Singapore Biennale 2008 – City Hall

We finally embarked our journey to SB2008, the second time round in Singapore, following the first in 2006. This exhibition introduced me various expressions of ‘ART’ by artists from different countries. Theme for this year: WONDER. My exact sentiments.

First stop – City Hall

City Hall

My first time stepping into this place once graced by lawyers and respected judges. And apparently it was where LKY proclaimed self governance for Singapore. After this biennale, it will be converted into the National Art Gallery. =) Looking forward!

My favourite pieces:

Singapore, 2008 (Wit Pimkanchanapong, Thailand)

A google earth image map of singapore, as a covering over the floors in the Chamber room. Stickers were provided for visitors to tag specific places onto the map. And of cos, we marked our territory as well. Dissatisfied in working within the virtual world, the artist hopes to provide opportunities for people to interact with each other as they witness themselves perform the tagging. “As the exhibition progresses, more tagging will occur and layer upon layer of information will be placed upon the surface… it’s a great metaphor for nation building, where individuals can contribute, adding meaning and understanding to a new land as they live and work in it.”

Blackfield, 2008 (Zadok Ben-David, Yemen)

The plants are carved out of metal, each one different and intricate, are painted black on one side and a spectrum of colours on the other. It’s mesmerizing, to move down row by row and see the colours changing. Both the macro and micro views of this exhibit, from any sides, are beautiful to behold. “Hence it is not only the physical thing of the installation that matters but one’s relationship to it.”

I Wonder Why?, 2008 (Srinivasa Prasad, India)

Sculptures of everyday objects, constructed from layers of covered charcoal. The room seemed to be burning in flames, bringing to mind a burning society. A simple yet powerful expression which stirs your emotions. “relates to creation, spirituality and the origins of the world.”

Cermelang, Gemilang, Terbilang (Excellence, Glory, Distinction), 2007 (Liew Kung Yu, Malaysia)

As rays of light shine through the above collage  photoshopped with images of famous Malaysian icons, on the wall behind it appears a Wayang Kulit performance formed from holes and slits unseen from the front, but penetrable by light. The image casted on the wall is supposedly a greedy but in some versions, good villain from a well known Sanskrit literary work. ” As light passes through holes in the symbols of national prosperity, an image of a mythical villain is cast.. an obvious mischievous and playful dig at what symbolises success and the politicans that drive it..this work is about identity and independence.”

Just four outta the many wonderful exhibits in City Hall, yet so much told. =) A pity we skipped all the video installations due to time constraint, and the walking and heat taking a toll on our stamina. Heh.

A few others:

Maggots, 2004 (Pham Ngoc Durong, Vietnam) Giant maggots likened as to when one peers through a microscope, a metaphor for corruption within a system.

Bachelor - The Dual Body, 2003 (Rhee Ki-Bong, Korea) A book of philosophy thrown into an aquarium. p/s I dont really understand this.

Raw Canvas, 2008 (Jane Lee, Singapore) Thick swathes of paint weaved to look like fabric from far. "It is like a cloth that speaks or keeps its sercret."

Just a documentation of this wonderful exhibition for myself. =)

“Let not your heart be troubled”

indeed, a troubled heart is THE great obstacle to many things. one can say that there is no such thing as smooth sailing, we just gotta live with it. bo bian. sounds strong eh? and there you go, a troubled heart no matter how long you live, no matter how great things go for you. is that really what you want? definitely not for me. but i must admit that every now and then, i do fall into that pit hole. it could be endless.

so guard our hearts, from getting hurt, from doing hurt. ’cause out of it are the issues of lives. guard our hearts with watchfulness, and everything else will be guarded, whether you believe or not, by Him.

and peace will flow freely unto you. =)

Proverbs 4:23 “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

Thanks for showing me this verse.

********

anyways, now that work has officially stopped, waiting has just been made tougher. neck getting longer as the date of flight seems unreachable. but this kinda made the trainees more united as one. heh. =)

and so my work at PANalytical has ended. well, not quite. after my presentation on wednesday, that is. but nonetheless, i’m really blessed with amazing colleagues. we’re not exactly close, with a decent gap of generation in between, and yet i felt a certain sense of reluctance at the uber sweet mini feast they threw for me. and i must say, he’s one of the best bosses one can ever ask for:

mean temper level = ABSOLUTE ZERO; variance = ABSOLUTE ZERO.

that’s probably what every single one of the employee says about him. heh. and i ABSOLUTELY agree.

=)

moving on to another chapter.

here’s to my friend who just experienced death of her close one. in times of sorrow and happiness alike, let us turn to the Word of God and reflect on the promises, that we might find hope, strength and perhaps joy the midst of your sadness, my friend.

death, no matter if it’s a relief of sickness or pain, is something which no one can really be thankful of. but reflect upon it with Him, and not the earthly inheritance which we have in our temporal and fleeting lives.

“So teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

heyyy, smile yeah. =)

a few incidents. and they made me realised that there’s no such thing as i’m not ready, or it’ll come one day. my vulnerability not to people, not to circumstances, but to self-consciousness and self-condemnation which led to escapance away from certain things. and dangerously, deviation from Him.

right now, no ’should’s or ’should not’s, not ‘could’s, or ‘could not’s. but Him alone.

and as from Philippians 4:7, God’s peace will guard my heart, our hearts, my mind, our minds, in union with Jesus. and with the heart, the wellspring of life, guarded above all else, peace, power and grace flows. that i may be able to see Him clearer with fresher and fresher vision.

i’ll keep this in mind especially while i’m overseas. Amen.