What’s Showing at Singapore Art Week 2024?

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The event encompasses art fairs S.E.A. Focus and ART SG, the Southeast Asian premiere of The 5th VH AWARD Exhibition, the Light to Night Festival, and much more.

Singapore Art Week (SAW) returns for its 12th edition from 19 to 28 January 2024.

Organised by Singapore‘s National Arts Council with support from the Singapore Tourism Board, SAW 2024 features two art fairs, illuminations, music, and over 150 art exhibitions and programmes.

‘Singapore Art Week is the moment in our annual calendar when the visual arts ecosystem comes together to present its best,’ said Tay Tong, Director Visual Arts at the National Arts Council.

International art fair ART SG will return for its second edition after a strong launch in 2023 that featured global blue chips Gagosian, Pace, and Perrotin, as well as leading galleries in the region such as Yavuz, Pearl Lam, and ShanghART.

Boutique fair S.E.A. Focus will present great galleries from Southeast Asia as well as island (New York), neugerriemschneider (Berlin), and TKG+ (Taipei).

‘We are proud and excited to be entering our sixth edition of S.E.A. Focus—a homegrown platform that is a testament to Singapore’s position as an arts hub and springboard for Southeast Asia’s artistic talents,’ said Emi Eu, Project Director, S.E.A. Focus & Executive Director of STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery.

The 5th VH AWARD Exhibition will present works by leading new media artists from the region at the Lower Gallery of Objectifs – Centre for Photography and Film from 20 January to 4 February 2024. The participating artists are Grand Prix recipient Subash Thebe Limbu (Dharan), Zike He (Guiyang), Riar Rizaldi (Bandung), Su Hui-Yu (Taipei) and zzyw (based in New York).

‘The five moving image works exemplify Objectifs’ aims of broadening perspectives and inspiring through the image, and supporting original voices in visual storytelling,’ said Objectifs Director and Co-Founder Emmeline Yong.

Among the many exhibition highlights is Translations: Afro-Asian Poetics (17–30 January 2024), which is presented by the Institutum and curated by Zoe Whitley. Located at Gillman Barracks, the show explores the connections and affinities between the African and Asian diasporas. Participating artists include Zanele Muholi, Sonia Boyce, and Do Ho Sun.

Other exhibition highlights include Our Children by Tang Da Wu at Art Outreach Singapore, Time and The Tiger by Ho Tzu Nyen at Singapore Art Museum, works from The Pierre Lorinet Collection curated by Edward Mitterrand, and the blockbuster show Tropical: Stories from Southeast Asia and Latin America at National Gallery Singapore, which continues until 24 March 2024.

More information on these shows can be found in our article on Singapore’s Best Institutional Shows to See Early 2024.

The Light to Night Festival by the National Gallery Singapore, which features building projections, newly commissioned installations, and live performances also makes its return in 2024, this time under the theme ‘Reimagine’.

‘We believe that art has the profound ability to reshape our understanding of the world and spark conversations that lead to positive change,’ said the festival’s Executive Director Suenne Megan Tan.

Also at night, Art After Dark at Gillman Barracks will include a Rave Night featuring Singaporean electronic artists on 20 January and a Prom Night featuring DJs and live musicians on 27 January.

Visit the SAW 2024 website to discover all the exhibitions and events. —[O]

Main image: Installation view, Tropical: Stories from Southeast Asia and Latin America, National Gallery Singapore, 2023. Courtesy National Gallery Singapore.