STPI brings stronger, bigger and bolder projects to this second edition of ABHK raising the profile of “made in Singapore” works by leading international artists.
Teppei Kaneuji (b.1978. Lives and works in Kyoto)
Struck by Singapore’s energetic blend of cultures and sights, Kaneuji produced collages teeming with Singapore’s icons such as Haw Par Villa (outdated Chinese theme park), public housing-HDB clusters, local durian fruit together with Japanese manga elements. In an experimental remix of photography,
objects, print and paper, Kaneuji’s vivid, colourful editions at ABHK offer a glimpse of the full, dramatic scope of works which will be shown at STPI Gallery in September. Editions are available at ShugoArts (Japan), Roslyn Oxley9 (Australia), Lombard Freid Projects (USA) and Eslite Gallery (Taiwan).
Inga Svala Thorsdottir & Wu Shanzhuan (b.1966,1960. Live and work in Hamburg, Reykjavik and Shanghai)
The ‘Little Fat Flesh’ series are monochromatic perfection in geometric form and colour - a celebration and triumph for the artists who took twenty years to perfect this symbol of spiritual space. Both artists worked like scientists in a laboratory during the STPI residency translating their ideas onto a new medium of how physical forms in the universe acquire their meaning.
Do Ho Suh (b.1962. Lives in London, New York and Seoul)
Being an outsider can be frustrating but it can also be a source for creative release. Suh’s personal reflections living in different cities together with concepts of self and space are pushed to new frontiers in STPI thread drawings, expressing a new confidence in this 2nd residency with material, form and scale.
Ronald Ventura (b.1973. Live and works in Manila)
Ronald Ventura, Southeast Asia’s contemporary art rock star, seeks new insights in an ongoing obsession with the “Tree of Life” in Norse mythology by creating intensely beautiful, minimalist paper collages with STPI. Hauntingly elegant, these visions of beauty and decay in animal silhouettes echo our continual negotiation with the natural world.
Haegue Yang (b.1971. Lives and works in Berlin and Seoul)
Yang’s surprise discovery and usage of spices and vegetables found in markets of Singapore launched a new artistic trajectory for the artist and STPI. Utilising the natural colours and textures of spices and everyday food items in paper, these works draw attention to the power of its domestic function and impact on civilizations.
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Sun Xun 孙逊 Republic of Jing Bang 鲸邦实习共和国: Citizens Wanted Encounters1E3
Make the land of your dreams come true, and be one of the only 100 citizens of Sun Xun’s new country launch, “Jing Bang: A Country Based on Whale” at Art Basel Hong Kong, Encounters booth 1E3. Curated by Yuko Hasegawa, Chief Curator of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo.
The worldwide registration of new citizens and visa application are now open. Immigration officers from STPI will be there to process new enlistments at this checkpoint. Get a glimpse of this “Divine Country Jing Bang” when visiting the booth.
Successful citizenship applicants (at a cost of USD 10,000) shall be rewarded with a hand printed and bound book of “Jing Bang”, a passport, identification card, national flag and animation in DVD and digital betacam. Visas (at USD 25) are available for short-term visit. All visa and citizenship packs are produced by Sun Xun in collaboration with STPI. Do not miss this chance to be part of a new frontier as “Jing Bang’s” existence is time based and lasts as long as a whale emerging for air.
Sun Xun’s new project signifies a new trajectory for STPI, pushing not only the limits of collaboration with artists but taking its partnerships with Platform STPI Projects and ShanghArt to new levels with this performative installation, challenging public engagement with contemporary art.
Sun Xun, one of the youngest and most prolific video artists today is recognised for black and white animation films depicting time and world history while revealing a critical and political awareness of China. He runs his studio Pi animation in Beijing and spent last fall in New York to research the American
landscape for a solo show with Sean Kelly Gallery in early 2015. Starting last December, his work was in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s first exhibition on contemporary ink art.