The Substation’s SeptFest 2021: The last chapter
By Nabilah Said Against the backdrop of a battle of words, an impossibility is happening. SeptFest, one of The Substation’s most enduring annual programmes, is taking place this month, in March, six months too late. This, of course, is because…
Alternative Lessons for Women: Sonia Kwek and Tan Weiying on sex, desire and the erotic
By Aditi Shivaramakrishnan Adapting its title from Lessons for Women <<女诫>>, a text by the first known female Chinese historian, Ban Zhao, Alternative Lessons for Women is a double-bill of two solo works: Hymen Instinct created and performed by Sonia…
Brown Is Haram: Kristian-Marc James Paul and Mysara Aljaru reclaim their space
Brown Is Haram: Reconstructing The Brown Narrative is a performance-lecture exploring different aspects of the experience of being brown in Singapore, exploring issues such as social mobility and masculinity. This show is based on the work and ongoing collaborative project…
The future of The Substation: A timeline of events (Updated)
By Ke Weiliang, with assistance from Nabilah Said Last updated: 12 Nov 2021 ArtsEquator has compiled a timeline of events that details recent developments surrounding the future of The Substation. The timeline – displayed in chronological order – begins from…
The Substation: An unstoppable force and an immovable object
By Nabilah Said, with additional reporting by Ke Weiliang On Saturday, 6 March 2021, almost 300 members of the arts community came together in a Zoom Townhall to discuss the fate of independent arts centre The Substation. The Townhall had…
The Substation: How many more canaries in the coal mine?
By Hoe Su Fern Since 1990, The Substation has been the sole occupant of the conserved building at 45 Armenian Street. Over the years, it has transformed the once-abandoned power station into Singapore’s first artist-led multi-disciplinary arts centre. However, in…
Nathalie Johnston: Creating a home for contemporary art in Myanmar
By Victoria Milko (1,800 words, nine-minute read) Despite being nearly 14,000 kilometres from her hometown in America, Myanm/art gallery director Nathalie Johnston has managed to create a home for herself – and Myanmar’s growing contemporary art scene – in the…
North Dagon: A hub of artistic creation, who knew? (via Myanmar Times)
Much like meeting your idols, seeing your favourite artists’place of work is fraught with danger. What if you discover that the birthplace of their artistic creations looks more like what you’d find in an Ikea catalogue rather than the paint splattered…
Meta Moeng: a bridge-builder in Cambodia’s art world
By Ben Valentine (1,600 words, 10 minute read) Meta Moeng was the first person I met from Cambodia’s arts scene. This was in 2014, and I was eager to learn more about the country’s arts ecology. She was then the…
All Aboard: Artists and Locals Come Together at Penang’s Hin Bus Depot
Penangites of a certain age still have fond memories of the Blue Bus that ran up and down the island until the 1980s. The company’s garage, built in 1947, sported a sleek Art Deco façade, still visible today. But years…
![New $30 million waterfront theatre for Esplanade [Singapore]](https://artsequator.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Radar_SG_newtheatreesplanade-455x250.jpg)
New $30 million waterfront theatre for Esplanade [Singapore]
SINGAPORE – A $30 million waterfront theatre will open at the Esplanade – Theatres On The Bay in 2021. The mid-size venue will seat around 550 people. It was announced on Monday (April 10) by Minister for Culture, Community and…
Public Art in Ho Chi Minh City
As a communist country, Vietnam isn’t always the easiest place to find publicly displayed art, especially modern or controversial work. However, the country seems to be changing – and Ho Chi Minh City is leading the way. Here are some of the best places…
Cambodia’s Meta House cultural centre celebrates ten years as an iconic arts and music venue (via SEA Globe)
Since its inception in 2007, Meta House has established itself as a haven for the city’s creatives looking to find documentaries, art and performances of all breeds. “We started as a small community centre in 2007 in my private house,”…
Southeast Asia’s Forgotten Cinemas
By Philip Jablon (1634 words, 15 minute read) I have vivid memories of the movie theaters that once peppered the streets of downtown Philadelphia. They were a key part of my childhood. The films that my parents took me to…
One man’s quest to save Southeast Asia’s independent cinemas
Since 2010, Jablon has surveyed hundreds of the region’s standalone cinemas – the majority now derelict or ticking over as warehouses, car parks or shady fleapits – and then put his tightly worded observations and stark photographs up on his…