Asiatopia Performance Conference 2016 | An open space for sharing
Culture360’s report on the recent Asiatopia Performance Conference held in Bangkok.
BFM Malaysia: Podcast interview with Lionel Shriver
Umapagan Ampikaipakan catches up with Lionel Shriver at the Singapore Writers Festival 2016 and together they discuss her controversial comments on cultural appropriation and the future of America under Trump.
ArtAsiaPacific Reports: Contemporary Art in Kuala Lumpur
Gallerist Valentine Willie reports for ArtAsiaPacific on the growth of the contemporary art scene in KL, Malaysia.
Shanghai Biennale 2016 Ditches Dichotomy between East and West
Artsy.com’s Frances Arnold discusses the 11th Shanghai Biennale curated by Delhi-based artist group Raqs Media Collective.
Two LGBT-themed films win big at Philippines Cinema One Awards
Jasmine Curtis-Smith won Best Actress for her role in the movie Baka Bukas, while the gay-themed coming-of-age flick 2 Cool 2 Be 4gotten was declared Best Picture. (ABS-CBN)
Consume Your Art Like a Snickers Bar?
(plu)ral, the art blog begins with The Society of the Spectacle, meets some misshappen heads on the Ratchaprasong Skywalk Art Maze and lands at the Art Stage Singapore 2017 media launch.
Crisis of Masculinity: Best Of (His Story)
By Matthew Lyon (480 words, 6-minute read) The Necessary Stage’s Best Of (His Story) is a response to the company’s 2013 monologue, Best Of that detailed a day in the life of a young Malay-Muslim woman. The project of the original…
Indonesian artist wins 2016 UOB Southeast Asian art prize
Thai news portal The Nation reports on Indonesian painter Gatot Indrajati’s win in the 2016 UOB Southeast Asian Painting of the Year competition, based in Singapore.
Healing beauty’s wounds (at the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival 2016)
In the Bangkok Post, Philip Cornwel-Smith shares an overview of the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival 2016.
Love, Loss and a search for identity at SWF 2016
Sharmilla Ganesan writes for Malaysian culture portal Star2.com, reflecting on the myriad issues brought up at the Singapore Writers Festival 2016.
Safe Space: Southeast Asia Choreolab
By Bilqis Hijjas (1536, 20-minute read) The recent US election has Bilqis Hijjas reflecting on the politics of minority safe spaces and her Southeast Asian identity. In the weeks since the US election, I have had ample opportunity to ponder…
SWF 2016 Panel: Southeast Asian Speculative Fiction
By Akanksha Raja (608 words, 6-minute read) Speculative fiction (or spec-fic) is an umbrella term for a number of literary genres including science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, magical realism, and horror. It’s the term for all those movies and books…
Cambodian Ministry of Arts sets up Grants for Arts
The Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts has taken the first step toward setting up grant funding for the arts, ministry officials said on Friday. Moulnithi Tratrong Ning Akphivath Silapak Cheat—the foundation for national arts support and development—was established late…
PETA’s The Tempest Reimagined
The Philippine Educational Theatre Association’s The Tempest Reimagined (11 Nov – 4 Dec 2016) fuses the survivor stories of 2013′ Typhoon Hainan/Yolanda, which claimed 6000 lives, with Shakespeare’s classic tale of a catastrophic storm and its aftermaths. Read Murphy Report’s…
Changing Notions: On the Back of a Raging Bull
by Pawit Mahasarinan (1045 words, 12-minute read) Asian works were part of the main programme in this 50-year-old festival From 24 September to 2 October 2016, the jubilee edition of the Belgrade International Theatre Festival (BITEF) with the subtitle “On…
Full View: Women in Photography 2016
By Akanksha Raja (800 words, 8-minute read) The second edition of Objectifs’ annual Women in Photography 2016 programme, co-presented with the Magnum Foundation, is a group exhibition featuring photographic works from 18 contemporary female artists associated with Magnum. While…
Bontot Jambu/Pink Butt: An Animated GIF Story About Cats
ArtsEquator gives you … cats. But what cats these are! Sharon Chin and Zedeck Siew’s animated gif was screened at Festival Filem Meowlaysia 1, Malaysia’s first Cat Video Festival in September 2016. Yes, Meowlaysia.
Necessary Nuance: Best Of (His Story)
By Kathy Rowland (1010 words, 10-minute read) Best of (His Story) is a monologue set on a crowded stage. A young man, alone in an apartment decorated by his wife, reflects on his marriage on the day his divorce is…
You Must Like Chocolate: An Essay on Taste
By Lee Weng Choy (1130 words, 17-minute read) Do you like chocolate? I like chocolate. Who doesn’t like chocolate? Although, come to think of it, I do know of some people who don’t like chocolate — at least, I remember…
Notes from the Indonesian Dance Festival Workshop
Su-Wen Chi was one of four mentors at a week long workshop for young dancers at the Indonesian Dance Festival in Bobor, West Java in May this year. She recounts her experience working with contemporary Asian dancers and opening her…
The Word and the World Part 1
Gareth Richards and Mohd Izzuddin Ramli delve into Penang’s historical position as the site of translation in Southeast Asia, a precursor to the burgeoning independent publication scene in the region. (Source: Penang Monthly)
Histories, Practices and Interventions: A Reader in Singapore Contemporary Art
Marcus Yee of RightAfters reviews a collection of Singapore art writing, Histories, Practices and Interventions: A Reader in Singapore Contemporary Art edited by Jeffrey Say and Seng Yu Jin.
Voices From The Floor: World Summit on Arts and Culture
By Kathy Rowland (1600 words, 18-minute read) Moments of disruption during the 7th World Summit on Arts and Culture 2016 revealed the contentious nature of Cultural Leadership in the 21st Century. More than 300 delegates from around the world gathered…
Review of Era Mahathir Exhibition
Chen May Yee explores the contradictions of Malaysia’s longest-serving Prime Minister in her review of Ilham Gallery Kuala Lumpur’s Era Mahathir show. (Source: New York Times)
In Conversation: Review of Artist and Empire: (En)countering Colonial Legacies
Arthop’s Michelle Liew reviews the National Gallery of Singapore and Tate Britain’s Artist and Empire: (En) countering Colonial Legacies on at the National Gallery of Singapore until March 2017.