ArtsEquator

hello, is this working?
2025-05-25 16:00 - 19:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Bedok Town Square, 208C New Upper Changi Rd, Singapore 463208, 463208, Singapore
Work is a huge part of our lives, but it is often not thought and talked about in public. What does work mean to each of us? What are our dreams and worries about work now and in the future?
Drawn from research and interviews with people from different walks of life, hello, is this working? is a participatory performance by Singapore theatre company Drama Box, that explores our relationship with work now and in the future.

Performance | Switch
2025-05-24 18:00 - 18:45 (Asia/Shanghai) | STPI Creative Workshop & Gallery, 41 Robertson Quay, Singapore, Singapore, 238236, Singapore
Join us for a journey through poetry, music and movement inspired by pantun and Surrealism. Switch is like a living poem where each performer whispers from traditions, languages and influences to create an archipelagic soundscape. This performance is produced by Le Pavillon Rouge des Arts Hong Kong, and supported by the French Embassy of Singapore and STPI.

50 MILLION GRAMS: ARTIST TALK WITH ANTHONY CHIN
2025-05-24 16:00 - 17:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Battlebox, 2 Cox Terrace, Singapore, Singapore, 179622, Singapore
Join Anthony Chin for an engaging and in-depth exploration around his work, BMA, on this Saturday afternoon at Portals within the Battlebox. This is a unique opportunity to gain first-hand insights into his creative process, inspirations and research behind the work and other previous works in his established practice.
We recommend for guests to arrive 1 hour before the Artist Talk to explore the Portals exhibition. Due to limited walk-ins, please reserve your exhibition time slot (24 May, 3-4pm) here: Portals Exhibition
This Artist Talk is a programme complementary to Portals, an innovative visual arts exhibition that bridges Singapore’s wartime history with creative technology at the Battlebox. The Artist Talk and Portals are programmes of cmd.exe (“command prompt”), a new platform that explores the convergence of heritage and creative technology. Portals is commissioned as part of cmd.exe (“command prompt”), a new platform that explores the convergence of heritage and creative technology.
The exhibition runs from 28 March to 29 June 2025. More details of the exhibition, and its public programmes can be found at cmdexe.art.

Vampyr
2025-05-23 20:00 - 2025-05-25 16:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Drama Centre Theatre, National Library, Victoria Street, Singapore
Vampyr is a mockumentary about stubborn shapeshifting creatures—half-dead, half- alive, half-animal, half-human, half-earth—that refuse to obey the mandate of the nature/culture divide. Living in unregulated wind turbine parks in Chile, these indeterminate beings exist sometimes as disoriented bats, and sometimes as exhausted night-shift workers.
A piece about energy and exhaustion, work and rest, Vampyr is a work of delirious black humour about the relationship between the non-humans (read: animals) that inhabit our territories and how we relate to their cultures when we consider humankind’s energetic projections for the future.
A critical and ironic dialogue is established between the myth of the European vampire and the reality of the Chilean hematophagous bat, a species that dies in large numbers due to wind turbines. This creation of an imagined mythology of a South American vampire presents a critical perspective on green neo-colonialism, which perpetuates practices of extraction and appropriation of colonial logic that are greenwashed under the guise of green energy production.
Vampyr is the third part of Chilean playwright and theatre director Manuela Infante’s exploration of the non-human that started with Estado Vegetal and How to Turn to Stone.

The House Between The Winds
2025-05-23 - 2025-06-01 | Empress Lawn, Victoria Theatre & Victoria Concert Hall, 11 Empress Pl, #01-02, Singapore, 179558, Singapore
Experience a talking installation paying homage to the glorious plantations that lined Orchard Road. Witness a magnificent sailboat travelling across the Empress Lawn. Touch, feel and create as you go on a pilgrimage of memories through whimsical and playful interactive kinetic installations that take you on a journey through time and space.
Many were once drawn to a place where the winds crossed, where the paths connecting East and West met. There, they traded, made a living, and learned—acquiring knowledge that stretched beyond the borders of their homelands. It was also a safe harbour, as they waited for the monsoon winds to change and carry them onwards to their destinations.
Soon, this place became home, and they reshaped the land to suit their lives. The nurturing trees fed their new ideas and ways of doing things, and with their insatiable and unceasing appetites, the trees made way for a landscape that would be forever changed.

LEAR
2025-05-23 - 2025-05-25 | SOTA Studio Theatre, 1 Zubir Said Drive, Singapore, 227968, Singapore
Man. Father. Fool.
In this dark and claustrophobic world, Lear is the all-powerful patriarch, but he is also his own fool. Being a fool is one thing. Having power and being a fool is quite another. What happens when the power we hold is taken away?
“Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! Rage, blow!”
This contemporary re-imagining of Shakespeare’s King Lear will bring together a cast of four with Ramesh Meyyappan’s trademark bold visual storytelling, exploring universal themes of escalating madness, loss of power, betrayal and trust with empathy and a deep understanding of the human condition.

A Thousand Stitches
2025-05-23 - 2025-05-25 | Drama Centre Black Box, Singapore, Select a Country:
A vandalised artwork. An enigmatic painter forced to create wartime propaganda. A desperate act of love.
As Emma, an art conservation student restores a portrait of a Japanese woman, Mizuki, she finds herself transported deep into the heart of Syonan-to—Japanese-occupied Singapore. There, Emma stitches together the lives of Mizuki, the artist, Huang Wei and the storms that raged in and around them.
A Thousand Stitches is a moving story of friendship, heartbreak and loss told through a blend of performance, painting and live cinema. A haunting reimagining of a difficult chapter of Singapore’s history, this presentation explores the transgenerational impact of war and the necessity of hope in the darkest of times.

HOME
2025-05-22 20:00 - 2025-05-25 16:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Victoria Theatre, 9 Empress Pl, 179556, Singapore, 179556, Singapore
On stage, a house appears from nothing. It goes up fast, choreographed like time-lapse photography. Residents move in, move out, get evicted, burn it down, loot it, rent it, remodel it, get married and divorced in it, grow up in it, die in it, haunt it. And all the while, they leave and live among traces of residents from the present, past and future. They throw a party, as if everyone who ever lived there cohabitated, transcending time and space.
HOME is a large-scale performance work that explores and explodes the relationship between “house” and “home”. A visual and physical spectacle, HOME combines dance, illusion, live music, homespun engineering, and inventive audience interaction to compose a work that asks, “Where is home? If it is not a place, what is home?”
HOME aims to awaken us to current housing dilemmas, local and global. The universal and timely themes of gentrification and migration are rendered in the choreography of ordinary people inhabiting a structure, leaving that structure through a variety of social, political, personal, and aesthetic forces, and replacing one another. HOME seeks to use the house of the theatre as a lens through which we might see the impact of these forces at work—the illusion of home; the transitory nature of dwelling; the constraints of time and money; the impossible structural demands of a house; the absurdity; and at times the impossibility of trying to make a house a home. In the face of entropy, we struggle to build infrastructure, family community, art. We fail, and we try again.

Ubud Open Studios
2025-05-22 - 2025-05-25 | Nonfrasa, Jl. Raya Sanggingan, Kedewatan, Kecamatan Ubud, Kabupaten Gianyar, Gianyar, Bali, 80571, Indonesia
Ubud Open Studios invites art lovers, cultural explorers, and the creatively curious to our annual celebration of art in Ubud, Bali. The 4th edition of this event will take place over 3 days and includes studios visits, talks and demonstrations, exhibitions and more.
Discover Ubud’s contemporary art scene right from artists’ studios. Imagine an art-filled scavenger hunt where every studio is a treasure trove of creativity. In 2024, Ubud Open Studios showcased over 50 local and international artists’ studios, inviting attendees to enter their world of creativity and craftsmanship. A journey of artistic discovery & connection offering a glimpse into the sacred spaces where art comes to life. It’s about community—an opportunity to connect, converse, and collect experiences & artworks that resonate.
Ubud is a magnet and source of creativity. The Ubud culture is known worldwide for its rich artistry, striking performances, and craftsmanship.
Ubud’s artists have a long tradition of creating, mastering mediums and techniques and passing them down through the generations. Ubud was once known for its art and craft studios and this was the main draw for many visitors. We’d love to support this renewal in the area with Ubud Open Studios.

KAKOKI
2025-05-18 20:30 - 21:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Bedok Town Square, 208C New Upper Changi Rd, Singapore 463208, 463208, Singapore
We are the builders of the land, shaping our own destiny. In the pulse of the earth, we seek grace, striving to find our place. Surrounded by rules and expectations, survival alone is not enough. A rising fall, a lifting struggle—what is our song? In the end, we are the deciders of our fate.
KAKOKI, an acronym for ‘Kata Kota Kita’ (“What Our City Says”), embodies the spirit, struggles, and complexities of our shared journey—as individuals, as a tribe, and as a community.
Nadi Singapura seizes every opportunity in their performances, blending intense drumming, movement, chants, and melodies drawn from the rich traditions and culture of the Malay community, both past and present.
Rindu rindu
Air yang mengalir,
bak hujan yang turun
Cahaya mentari,
membawa ku pergi
Biji yang ditanam,
dibaja disiram
Diharap tak layu,
mekar berlagu
Darah yang mengalir,
jasad yang menanggung
Alam pun berbisik,
menjunjung agung
Kisah dicerita,
membawa maksud
Gelora di jiwa,
kan terus terwujud
Rindu, rindu yang berbisikkan cinta
Rindu, rindu yang mendamaikan jiwa

Photography Masterclass: Sequencing and Storytelling for Long-Term Projects
2025-05-17 12:00 - 17:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Objectifs Centre for Photography and Film, 155 Middle Road, Singapore, 188977, Singapore
Date & Time
Sat 17 May 2025, 12pm – 5pm
Venue
Objectifs Workshop Space
Duration
5h over 1 session
Proficiency Level
Intermediate
Find out more and register here.
This photography masterclass is designed for photographers working on long-term personal projects who want to strengthen their visual storytelling and sequencing skills. Led by Veejay Villafranca, acclaimed documentary photographer and former Regional Jury Head (2024) of the World Press Photo Contest, this workshop offers an in-depth look into the creative process behind building powerful photographic narratives.
Participants will explore Veejay’s personal editing and sequencing workflow—learning how to curate images effectively for single images, photojournalism assignments, and long-form visual projects. The session will also cover key differences in editing approaches based on the intended platform or purpose.
Additionally, Veejay will provide practical insights into shaping meaningful personal narratives that connect with wider audiences.

About Veejay Villafranca
Veejay was a staff photographer for the national news magazine, the Philippines Graphic, covering socio-political events in the Philippines. In 2006, he started working independently with international news wire agencies covering news and features in the Southeast Asian region.
In 2008, he was awarded the Ian Parry Scholarship and pursued a residency at Visa Pour l’Image in Perpignan, France for his project on the lives of former gang members in Manila. In 2013, Veejay attended the 2013 Joop Swart Masterclass program of the World Press Photo Foundation where he developed a project on public health and Filipino spirituality. His first photobook co-published with MAPA Books, SIGNOS, garnered the 2018 Invisible Photographer Asia first photobook award. He is also one of the featured artists at the Philippine Pavilion at the 2024 Gwangju Biennale.
Veejay is a visual language and documentary photography lecturer at the Diploma in Visual Journalism at the Asian Center for Journalism and at the Bachelor’s of Photography program at the College of Saint Benilde. He is also an alumnus of the 2005 Angkor Photo Festival Documentary photographer workshop and served as a Regional jury member (2022) and later on Regional Jury Head (2023) of the World Press Photo Contest.

Heman Chong: This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness
2025-05-17 - 2025-08-17 | SAM at Tanjong Pagar Distripark, 39 Keppel Rd, 01-02, Singapore 089065, Singapore, 089065, Singapore
Singapore Art Museum proudly presents Heman Chong: This is a dynamic list and may never be
able to satisfy particular standards for completeness, the first major survey exhibition by prolific
multifaceted artist Heman Chong. Appropriated from Wikipedia’s defining terms and conditions related
to the ever-changing nature of its online lists, the title announces its intentions from the get-go. The
exhibition reflects and extends canonical works in his oeuvre to invite fresh perspectives on their
meaning and relevance today.
Bringing together over 50 artworks and new commissions from the early 2000s to the present, the
exhibition examines Chong’s (post)conceptual strategies and gestures, expressed through works that
move through and between image, text, performance and situations. Across nine thematic rooms,
visitors will experience how Chong employs everyday, commonplace objects and scenarios, from name
cards, to books, newspapers, and photographs of public-accessible spaces, to confront contemporary
geopolitics and the infrastructural ironies of our data-driven and networked society — all with a dose of
Chong’s characteristic sharp wit. In a world of highly mediated landscapes where information is
constantly being rewritten, the exhibition serves as a checkpoint for visitors to pause and consider how
meaning is made and remade.

Told By My Mother
2025-05-16 20:00 - 2025-05-17 22:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Victoria Theatre, 9 Empress Pl, 179556, Singapore, 179556, Singapore
In the second chapter of his trilogy on love, Lebanese choreographer Ali Chahrour draws from his own family history and in torn-up Lebanon to weave a tapestry of poignant stories.
At the heart of it, a mother, Leila, clings to her child Abbas, striving to shield him from the fate of martyrdom. A little further down, another mother, Fatmeh, who never stopped looking for her missing child, Hassan. These tales, echoing through time, form an infinite loop of love and loss.
With their stories, these ordinary heroines breathe life into the tenderness and fierce intensity of maternal love. On stage, they give birth to heart-rending family portraits, so striking in the infinite beauty of filial relations.
Ali Chahrour, actress Hala Omran, and musicians Ali Hout and Abed Kobeissy (Two or The Dragon) accompany these narratives with music inspired as much by Arab culture as by urban sounds. Through movement, song, words and music, generations converge and fracture, like the narrow and unfathomable eternal love between a mother and a child. Absolute.

Projection Night
2025-05-16 19:30 - 22:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Objectifs Centre for Photography and Film, 155 Middle Road, Singapore, 188977, Singapore
Fri 16 May 2025, 7.30pm – 10pm
Chapel Gallery, Objectifs
Free admission (please RSVP here)
Join us for an evening projection of works by photographers and artists across Southeast Asia. These slideshows encapsulate the spirit of visual storytelling in the region, with a special focus on work from the Philippines. The slideshow will be followed by a conversation between photographer Veejay Villafranca and Chelsea Chua, Programme Director.
Dispatches from the Region
Curated by Chelsea Chua and Lim Ming Rui (Objectifs)
Featuring recent projects by six past recipients of the Objectifs Documentary Award, this slideshow gives a glimpse into the issues and modes of image-making that preoccupy artists and photographers in Southeast Asia today.
Vista: Philippine Perspectives
Curated by Veejay Villafranca
Vista will showcase the work of photographers covering contemporary stories in and around the country. This curated slideshow aims to highlight photographic practice and perspective in their work as witnesses in important events and in following contemporary stories that delve in the socio-political sphere of the Philippines and its neighboring countries in Southeast Asia.

The Sea and The Neighbourhood
2025-05-16 19:30 - 20:30 (Asia/Shanghai) | Bedok Town Square, 208C New Upper Changi Rd, Singapore 463208, 463208, Singapore
The Sea and the Neighbourhood is a multidisciplinary work encompassing Bedok’s costal heritage, neighbourhood charm and the modernity of its inhabitants. Populated by musicians and dancers, musical instruments and choreography, The Sea and the Neighbourhood captures notions of momentum and renewal, like the ebb and flow of the sea that shapes Singapore, and the pulse of a people knowing where they have come from and the paths they must continue to forge for a meaningful collective future.
A colossal installation by visual artist Wang Ruobing doubles as a performance stage becoming the visual icon of SIFA’s first Pavilion, an environment built to engender collaboration and gathering through the conduit of performance. Coming together as the collective strengths of a community of artists working in response to each other, The Sea and the Neighbourhood features music composition by Philip Tan, dance choreography by Christina Chan with Singapore Ballet and video, and spatial design and costume styling by Brian Gothong Tan.

Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) 2025
2025-05-16 - 2025-06-01 | Singapore, Singapore
Singapore’s pinnacle annual performing arts festival, Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA), returns from 16 May to 1 June 2025, guided by the overarching theme More Than Ever. Organised by Arts House Limited (AHL) and commissioned by the National Arts Council (NAC), SIFA 2025 celebrates Singapore’s unique cultural identity and the evolution of its artistic landscape. Set against the backdrop of Singapore’s 60th year and building on the Festival’s 48 years of history, this year’s edition will feature the largest showcase of homegrown talents, with 15 new local commissions.
Through multilayered presentations by a range of distinct artistic voices, SIFA 2025 pushes the boundaries of performance and festival presentation, bridging diverse audiences with unique artistic experiences. The Festival places homegrown talents at the fore alongside compelling international works, spanning art forms that include theatre, dance, music, and visual arts. Featuring an unprecedented number of 15 local commissioned works that include reimaginings of classics such as Animal Farm and LEAR, alongside presentations by singular artistic voices such as Drama Box and Nine Years Theatre. SIFA also gets more to experience the arts with the introduction of a new SIFA Pavilion at Bedok Town Square that will host a variety of arts experiences throughout the Festival and continues to present Little SIFA for the young and young-at-heart, which sets up camp this time at Empress Lawn. Marking 48 years of the Festival, the 2025 edition will also host a series of conversations with key cultural figures and leaders, reflecting on Singapore’s evolving arts scene and its global significance.
More than ever, SIFA 2025 champions the excellence of homegrown artists and deepens Singapore’s cultural dialogue with the world.

SIFA Pavilion at Bedok Town Square
2025-05-16 - 2025-06-01 | Bedok Town Square, 208C New Upper Changi Rd, Singapore 463208, 463208, Singapore
Imagined as a transient arts space charged with multidisciplinary artistic expression and public engagement, the SIFA Pavilion lends a powerful new dimension to the Festival’s relationship with the shared public environ; the common space where our plural narratives co-exist.
A colossal installation, titled Beneath Tide, Running Water, by visual artist Wang Ruobing doubles as a performance stage, becoming the visual icon of the Festival’s first Pavilion, an environment built to engender collaboration and gathering through the conduit of performance.
The SIFA Pavilion lasts for the course of the Festival hosting multiple works bringing performance and the public together. Situated at Bedok Town Square, and taking in the social and historical contexts of Bedok, with its rich history influenced by the sea, old charm and a diverse urban community today, the SIFA Pavilion becomes its own ecosystem cycling through the multi-arts experience and sprouting so much creative possibility.

Animal Farm
2025-05-16 - 2025-05-18 | Drama Centre Theatre, National Library, Victoria Street, Singapore
It begins with a revolution. A group of downtrodden animals overthrows their owner, seeking to build a utopian society founded on fairness and equality. However, cracks soon appear when Napoleon, a power-hungry and manipulative porker, rises to leadership, using propaganda and violence to consolidate control. The animals quickly find themselves at the mercy of totalitarian tyranny, shackled by the very principles that were meant to set them free.
Based on George Orwell’s political satire Animal Farm, this theatrical adaptation by The Finger Players employs stunning puppetry to illustrate themes of brutality, conflict, and oppression. Written and directed by award-winning theatre veteran Oliver Chong, Animal Farm is a play of discordant harmony, adopting a darker, wittier, and more visceral treatment than the novel’s allegorical approach.

Umbilical
2025-05-16 - 2025-05-18 | SOTA Studio Theatre, 1 Zubir Said Drive, Singapore, 227968, Singapore
Umbilical explores the social and emotional ripples resulting from division and transformation, drawing poignant parallels with the looming uncertainty that was experienced by the people who lived through the separation of Singapore from Malaysia in 1965.
A dynamic blend of movement, music, visual projections and AI integration, Umbilical is an immersive performance that delves into the intricate layers of identity, belonging and relationships. Here, the umbilical cord serves as an evocative metaphor and symbolic bridge between water and land, people and places, and past and present.
Umbilical invites us to reflect on the evolving nature of personal and collective bonds in an ever-shifting world, while embracing technology as both a collaborator and a form of resistance. The multi-sensorial performance magnifies the tension between human and machine, tradition and innovation.

[Call For Nominations] Objectifs Women In Focus Art Prize
2025-05-13 08:00 - 2025-06-23 23:30 (Asia/Shanghai) | Objectifs Centre for Photography and Film, 155 Middle Road, Singapore, 188977, Singapore
Deadline for nominations: Mon 23 Jun (2359H SGT)

Objectifs is excited to announce the launch of a new award, dedicated to celebrating and supporting the exceptional work of mid-career women and non-binary photographers, filmmakers and visual artists who work primarily in lens-based medium, and who are now at a pivotal stage in their careers.
Through the Objectifs Women in Focus Art Prize, we aim to recognise the achievements of artists who have demonstrated excellence and innovation in their body of work, with a focus on practices that are socially engaged or create space for impact, questioning, and dialogue. The Prize also reaffirms Objectifs’ commitment to amplifying visual stories by women and non-binary artists, and the value of supporting practitioners at different stages of their careers.
The SGD8,000 Prize is currently for Southeast Asians with at least 15 years as a professional practitioner. For 2025, the Prize will be offered to photographers and visual artists working in photography. It will be opened to filmmakers/those working in film in 2026.
Through an Open Call for Nominations, we invite curators, programmers and industry peers to highlight those who are pushing boundaries and creating meaningful, culturally relevant narratives. Nominations will be evaluated by a jury panel.

What are we looking for in nominations in 2025?
1. Photographers and visual artists who work primarily in photography medium, with a preference for work that are socially engaged or that explore and surface social issues/themes. (Note: Nominations for filmmakers and artists working in film/video open only in 2026).
2. Nominees must be a Southeast Asian citizen, with at least 15 years as a professional practitioner (the time period may include overlapping academic studies, if the nominee was pursuing a professional practice at the same time – e.g. freelance work, independent showcases).
3. There is no restriction on the use of the Prize money. Our only requirement is for the Prize recipient to deliver an artist-sharing session in October 2025 (format to discussed).
4. Nominations are open to the public and to all nationalities (note, only nominees must be Southeast Asian). Self-nominations and nominations by immediate family members will not be accepted.
5. Nominations will be assessed on:
i) A strong body of work that has a clear artistic vision, that preferably explores social themes.
ii) An active and ongoing record of participation in the field (may include exhibitions, festivals, screenings, publications, mentorships, community outreach etc).
iii) The nominee demonstrates a commitment to continued artistic growth and dedication to their craft.
6. One SGD8,000 Women in Focus Art Prize will be awarded. An award of SGD1,000 each will be given to two finalists.
7. Objectifs will contact nominees directly for the submission of materials. These materials will need to be submitted by 6 August 2025. The materials to be submitted by nominees will include a portfolio of up to 3 bodies of works/series that are most representative of their practice.
8. Results will be announced in October 2025, during the 8th edition of the Objectifs Women in Film & Photography Showcase.
Submit your nominations here.

an 1825 hopscotch
2025-05-10 20:00 - 21:30 (Asia/Shanghai) | Esplanade Recital Studio, 1 Esplanade Dr, Singapore, 038981, Singapore
Beethoven Sonata No.10 for piano and violin in G major Op. 96 (1812)
Mendelssohn Violin Sonata No. 3 in F major MWV Q26 (1838)
Schumann Violin Sonata No. 2 in d minor Op. 121 (1851)
Join us for a quick hopscotch around 1825 to peer into the evolution of cultural and artistic ideals as well as expression of pre and post 1825 through a carefully selected trio of sonatas for violin and piano created over a span of almost half a century. Still, each master leaves behind their own indelible touch – Beethoven who brings us a message beyond life, the effusive optimism immediately recognisable as Mendelssohn’s and the dramatic turmoil of Schumann.
Catch all of this at an 1825 hopscotch before Chamber Music and Arts Singapore dives into a celebration of the 200th anniversary of this remarkable year for chamber music – in conjunction with our 5th anniversary celebrations later this year in November!
This delightful project features the internationally-acclaimed chamber musicians of CMAS:
Alasdair Beatson, Scottish pianist and artistic director of the chamber music festival at Musikdorf Ernen in Switzerland alasdairbeatson.com
Tang Tee Khoon, concert violinist and founder of Chamber Music and Arts Singapore chambermusicarts.com.sg/artists/tang-tee-khoon

SagoBako in Concert - SEA Debut Tour, Singapore
2025-05-10 17:15 - 19:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Bechstein Music World Recital Hall, 7 Shenton Way #02-01, Singapore Conference Hall, 066810, Singapore
Guitar duo brings Southeast Asian virtuosity to Singapore in highly anticipated debut

Singapore is set to welcome the SagoBako guitar duo for the first time, as the celebrated pair of classical guitarists embarks on a 15-city tour across Southeast Asia.

Huy Quang Tran from Vietnam and Wadcharin Suksabsri from Thailand—known for their intricate artistry and profound musical synergy—will perform on May 10 at Bechstein Music World Recital Hall in Shenton Way. They will introduce local audiences to a repertoire that blends European and Latin American classical traditions with the duo’s signature interpretations.
Their programme will feature works composed or arranged for two guitars by Enrique Granados, Vasquez Edmundo, Leo Brouwer, Matthias Duplessy, Ruperto Chapi, and Justo Tomás Morales, among others. Notable duets include Granados’ Danzas Españolas (Oriental, Andaluza, and Villanesca)—reimagined for two guitars—and Edmundo’s evocative Suite Populaire.

Each guitarist will also perform solo pieces, including works by Leo Brouwer, Máximo Diego Pujol, and Ariel Ramírez.
Cross-border musical dialogue
SagoBako is a portmanteau of Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) and Bangkok, the two home cities that shaped their artistic journeys. Huy and Suksabsri first crossed paths at the 2018 Southeast Asia Guitar Festival & Performance Awards in Bangkok, where a shared reverence for the classical guitar sparked a collaboration.

In 2023, Huy and Suksabsri formed SagoBako, dedicated to pushing the boundaries of classical guitar performance while preserving its time- honoured traditions.
Their 2025 tour will see them perform across Vietnam, Singapore, and Thailand, with stops in Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho, Long Xuyên, Dalat, Haiphong, and Hanoi before arriving in Singapore. The tour will culminate in May at the Southeast Asia Guitar Festival & Performance Awards in Bangkok, a fitting finale to their musical odyssey.
Masters of their craft
No stranger to their native classical guitar scenes, Huy, 34, a graduate of the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music, has represented Vietnam in national classical guitar competitions. The prize-winner of Saigon International Guitar Festival (2017, 2019) continues to shape the next generation of musicians as an educator and performer.

Suksabsri, 35, a Bangkok native, began his musical journey at age 14 and went on to earn both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Music Performance from Silpakorn University. The prize-winner of Martinez Thailand Guitar Competition 2020 has also participated in international guitar festivals across Asia, earning acclaim for his expressive interpretations and technical finesse.
Through their performances, SagoBako aims to bridge cultures through the classical guitar. Their Singapore debut is not just a showcase of technical mastery but a testament to the instrument’s evolving possibilities in the hands of two of Southeast Asia’s most compelling musicians.

Home Kitchen《家囝成厨》
2025-05-10 15:00 - 2025-05-18 17:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre Auditorium (Level 9) 1 Straits Boulevard, Singapore 018906, Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre Auditorium (Level 9) 1 Straits Boulevard, Singapore 018906, Singapore, Singapore, 018906, Singapore
At Gim Hiang Restaurant, a three-generation business, the dishes are hot, but the family tensions are hotter! A father clings to tradition, while his French-trained son stirs up bold new flavours. Will they preserve the past or spice up the future? Can they find common ground, or will their bond go up in flames? A sizzling clash of food, culture, and love—Home Kitchen serves up a deliciously heartwarming family showdown!
经营三代的潮州餐馆”金香园”热气腾腾，菜香四溢，但厨房里却上演着一场父子大战——父亲坚持传统，小儿子远赴法国学艺归来，誓要创新，结果炒出了满锅的矛盾！
“金香园”的未来，究竟是坚守经典老味道，还是大胆加点“新香料”？
一场关于美食与亲情的爆炒之战，《家囝成厨》热锅已开，好戏即将上桌，欢迎入席！
Starring Rei Poh, Joel Tan, Audrey Luo, Timothy Wan, Jodi Chan, Regina Toon, Xuan Ong, Seah Janice, Choy Chee Yew
A heartwarming and humorous story about family, food, and generational legacy, Home Kitchen explores what it means to preserve the old while embracing the new — all within the walls of a humble family restaurant.
Performed in Mandarin with some French and dialect, with English surtitles.
Commissioned by the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre as part of Cultural Extravaganza 2025.

Taiwan Collateral Event of Biennale Architettura 2025 “NON-Belief: Taiwan Intelligens of Precarity”
2025-05-10 11:00 - 2025-11-23 21:00 (Europe/Paris) | Palazzo delle Prigioni, Venice, Taiwan
The Taiwan Collateral Event of the 19th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia is organized by the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (NTMoFA), and NON-Belief: Taiwan Intelligens of Precarity, a curatorial project by National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), will represent Taiwan at the Biennale held from May 10 to November 23, 2025, at Palazzo delle Prigioni in Venice, Italy. A 1:1 assembly press conference took place at NCKU on 21 January, revealing the content of the exhibition to the public for the first time. NTMoFA Director Kuang-Yi Chen (陳貺怡), jury members Chia-Chi Jason Wang (王嘉驥), Kwang-Tyng Wu (吳光庭), June-Hao Hou (侯君昊), Ming-Song Shyu (徐明松), Chi-Yi Chang (張基義), and Jr-Gang Chi (漆志剛), as well as NCKU Associate Vice President Ping-Sheng Wu (吳秉聲), curator Cheng-Luen Hsueh (薛丞倫), and co-curators Sung-Chang Leo Chiang (江松長) and Meng-Tsun Su (蘇孟宗), were all in attendance.

The title of this year’s Biennale is “Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective.” Curator Carlo Ratti uses the term “Intelligens,” highlighting the last syllable, “gens,” which means “people” in Latin, to discuss three types of intelligence—natural, artificial, and collective—and their role in architectural design amidst contemporary environmental and climate challenges. Inspired by the theme of the Biennale and Robert Smithson’s theory of ‘non-sites’, “NON-Belief: Taiwan Intelligens of Precarity” examines Taiwan’s ‘non’-beliefs on TSMC chips, high-speed, and the relentless pursuit of efficiency and control—forces that are reshaping the world’s operations in a geopolitically precarious, globalized landscape. Taiwan offers a model of embodied intelligens in its architecture, showcasing how life adapts and transforms to create a resilient, self-sustaining island republic in our collectively uncertain and fragile future.

Taiwan’s historical role as a contact zone is not only a region of political instability or ecological vulnerability created between two massive tectonic plates, but also the geographical, ecological, and cultural spaces deeply reflect a state of tension between openness and closure. It is also a contact zone between various diasporic inhabitants, nations, and corporations, generating layered and juxtaposed practices and intelligens. Featuring projects by teams of researchers, architects, designers, and a documentary director, the exhibition presents Taiwan’s built environment as comprising localized assemblages of digitally connected, democratically paradoxical contact zones. “Taiwan Intelligens of Precarity” positions these assembled worlds as a frontline in planetary resistance against authoritarian autocracy and as an adaptive response to climate change at the Venice Biennale.

Binary Dialectics on Three Main Topics: Efficiency, Technology, Control
Taiwan’s spatial governance and development strategy are heavily influenced by belief and [non]- belief. Taiwanese people can turn anything into a belief, yet we can also believe in nothing at all. The belief built upon fictional realities has enabled our societies to organize and collaborate throughout historical evolution. Under Taiwan’s rapid technological and urban development, TSMC chips symbolize the contemporary “beliefs” upheld by Taiwan’s collective dedication, prompting deep reflection on the environmental, water resource, and energy costs embedded within these beliefs.

The exhibition seeks to identify and construct a gray area within the binary dialectic of “belief” and “non-belief” unique to Taiwan, uncovering various expressions of “Intelligens” and its impact on spatial governance. The exploration will focus on three aspects:

Efficiency: NON-Belief in High-Speed explores the global trend of pursuing efficiency and high-speed development. Using Taiwan High Speed Rail as the case study, the exhibition proposes a reflection on the urban ecology within the metropolitan areas constructed by the high-speed railway and amidst Taiwan’s rural-urban gap.
Technology: NON-Belief in Chips explores the beliefs in the two polarized and contradictory mythologies of the ‘tech island’ and the ‘eco island’, as well as the hidden costs of green energy under the shade of solar panels, reflecting on research into climate justice and new energy-driven typologies.
Control: NON-Belief in Sensory-Motor explores the various subtle relationships in our everyday lives, reviewing the different kinds of ecological, cultural, and social conflicts within the extended context, encompassing non-belief in hegemonic empires, and flourishing through tactics of the in-between, based on understanding the city as a human sensori-motor system.

Roaming in the “Lagoon – Island – Archipelago – Peninsula” Exhibition Space
The concept of ‘Island’ is adopted for the design of the exhibition space, presenting the tensions between ‘Belief’ and ‘Non-Belief’ through the relationship between ‘lagoon – island – archipelago – peninsula,’ and reexamining the complex relationship between technology, environment, and social space. “Island” installation is at the center supported by metal stands adopted from the traditional banquet table as piles on the uneven sunken flooring.

Multiple orthographic sectional slices illustrate a compressed cross-section of Taiwan’s precarious geological conditions, with coastal conurbations nestled in the mountainous shadow of the west-tilting fault block. Taiwan lies along a north-south fault line between the Japanese and Philippine archipelagos. The high-speed rail (HSR) line, became an embodied sensorimotor extension, cutting through these strata as a spatial/ temporal measuring tool of island landscape.

Dim light filtering through the paper slowly flows over the terrain, which is encircled by the ‘Tech Island,’ continuously flashing images of Taiwan’s landscapes on fragments of electronic paper collectively. The contrast between lightness and the heaviness of the ancient Venice Prison Palace underscores the impact of the semiconductor industry on Taiwan’s landscapes, shifting of urban heat island and environmental justice, water and energy distribution, and the tension between technology and ecology. Accompanied by 17 research projects, the installation aims to generate awareness and foster discourse on the architecture of the resilient and self-sustaining island.

The Taiwan exhibition also showcases 12 research and operative models arranged in an encircling archipelago configuration around the rooms. The research reflects contemporary architectural challenges and ideas, inviting visitors to engage with Taiwan’s transformation in a precarious world. Upon entering the exhibition space, an exterior-facing window frames a view of a Renaissance church across the Grand Canal, while positioned perpendicular to the interactive and spiritual installation at the other end of the hall, a large installation composed of densely packed circuit boards replicates a common ‘Votive Lamp Wall’ found in local Taiwanese temples, serving as a visual and spiritual spectacle that reflects Taiwan’s unique non-belief intelligens.

NON-Belief: Taiwan Intelligens of Precarity is curated by a team from the NCKU Department of Architecture, led by curator and department chairman Cheng-Luen Hsueh, with co-curators Ping-Sheng Wu, Sung-Chang Leo Chiang, and Meng-Tsun Su. The team includes consulting expert Professor Wei Tseng(曾瑋), and international advisory expert and joint researcher, Professor Brian McGrath, from Parsons School of Design in New York. The installations are created in collaboration with and sponsored by E Ink Corporation and HongSen Intelligent Technology.
Through exhibition, installation, workshop, and forum, the exhibition explores and defines the expressions of “Intelligens”. For more information on related exhibitions and activities, please visit the NTMoFA official website and the official Facebook and Instagram accounts.

Imprints of a Vanished Time: Paintings and Prints by Lim Mu Hue
2025-05-09 12:00 - 2025-05-28 19:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | artcommune gallery, 76 Bras Basah Rd, #01-01, Singapore 189558, Singapore, Singapore, 189558, Singapore
artcommune proudly presents Imprints of a Vanished Time: Paintings and Prints by Lim Mu Hue, an exhibition that spotlights the late Singapore artist’s dynamic exploration across oil, ink, woodcut and mixed media works. Featuring 19 works dating to the period of 1950s to 2002, the show traces Lim’s thoughtful synthesis of Western academic techniques and deep sensitivity to local themes and identity. Lim Mu Hue (1936–2008, Singapore) was a second-generation Singapore artist best known for his oil works and woodblock prints executed in a realist and often narrative-driven style. Born in 1936 to a Teochew family of Chinese descent, Lim grew up in a period of social change and nation-building in early Singapore. His art would later reflect these historical shifts through intimate, detailed portrayals of ordinary people, local landscapes and vanishing trades.
Lim received his formal training at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), graduating in 1955 with a Diploma in Western Painting. There, he studied under key figures of the Nanyang art style and was exposed to both Chinese and Western art mediums. Much of Lim’s output in the 1950s was focussed on Western oil, charcoal, watercolour, and pastel works, with many revealing of his spirited experimentation across the academic genres of landscape, still life and portrait.
Manager of a Rubber Plantation Estate, for instance, portrays a figure that comes across as quietly dignified and almost austere in presence. Lim highlights particular physical traits of the figure, such as histanned skin, rugged arms, and lean yet muscular frame to convey a daily life characterised by outdoor exposure and active labour. The steely greens of the background and opaque blacks of the pants are deployed in high contrast against the warm ochres of the skin and variated shades of whites used to illustrate the shirt and the hat. Lim combines clarity with tenderness in his treatment of the form to carve out a chiaroscuro-like focus, giving the portrait a monumental and industrial character.

Fernando Zóbel: Order is Essential
2025-05-09 00:00 - 2025-11-30 23:30 (Asia/Shanghai) | National Gallery Singapore, 1 St Andrew's Rd, #01 – 01,, Singapore, 178957, Singapore
Step into the world of transcontinental artist Fernando Zóbel in Fernando Zóbel: Order is Essential, National Gallery Singapore’s first-ever solo exhibition dedicated to the cosmopolitan artist, patron, collector, and scholar.

Born in the Philippines to a prominent Spanish family, discover the remarkable journey of his artistic practice spanning across the Philippines, United States and Spain. Marvel at his iconic works including the Saeta series which features his signature method of using a syringe to control thin lines of paint.

The exhibition features over 200 pieces — including paintings, drawings, prints, photography and archival materials. It also introduces key international artists Zóbel engaged with throughout his career, such as Mark Rothko, Antoni Tàpies and Liu Kuo-sung, whose original works will also be displayed alongside Zóbel’s.

Fernando Zóbel: Order is Essential builds on Zóbel: The Future of the Past, which opened at Museo Nacional del Prado (2022) in Spain and was later restaged at the Ayala Museum (2024) in the Philippines. Expanding on key narratives, the Gallery’s distinct and fresh iteration introduces exclusive works and offers fresh insights into Zóbel’s artistic evolution and his profound influence on modernist movements worldwide.
For more information, please visit: nationalgallery.sg/OrderIsEssential.

Foundational Photography Workshop
2025-05-08 19:30 - 2025-05-24 16:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Objectifs Centre for Photography and Film, 155 Middle Road, Singapore, 188977, Singapore
Make the most of your digital camera with this comprehensive introduction to digital photography. Comprising classroom sessions, guided shoots and group critiques, this course imparts the fundamental principles of photography and is suitable for beginners.
After completing this course, participants will be familiar with techniques of composition, understand the ‘trinity of exposure’ (aperture, shutter speed, and ISO), how to shoot in available light, and the basics of flash photography. This course sets a strong foundation for other photography workshops at Objectifs.
Technical Requirements
Participants are to bring their own DSLRs or a prosumer digital camera like the mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera (MILC) for the workshop. Participants will also have to bring their own tripods for the night photography guided shoot.
Objectifs has a limited number of cameras for loan. If you require a camera loan, please contact us at info@objectifs.com.sg after registration via the form on our website.
Workshop Fee
$500 (eligible for use of SkillsFuture Credit)
Instructor
Amrita Chandradas
Please register via the form on our website.

Arty Afternoon | Extra-Ordinary Stamps: Bookmark Monotypes
2025-05-04 11:00 - 16:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | STPI Creative Workshop & Gallery, 41 Robertson Quay, Singapore, Singapore, 238236, Singapore
Looking for a quick dose of crafty fun on the weekends?
Take inspiration from the organic and geometric forms in Tobias Rehberger’s works and create a handprinted bookmark that is uniquely yours at our Arty Afternoon sessions!
Reimagine everyday objects such as bubble wrap and string, using them as unconventional stamping tools to create one-of-a-kind prints. Experiment with textures and patterns as you create playful traces of these ordinary items, transforming them into tools of creativity.
This is a free, drop-in event. No registration required.

T:>Works: Living Soil Series — A Film Double Bill: Sandcastles (2024) and Moving Earth (2024)
2025-05-03 15:00 - 17:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | 72-13, 72-13 Mohamed Sultan Road, Singapore, Singapore, 239007, Singapore, 239007, Singapore
T:>Works introduces the Living Soil Series as part of CoThink Lab, kicking off with a double-bill film screening:Sandcastles (2024) by Carin Leong and Moving Earth (2024) by Ian Mun.

What do we consider as home? The constructed complex we live in? The land where we make our livelihood?

‘Sandcastles’ (2024) by Carin Leong draws parallels between a lost 19th-century Michigan town swallowed by sand and modern Singapore, built on reclaimed land, highlighting the ephemeral nature of human creations. ‘Moving Earth’ (2024) by Ian Mun is a nostalgic look at the Ground-Up Initiative in Singapore as they relocate, celebrating their connection to the earth and its importance of soil in our lives.

We invite the audience to participate in a pre-show activity to pen down stories of relocation and land reclamation. There will also be a post-film panel discussion featuring ‘Sandcastles’ producer Martin Loh, ‘Moving Earth’ director Ian Mun, and Bing Yu from Ground-Up Initiative (GUI) — a non-profit society dedicated to fostering sustainable kampung culture through active community participation.

Screenprinting Workshop | Marvellous Marbling, Masked Messages
2025-05-03 15:00 - 17:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | STPI Creative Workshop & Gallery, 41 Robertson Quay, Singapore, Singapore, 238236, Singapore
Unleash your creativity and explore the unique possibilities of screenprinting in our beginner-friendly workshop!
Be inspired by Richard Deacon and Pae White’s artworks and create your very own marbled prints. Use masking fluid to block out sections or layer a message into your print. Manipulate inks on a screen to create organic, flowing patterns, layering colours to achieve marbled effects. Reveal your one-of-a-kind print with the pull of a squeegee, guided every step of the way by our friendly instructors.
Participants are kindly requested to prepare 1-2 words you want to layer into your print. Recommended for ages 12 and above.
