Across four exhibitions situated around Esplanade, discover the works of Singaporean artists Ho Ho Ying, Yeo Shih Yun and Fiona Seow alongside Indonesian artist Mulyana.
These exhibitions are undergirded by the artists’ explorations of mediums and materiality, intersecting transmedia exchanges and adopting distinctive approaches to artmaking.
Ongoing until 2 May 2021 | Various Timing | Esplanade | Free Admission
By delving into the complexities of subjective experiences, the exhibitions examine the interconnections between human activity and the environment in shaping and impacting our perceptions of reality.
Ho Ho Ying: The Path I Pursue 《何和应：追逐的的路》at Jendela (Visual Arts Space) endeavours to surface the connections between the art and writing of pioneering abstract artist Ho Ho Ying, spotlighting the multiple creative routes he pursued in his unrelenting search for artistic expression. At the Esplanade Tunnel, Yeo Shih Yun presents the commissioned work Chance Encounters《偶然》, which is fuelled by random occurrences and spontaneous gestures that embrace the incidental.
Mulyana’s installation Diver(sea)ty was conceived in response to the current pandemic. By transforming the Esplanade Concourse into an underwater world, he interrogates the importance of embracing diversity and fostering mutual respect in a time of great precarity. At the Esplanade Community Wall, In Order by Fiona Seow unfurls through drawings and sculptures that explore the concepts of cyclical and linear time, informed by notions of everyday life, stability and routine.
In Order | By Fiona Seow (Singapore)
Friday, 1 January – 4 April 2021 | All day | Community Wall, Level 3
In Order investigates the concepts of cyclical and linear time and the notion of temporality as intrinsic to understanding life and existence. When the COVID-19 pandemic struck and disrupted daily life, Fiona Seow began developing new routines to establish a semblance of order and to keep track of time amidst profound change. Inspired by the regularity of geometry, Seow created modular systems based on the motif of the trapezium, conceiving methodologies that respond to the nature and peculiarities of this shape. These habitual activities culminated in the freehand drawings and sculptural installations in this exhibition that developed from processes guided by the repetition and manipulation of these modular systems. Through explorations of the various facets of time—linear, cyclical, ritualistic, fluid and temporal—In Order also questions prevailing perceptions that the routines and habits which undergird everyday life are stable and orderly.
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Diver(sea)ty | By Mulyana (Indonesia)
Friday, 1 January – 2 May 2021 | All Day | Esplanade Concourse
In his practice, the works of Mulyana are driven by global and environmental crises, articulating his concerns with daily life and current issues. Diver(sea)ty is Mulyana’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact it has had on the world, drawing attention to the ever-more urgent need of embracing diversity and respecting each other regardless of racial, religious, socioeconomic and geographical differences. In this installation, the Mogus—Mulyana’s octopus monster alter-ego—rallies together the underwater community in a concerted effort to aspire to greater harmony and mutual respect. A thriving and dynamic ocean ecosystem comes to life through a series of Mogus, various marine creatures and coral islands, all carefully crafted out of crochet. By drawing us into their underwater world, these creatures in their fluidity of forms and identities prompt reflections on issues of diversity and inclusion, as well as our roles as custodians who share a collective responsibility towards looking after the earth and its resources.
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Chance Encounters《偶然》| By Yeo Shih Yun (Singapore)
Friday, 22 January – 4 April 2021 | All Day | Esplanade Tunnel
Consistent with Yeo Shih Yun’s long-standing fascination with spontaneous gestures, random occurrences and use of unconventional tools, the six ink drawings in Chance Encounters《偶然》were created according to a set of rules devised by the artist. With the use of a dice, “answers” were obtained as Yeo responded to music composed and performed by collaborating musician Calista Liaw, determining the process and methodology of mark making. Both Yeo’s ink experimentations and Liaw’s erhu arrangements drew inspiration from the inventive compositions and unorthodox ideas of chance found in the works of artist and composer John Cage. Referencing Cage’s compositional process in Music of Changes (1951), which involved chance operations with the I-Ching, Chance Encounters 《偶然》 similarly embraces the incidental through Yeo’s playful and unconventional experimentation with ink.
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The Path I Pursue 《何和应：我追逐的路》| By Ho Ho Ying (Singapore)
Friday, 22 January – 4 April 2021 | 10 am – 8.30 pm | Jendela (Visual Arts Space)
Driven by self-reflection, spontaneity and freedom of gesture, Ho Ho Ying championed the path towards abstraction in Singapore in the 1960s. For over five decades, his art and writings have been integral to furthering the development and discourses of art. Ho Ho Ying: The Path I Pursue 《何和应：我追逐的路》presents abstract, figurative and calligraphy paintings, along with creative calligraphy works, sketches and materials from the collection and personal archive of Ho and his family. Apart from Ho’s artistic practices, this exhibition also explores the multiple creative paths that he pursued through literary prose as well as essays on art and art criticism. As part of the exhibition, a selection of texts from the 1950s to the 1990s have been translated and made accessible in English. By drawing connections between his works and writings, the exhibition surfaces Ho’s ethos, beliefs and motivations, offering intimate glimpses into his life, observations and explorations. At times evocative and in other instances personal and contemplative, Ho Ho Ying: The Path I Pursue 《何和应：我追逐的路》reveals how the written word and art are equally significant as mediums of expression for Ho.
Timing:
Monday – Friday: 11 am – 8.30 pm
Saturday, Sunday & Public Holiday: 10 am – 8.30 pm
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