neo (Singapore), artist, moderated by Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Deputy Director, Research & Academic Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
12.00pm Closing Remarks by Lewis Biggs (United Kingdom)
Programme as of 1 October 2019, subject to change.
]]>NTU CCA Singapore is pleased to present Art, Urban Change, and the Public Sphere, which engages with art in privately owned public spaces through a Public Art Education Summit and research presentation. Taking as its point of departure the neighbouring Culture City. Culture Scape. Public Art Trail at Mapletree Business City—developed with curatorial consultation by NTU CCA Singapore—the presentation and Summit explore broader cultural and artistic developments on a civic scale situated in urban landscapes. How do political and economic changes in the public realm evoke a regional discourse on art in cities?
The Public Art Education Summit is the first of its kind in Singapore and part of a larger engagement of NTU CCA Singapore in professional education of public art. It focuses on cultural place-making and building communities through artistic practices. It aims to stimulate a debate between art professionals, policy makers, urban developers and other local stakeholders, on how and for whom art creates public spaces in our built environment. Any artistic or curatorial initiative in “public space” must address the question of how to construct “a public” and with it, how to encounter identity. Any difference—be it regional and local, ethnic and religious, economic and social—generates its own cohabitation of urban space and public culture to communicate with. The challenge for art in the public sphere lies in its openness to existing and yet, imagined communities of civic urbanism. Ranging from corporate cultural engagement in privately owned public spaces to urban regeneration, the invited speakers draw connections to the beginnings of community engagement in public art with its fluid methods. Furthermore, they suggest a critical look at different artistic and curatorial practices which reflect on “artists as citizens.” Or, how any space called public, first and foremost, is created by the different people inhabiting that space.
Guest-of-Honour: Prof Wang Dawei, Executive Dean, College of Fine Arts, Shanghai University
With contributions by: Ute Meta Bauer (Germany/Singapore), Richard Bell (Australia), Lewis Biggs (United Kingdom), Antonia Carver (United Kingdom/United Arab Emirates), Lilian Chee (Singapore), Amanda Crabtree (United Kingdom/France), Daniel Mudie Cunningham (Australia), Catherine David (France), Eileen Goh (Singapore), Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Limin Hee (Singapore), Kok Heng Leun (Singapore), Richard Lim (Singapore), Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore), Massamba Mbaye (Senegal), Alecia Neo (Singapore), Alan Oei (Singapore), Nikos Papastergiadis (Australia), Jasmeen Patheja (India), Lorenzo Petrillo (Italy/Singapore), Milenko Prvački (Ex-Yugoslavia/Singapore), Ashley Thompson (United Kingdom), Philip Tinari (United States/China), Katherine Ann Leilani Tuider (United States), et al.
With capability-development workshops by Amanda Crabtree (United Kingdom/France), Daniel Mudie Cunningham (Australia), Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore) and Katherine Ann Leilani Tuider (United States).
Held in association with Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts, Shanghai University, and Institute for Public Arts, London. Supported by Mapletree Investments and, additionally, by Public Art Trust, an initiative of National Arts Council Singapore.
Programme for Public Art Education Summit
Thursday, 17 October 2019, 9.00am – 7.30pm
Venue: The Single Screen, Block 43 Malan Road
8.45am Registration and Coffee
9.00am Opening addresses by Low Eng Teong (Singapore), Assistant Chief Executive, Sector Development, National Arts Council Singapore, Ute Meta Bauer (Germany/Singapore), Founding Director, NTU CCA Singapore and Professor, NTU ADM, and Guest-of-Honour Wang Dawei (China), Executive Dean, College of Fine Arts, Shanghai University followed by Introduction by Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Deputy Director, Research & Academic Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
9.45am Context is Everything, Presentation by Lewis Biggs (United Kingdom) Chair, Institute for Public Art, London
10.15am Making Art, Making Society, Presentation by Amanda Crabtree (France), Director, artconnexion
10.45am Community-First Public Art, Presentation by Katherine Ann Leilani Tuider (United States), Executive Director and Co-founder, Honolulu Biennial Foundation
11.15am Coffee Break and Discussions
12.00pm Public Art and Community Building
Roundtable Discussion with Eileen Goh (Singapore), Assistant Manager, Art-in-Transit at Land Transport Authority; Richard Lim (Singapore), Manager, Art Management, Project Development, CapitaLand; Lorenzo Petrillo (Italy/Singapore), Director and Founder, LOPELAB, moderated by Lilian Chee (Singapore), Associate Professor, Department of Architecture, National University of Singapore
1.00pm Lunch Break
2.00pm Capability-Development Workshops
Venue: Studios, Block 37 Malan Road
#Activating#Communities New Patron Model for Public Art Commissioning, Workshop by Amanda Crabtree (France), Director, artconnexion. Register at tiny.cc/amandacrabtreeworkshop.
#Building#Communities, Fundraising as Community Engagement, Workshop by Katherine Ann Leilani Tuider (United States), Executive Director and Co-founder, Honolulu Biennial Foundation. Register at tiny.cc/katherinetuiderworkshop.
5:30pm End of Workshop
On the occasion of NTU CCA’s International Advisory Board annual meeting, invited members share their knowledge and experience.
6.00pm Lecture by Nikos Papastergiadis (Australia), Professor, School of Culture and Communication, University of Melbourne
6:30pm Lecture by Ashley Thompson (United Kingdom), Hiram W. Woodward Chair of Southeast Asian Art, SOAS University of London
7:00pm Roundtable Discussion with Antonia Carver (United Kingdom/United Arab Emirates), Director, Jameel Arts Centre; Catherine David (France), Deputy Director, Research and Globalisation, MNAM/CCI, Centre Pompidou; Philip Tinari (United States/China), Director, UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, moderated by Ute Meta Bauer (Germany/Singapore), Founding Director, NTU CCA Singapore and Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
7:30pm Reception
Friday, 18 October 2019, 9.00am – 5.30pm
Venue: The Single Screen, Block 43 Malan Road
8.45am Registration and Coffee
9.00am Introduction by Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Deputy Director, Research & Academic Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
9.15am A Railroad Switch in Time: South Eveleigh Case Study, Presentation by Daniel Mudie Cunningham (Australia), Director, Programs, Carriageworks
9.45am Biennials as Public Space, Presentation by Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore), Associate Professor, Taipei National University of Arts
10.15am Action Sheroes, Heroes, Theyroes. Resonate #NeverAskForIt, Presentation by Jasmeen Patheja (India), Founder, Blank Noise
10.45am Beyond Education, Beyond Community, Presentation by Milenko Prvački (Ex-Yugoslavia/Singapore), Senior Fellow, LASALLE College of the Arts, artist and founder, ART WALK Little India
11.15am Coffee Break and Discussions
12.00pm Art, Public Space, and Urban Development
Roundtable Discussion with Kok Heng Leun (Singapore), Artistic Director, Drama Box; Alecia Neo (Singapore), artist and co- founder, Brack; Alan Oei (Singapore), Artistic Director, The Substation, moderated by Limin Hee (Singapore), Director, Research, Centre for Liveable Cities
1.00pm Lunch Break
2.00pm Capability-Development Workshops
Venue: Studios, Block 37 Malan Road
#Supporting#Communities Urban Communities and their Stakeholders, Workshop by Daniel Mudie Cunningham (Australia), Director, Programs, Carriageworks.
#Educating#Communities Biennials as Public Space: Between Artistic Approaches and Public Demands, Workshop by Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore), Associate Professor, Taipei National University of Arts.
5:30pm End of Workshop
Saturday, 19 October 2019, 9.00am – 1.00pm
Venue: The Single Screen, Block 43 Malan Road
8.45am Registration and Coffee
9.00am Introduction by Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Deputy Director, Research & Academic Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
9.15am Participation in Practice: Artists as Ally, Presentation by Alecia Neo (Singapore), artist
9.45am The Village of the Arts of Senegal, Presentation by Massamba Mbaye (Senegal), lecturer, Dakar Cheikh Anta Diop University & Virtual University of Senegal
10.15am Aboriginal Tent Embassy, Presentation by Richard Bell (Australia), artist
10.45am Coffee Break and Discussions
11.15am Roundtable Discussion with Richard Bell (Australia), artist, Hongjohn Lin (Taiwan/Singapore), Associate Professor, Taipei National University of Arts, Massamba Mbaye (Senegal), lecturer, Dakar Cheikh Anta Diop University & Virtual University of Senegal, and Alecia Neo (Singapore), artist, moderated by Sophie Goltz (Germany/Singapore), Deputy Director, Research & Academic Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore, and Assistant Professor, School of Art, Design and Media, NTU
12.00pm Closing Remarks by Lewis Biggs (United Kingdom)
Programme as of 1 October 2019, subject to change.
The 10-day programme, coinciding with Singapore Art Week 2017 and Art After Dark at Gillman Barracks, comprises a conglomerate of performances, public installations, participatory projects and social experiment, urban farming initiatives, public dialogues, and a variety of workshops. It cumulates in a three-day summit that brings together a prominent group of architects, theorists, researchers, curators, and community groups to discuss and exchange ideas about urbanism, modes of exchange, critical spatial practice, and to envision a future city. CITIES FOR PEOPLE offers a platform to contemplate the possibilities for our shared space, reformulate our demands accordingly, and project solutions and desires for the future.
CITIES FOR PEOPLE, borrowing the title from a book by eminent Singapore architect William S. W. Lim published in 1990, expands on some of the ideas Lim developed, particularly in relation to tropical environments and recycling, as well as his call for a humanistic architecture. Organised on the occasion of the exhibition Incomplete Urbanism: Attempts at Critical Spatial Practice, this event is an invitation to share and engage in cooperative projects and collective experiences that critically reflect on current challenges in urban and social development.
Ideas Fest Concept: Ute Meta Bauer
Curators of CITIES FOR PEOPLE NTU CCA Ideas Fest 2016/17
Ute Meta Bauer and Khim Ong
CITIES FOR PEOPLE is the pilot edition of the annual NTU CCA Ideas Fest, a platform to catalyse critical exchange of ideas and encourage thinking “out of the box”. It is a bottom-up approach linking the artistic and academic community with grassroots initiatives. This pilot edition expands artistic interventions and engages contemporary issues such as air, water, food, environment, and social interaction in connection to artistic and cultural fields, academic research, and design applications.
The 10-day programme, coinciding with Singapore Art Week 2017 and Art After Dark at Gillman Barracks, comprises a conglomerate of performances, public installations, participatory projects and social experiment, urban farming initiatives, public dialogues, and a variety of workshops. It cumulates in a three-day summit that brings together a prominent group of architects, theorists, researchers, curators, and community groups to discuss and exchange ideas about urbanism, modes of exchange, critical spatial practice, and to envision a future city. CITIES FOR PEOPLE offers a platform to contemplate the possibilities for our shared space, reformulate our demands accordingly, and project solutions and desires for the future.
CITIES FOR PEOPLE, borrowing the title from a book by eminent Singapore architect William S. W. Lim published in 1990, expands on some of the ideas Lim developed, particularly in relation to tropical environments and recycling, as well as his call for a humanistic architecture. Organised on the occasion of the exhibition Incomplete Urbanism: Attempts at Critical Spatial Practice, this event is an invitation to share and engage in cooperative projects and collective experiences that critically reflect on current challenges in urban and social development.
Ideas Fest Concept: Ute Meta Bauer
Curators of CITIES FOR PEOPLE NTU CCA Ideas Fest 2016/17
Ute Meta Bauer and Khim Ong
Themed Culture City. Culture Scape., this public art project, commissioned by Mapletree and curated by NTU CCA Singapore comprises works by internationally renowned artists Dan Graham (United States), Zulkifle Mahmod (Singapore), Tomás Saraceno (Argentina/Germany), and Yinka Shonibare (Nigeria/United Kingdom). Inspired by the idea of expanded sculptural environments, the artworks explore the interplay between landscape, architecture, and the broader social and economic environments they are placed in. More than being monumental or site-specific, each work alters or permeates its local context to invite visitors to a broader, richer engagement.
For more information about our tours, please visit: www.mapletreearts.sg
]]>Our upcoming guided tour is an excellent way to get inspired and unwind in the company of art. Enjoy a well-deserved cup of coffee and snack while we walk you through the artworks nestled in the lush compounds of Mapletree Business City II (MBC II).
Themed Culture City. Culture Scape., this public art project, commissioned by Mapletree and curated by NTU CCA Singapore comprises works by internationally renowned artists Dan Graham (United States), Zulkifle Mahmod (Singapore), Tomás Saraceno (Argentina/Germany), and Yinka Shonibare (Nigeria/United Kingdom). Inspired by the idea of expanded sculptural environments, the artworks explore the interplay between landscape, architecture, and the broader social and economic environments they are placed in. More than being monumental or site-specific, each work alters or permeates its local context to invite visitors to a broader, richer engagement.
For more information about our tours, please visit: www.mapletreearts.sg
Collaborative and experimental by nature, Free Jazz III builds upon its past iterations by activating and challenging common understandings of exhibition-making and the use of space. Sound walks. Machines listen. We are living through unusual times.
As the NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore approaches a major transformation away from a permanent exhibition space in early 2021, Free Jazz III continues to explore the possibilities of an international research centre for contemporary art, featuring many artists who have been part of NTU CCA Singapore’s exhibitions, residencies, and programs since 2013, when the Centre presented Free Jazz as its inaugural event. The project began as a form of inquiry and an active tool to generate new possibilities for conceptualizing and programming an art institution. Free Jazz III convenes diverse projects united by themes of adaptation via masterful improvisation, trans-mediatic pivots, and the conscious renegotiation of our relationships to nature, technology, and each other. The disparate components of Free Jazz III explore the elements of dissonance, resistance, and innovation embedded in its musical namesake and the ability for sound and art to transcend physical and social distance. Embracing sound and walking as two powerful ways to overcome distance and bring people together, Free Jazz III comprises projects that can take place in non-gallery spaces, independently, asynchronously, or in purposeful syncopation with the present moment, reflecting on the past and looking forward to the future.
Admission to all programmes and events is free.
Sound. Walks.
January–March 2021 (On-site and online)
Reflecting on the loss of physicality through increased virtual interactions as well as many histories of sound and walking, artists address common life and communality in times of social distancing. In this series of performative explorations of sound, music, and community building, reflections take the form of soundwalks, sonic wayfinding and other physical and aural experiences, offering multiple ways for the public to actively witness, listen and participate, both remotely and on-site. Soundwalks by Tini Aliman (Singapore), Christa Donner and Andrew S Yang (United States), and Diana Lelonek (Poland) and Denim Szram (Poland/Switzerland) are propelled by sonic outputs of nature. Storytelling, correspondence, and the impossibility of direct communication factor into projects by Cheryl Ong (Singapore), Ana Prvački (Romania/Germany) in collaboration with Joyce Bee Tuan Koh (Singapore) and Galina Mihaleva (Bulgaria/Singapore), and Vivian Wang (Singapore/Switzerland). Sound, history, culture, and space overlap and intertwine in works by Arahmaiani (Indonesia) and Jimmy Ong (Singapore), bani haykal (Singapore) and Lee Weng Choy (Malaysia), Reetu Sattar (Bangladesh), and anGie Seah (Singapore).
Free Jazz III. Sound. Walks. is curated by Magdalena Magiera (Germany/Singapore), NTU CCA Singapore Curator, Education and Outreach, and Dr Karin Oen (United States/Singapore), NTU CCA Singapore Deputy Director, Curatorial Programmes
Under the Skin
1 December 2020 – 31 January 2021 (Online)
World premiere and special performance
1 December 2020, 7pm SGT
This trio of performative works by artists George Chua (Singapore), Nina Djekić (Slovenia/Singapore/Netherlands), and Noor Effendy Ibrahim (Singapore) engages with sound, bodily movements, and performance. These new pieces are cinematically translated into the medium of video by filmmaker Russell Morton (Singapore) and viewed online, acknowledging the curatorial premise that, “the pandemic has pushed us into a space of dramatic convergence—where a deep tech, hyper-connected future collides with social political unrest,” in both the work itself and the medium in which it is presented.
Under the Skin is curated for Free Jazz III by artist Cheong Kah Kit (Singapore) as part of Proposals for Novel Ways of Being, a united response to the changes brought about by COVID-19 hosted by twelve Singapore arts institutions, initiated by the National Gallery Singapore and Singapore Art Museum.
Partner programmes:
Machine Listening, a curriculum
From October 2020 (Online)
Expanded collaborations and explorations of curatorial spaces also took form in support of Machine Listening, a curriculum instigated by Melbourne-based Liquid Architecture. This evolving online resource, comprising existing and newly commissioned writing, interviews, music and artworks is a new investigation and experiment in collective learning around the emergent field of machine listening. It premiered with three online sessions open to all as part of Unsound 2020: Intermission, an experimental sound festival in Krakow, Poland. NTU CCA Singapore and Liquid Architecture will convene another collaborative online session open to the public in early 2021.
Machine Listening, a curriculum is curated by Sean Dockray, Dr James Parker, and Joel Stern (all Australia).
Visit the evolving open source curriculum and the recorded Unsound sessions:
(Against) the coming world of listening machines
Lessons in How (Not) to be Heard
Listening with the Pandemic
Sollum Swaramum
26 February 2021, 7.30 – 9.00pm
On-Site at Blk 43 Malan Road
Presented in collaboration with The Arts House’s Poetry with Music series, the 4th edition of Sollum Swaramum, brings together musicians Ramesh Krishnan, Mohamed Noor and Munir Alsagoff in exploration of the synergies between music and text, with devised and improvised texts based on the work of Tamil literary stalwarts P Krishnan, Ma Ilangkannnan and Rama Kannabiran. These newly devised texts are written by Harini V, Ashwinii Selvarai and Bharathi Moorthiappan, performed by Sivakumar Palakrishnan, and art direction by Laura Miotto.
Curated by Magdalena Magiera, Curator, Outreach and Education, and Dr. Karin Oen, Deputy Director, Curatorial Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore.
Free Jazz III. Sound. Walks. presented in partnership with Proposals for Novel Ways of Being, The Arts House, Liquid Architecture, as part of Singapore Art week, supported by National Arts Council.
Collaborative and experimental by nature, Free Jazz III builds upon its past iterations by activating and challenging common understandings of exhibition-making and the use of space. Sound walks. Machines listen. We are living through unusual times.
As the NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore approaches a major transformation away from a permanent exhibition space in early 2021, Free Jazz III continues to explore the possibilities of an international research centre for contemporary art, featuring many artists who have been part of NTU CCA Singapore’s exhibitions, residencies, and programs since 2013, when the Centre presented Free Jazz as its inaugural event. The project began as a form of inquiry and an active tool to generate new possibilities for conceptualizing and programming an art institution. Free Jazz III convenes diverse projects united by themes of adaptation via masterful improvisation, trans-mediatic pivots, and the conscious renegotiation of our relationships to nature, technology, and each other. The disparate components of Free Jazz III explore the elements of dissonance, resistance, and innovation embedded in its musical namesake and the ability for sound and art to transcend physical and social distance. Embracing sound and walking as two powerful ways to overcome distance and bring people together, Free Jazz III comprises projects that can take place in non-gallery spaces, independently, asynchronously, or in purposeful syncopation with the present moment, reflecting on the past and looking forward to the future.
Admission to all programmes and events is free.
Sound. Walks.
January–March 2021 (On-site and online)
Reflecting on the loss of physicality through increased virtual interactions as well as many histories of sound and walking, artists address common life and communality in times of social distancing. In this series of performative explorations of sound, music, and community building, reflections take the form of soundwalks, sonic wayfinding and other physical and aural experiences, offering multiple ways for the public to actively witness, listen and participate, both remotely and on-site. Soundwalks by Tini Aliman (Singapore), Christa Donner and Andrew S Yang (United States), and Diana Lelonek (Poland) and Denim Szram (Poland/Switzerland) are propelled by sonic outputs of nature. Storytelling, correspondence, and the impossibility of direct communication factor into projects by Cheryl Ong (Singapore), Ana Prvački (Romania/Germany) in collaboration with Joyce Bee Tuan Koh (Singapore) and Galina Mihaleva (Bulgaria/Singapore), and Vivian Wang (Singapore/Switzerland). Sound, history, culture, and space overlap and intertwine in works by Arahmaiani (Indonesia) and Jimmy Ong (Singapore), bani haykal (Singapore) and Lee Weng Choy (Malaysia), Reetu Sattar (Bangladesh), and anGie Seah (Singapore).
Free Jazz III. Sound. Walks. is curated by Magdalena Magiera (Germany/Singapore), NTU CCA Singapore Curator, Education and Outreach, and Dr Karin Oen (United States/Singapore), NTU CCA Singapore Deputy Director, Curatorial Programmes
Under the Skin
1 December 2020 – 31 January 2021 (Online)
World premiere and special performance
1 December 2020, 7pm SGT
This trio of performative works by artists George Chua (Singapore), Nina Djekić (Slovenia/Singapore/Netherlands), and Noor Effendy Ibrahim (Singapore) engages with sound, bodily movements, and performance. These new pieces are cinematically translated into the medium of video by filmmaker Russell Morton (Singapore) and viewed online, acknowledging the curatorial premise that, “the pandemic has pushed us into a space of dramatic convergence—where a deep tech, hyper-connected future collides with social political unrest,” in both the work itself and the medium in which it is presented.
Under the Skin is curated for Free Jazz III by artist Cheong Kah Kit (Singapore) as part of Proposals for Novel Ways of Being, a united response to the changes brought about by COVID-19 hosted by twelve Singapore arts institutions, initiated by the National Gallery Singapore and Singapore Art Museum.
Partner programmes:
Machine Listening, a curriculum
From October 2020 (Online)
Expanded collaborations and explorations of curatorial spaces also took form in support of Machine Listening, a curriculum instigated by Melbourne-based Liquid Architecture. This evolving online resource, comprising existing and newly commissioned writing, interviews, music and artworks is a new investigation and experiment in collective learning around the emergent field of machine listening. It premiered with three online sessions open to all as part of Unsound 2020: Intermission, an experimental sound festival in Krakow, Poland. NTU CCA Singapore and Liquid Architecture will convene another collaborative online session open to the public in early 2021.
Machine Listening, a curriculum is curated by Sean Dockray, Dr James Parker, and Joel Stern (all Australia).
Visit the evolving open source curriculum and the recorded Unsound sessions:
(Against) the coming world of listening machines
Lessons in How (Not) to be Heard
Listening with the Pandemic
Sollum Swaramum
26 February 2021, 7.30 – 9.00pm
On-Site at Blk 43 Malan Road
Presented in collaboration with The Arts House’s Poetry with Music series, the 4th edition of Sollum Swaramum, brings together musicians Ramesh Krishnan, Mohamed Noor and Munir Alsagoff in exploration of the synergies between music and text, with devised and improvised texts based on the work of Tamil literary stalwarts P Krishnan, Ma Ilangkannnan and Rama Kannabiran. These newly devised texts are written by Harini V, Ashwinii Selvarai and Bharathi Moorthiappan, performed by Sivakumar Palakrishnan, and art direction by Laura Miotto.
Curated by Magdalena Magiera, Curator, Outreach and Education, and Dr. Karin Oen, Deputy Director, Curatorial Programmes, NTU CCA Singapore.
Free Jazz III. Sound. Walks. presented in partnership with Proposals for Novel Ways of Being, The Arts House, Liquid Architecture, as part of Singapore Art week, supported by National Arts Council.