ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region. In the weekly Southeast Asia Radar, we publish a round-up of content that have been scoured and sifted from a range of regional news websites, blogs and media platforms.
Here is this week’s Southeast Asia Radar:
Budget 2021: Is RM15mil enough to revive the ailing arts industry?
The Star, Malaysia
Budget 2021 has given a much-needed boost for the arts and culture industry which has been severely hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz announced an allocation of RM15mil to managed by the Cultural Economy Development Agency (Cendana).
More than 5,000 arts and cultures practitioners are expected to benefit from this fund.
Cendana founding CEO Izan Satrina Mohd Sallehuddin welcomed the news, saying the allocation is a positive step in rebuilding the battered arts and culture scene.
“This is an encouraging announcement for arts and culture, and demonstrates a positive understanding by the Government of Malaysia on the important role of the arts and culture in all our lives and in the life of the nation, despite this unprecedented crisis,” says Izan.
National Gallery Exhibits Works of Unorthodox Artist Affandi
Jakarta Globe, Indonesia
Jakarta. An exhibition portraying the life of legendary artist Affandi through his own works was held at the National Gallery in Central Jakarta this month, featuring 15 paintings from as old as World War Two era.
The collection includes Affandi’s self and family portraits, human objects and natural landscapes, which represent his journey from the 1940s to the 1970s.
Affandi is famous for his unorthodox style and “honest approach” in mirroring the real circumstance facing the society around him, rather than to depict what people want to see.
At the later stage of his works, he developed a technique of squeezing the paint from the tube and applied directly on the canvas, instead of using a brush.
Obituary: Rahayu Supanggah – gamelan maestro, composer extraordinaire
Jakarta Post, Indonesia
In a time already filled with grief and sorrow, Indonesia is losing gamelan composer extraordinaire Rahayu Supanggah at the age of 71.
Rahayu passed away in the early hours of Tuesday at Brayat Minulya Hospital in Surakarta, Central Java and was buried at Astana Loyo Benowo Cemetery later that day. He is survived by his wife, Sundari Supanggah and three sons.
The cause of death has not been made public but Rahayu had suffered a stroke and his health had continued to deteriorate since last year.
Born in Boyolali, Central Java, the man, known by many as Panggah, was a force to be reckoned with for his work with gamelan – with over half a century of experience with the instruments and showcasing them – performing and teaching – in over 40 countries.
Art Fair PHL organizers uncrate new project
Business Mirror, Philippines
THE women behind Art Fair Philippines and Art in the Park introduced a new project designed to meet the changing practices in art viewing and acquisition.
Trickie Lopa, Dindin Araneta and Lisa Periquet of Philippine Art Events Inc. launched Uncrating O2O. The event, billed as “a hybrid experience of viewing and acquiring art,” will run for nearly a month both in a physical space and on the digital domain, starting November 12 until December 6.
“The first online edition of Art in the Park in August allowed us to reach out to a new audience,” Lopa said. “We’re very excited that this new project will provide a hybrid experience—the traditional way of viewing art through a public space, while harnessing the power of a popular social-media platform, Instagram.”
Uncrating O2O will exhibit artworks at The Gallery in Greenbelt 5, with additional pieces exclusively available at @O2Oart on Instagram.
The Art Of Charlie Chan Hock Chye to be animated series; Neil Humphreys, Gopal Baratham score adaptations too
The Straits Times, Singapore
SINGAPORE – Singaporean graphic novel The Art Of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (2015) will make its leap to the screen as an animated series.
International producer and distributor 108 Media will be adapting the Eisner Award-winning book by Singaporean cartoonist Sonny Liew.
108 Media, which is headquartered in Singapore, also picked up the rights for Marina Bay Sins (2015), a crime thriller by Singapore-based British humorist Neil Humphreys, and Moonrise, Sunset, a 1996 mystery novel by local literary pioneer Gopal Baratham.
All three projects are at the scriptwriting stage. They will be produced and shot in Singapore and targeted for international release next year or in 2022.
ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar is compiled every week. All sources and credit belong to the original publishers and writers. Click here for past editions of Southeast Asia Radar.
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About the author(s)
Nabilah Said
Nabilah Said is an award-winning playwright, editor and cultural commentator. She is also an artist who works with text across various artforms and formats. Her plays have been staged in Singapore and London, including ANGKAT, which won Best Original Script at the 2020 Life Theatre Awards. Nabilah is the former editor of ArtsEquator.