Collaboration and Collectivity: Singapore Studio Visits

This June, documenta opens in Kassel. The 15th edition of one of the art world’s most significant events is helmed by Indonesian collective ruangrupa, and is premised on the idea of collaboration and shared resources. ART SG speaks to artists in Singapore whose practices and spaces revolve around these ideas of collaboration and collectivity.

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Interviews and Text by Tan Siuli

Images by Sarah Isabelle Tan, and courtesy of the artists

field studies

Field Studies is an independent art space housed in an industrial building, initiated by artists Robert Zhao, Ang Song Nian and Marvin Tang, all of whom work with the photographic medium. Apart from being a working artist studio and meeting space, Field Studies also serves as an exhibition space as well as a library and archive for artist books.

"The name also conveys the research and rigour that we seek in our ideas and works."

"The space houses an office which we use as a general working space as well as to host meetings."

"There is also an exhibition space, and THEBOOKSHOW library where we keep a collection of artist books from Singapore and abroad."

"We see Field Studies as a discursive and energetic space where artists can come learn about artist books and potentially collaborate with us to create a showcase, working across interests within the ethnographical, anthropological and environmental fields."

"In terms of upcoming projects, we are looking forward to the second instalment of THEBOOKSHOW: A Different Reading which showcases new books by emerging artists and designers, as well as a Field Studies Open Call in the near future."

Exhibition views of ‘What a Caterpillar calls the end, the world calls a butterfly’. Featuring works by Ang Song Nian, Robert Zhao and Marvin Tang. October 2021. Images courtesy of Field Studies.

Zen teh

Zen Teh works across photography, sculpture and installation. Her work explores humanity’s interaction with our wider ecology, particularly in urban environments where nature is disappearing or increasingly relegated to the margins. Her practice often involves long-term research into sites and locales, as well as collaborations with researchers in related fields such as geology and urban planning.

"I am an environmental artist, educator and art researcher. My art practice is research based and reflects on our contemporary urban realities. Often, collaboration with friends from different fields or cultures informs and shapes my work."

"I believe that collaborating is a contemporary state of mind, it is impossible to work in a silo anymore. My process of research occurs not only through collaboration with people, but also collaboration with the environment and materiality found in the surroundings of the research site."

"For example, Mountain Pass was the result of my residency at Selasar Sunaryo Art Space in Bandung, Indonesia. Bandung is a mountain city that is undergoing rapid development and the environmental changes have implications on people’s daily lives. To know more, I spoke to different experts and residents."

"This investigation unearthed a web of problems, which necessitates efforts to bring together thinkers and collaborators across different fields."

"Later this year I will join Sa Sa Art Projects’ artist residency programme, and will spend my time exploring critical environmental issues in Cambodia and related socio-cultural tensions that affect people living on the land."

"I will be sharing about my process of researching, collaborating and art making at documenta 15, as part of Sa Sa Art Projects’ participation in documenta. I think it provides a fantastic international platform to champion collaboration as well as raise global understanding of the environmental challenges and efforts in Southeast Asia."

STarch

Housed in an industrial complex, Starch is an independent artist-run space started by artist Moses Tan as a platform for himself and other artists to experiment and create exhibitions. The space is also given over for creative programming as well as artist residencies.

"My parents had a spare industrial unit, and offered it to me for use as a studio space. At first I declined as I already had my own home studio space, but that changed when I saw images of the space. After further thought and some discussions with close friends, I decided to see if I could develop a one-year project where I could provide the space and support to artists. That has now extended, going beyond the intended timeframe."

"The name came about by accident, when I misheard something that my partner said. I saw something quite poetic about the name and thought it was nice to use it to orient around conversations, experimentation and in some ways, ‘energy-giving’ modes. I was also thinking of a name that could be memorable and starch came about as a happy accident."

"I think of starch as a space for artists to experiment, to engage and to perhaps, rehearse; where we can create a community and foster some form of generosity for artists to work and play with."

"We mostly give artists a full calendar month in which they can decide their own schedule. We stand by and provide a range of curatorial and logistical help if needed, or sometimes simply give free rein of the use of the space and equipment."

"As part of the ecosystem, I hope it becomes a generative space for artists who work within more experimental routes, and for greater access to exhibition making."

"One of the core ideas of starch is to have conversations between small groups of artists as a way to generate ideas. The aim is to facilitate some kind of exchange."

"I guess in some small ways I am hoping to generate conversations and to add to the sense of community as it can sometimes get quite lonely within the arts. A lot of times, support through interactions are so necessary for practice, and that is something I hope to help start or even foster with starch."

Exhibition view of ‘Public Dreams, Private Myths’. March 2021. Featuring works by Cheong Yew Mun, Kar-men Cheng, Paul Hurley. Photo by Cheong Yew Mun. Image courtesy of starch.

Exhibition view of ‘Inheritance of Parts’. October 2021. Featuring works by Irfan Kasban, Li Yan Loong, Marcia Ong, Moses Tan, Rosemainy Buang, Zachary Chan. Photo by Jonathan Tan. Image courtesy of starch.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: TAN SIULI

Tan Siuli is an independent curator with over a decade of experience encompassing the research, presentation and commissioning of contemporary art from Southeast Asia. Major exhibition projects include two editions of the Singapore Biennale (2013 and 2016), inter-institutional traveling exhibitions, as well as mentoring and commissioning platforms such as the President’s Young Talents exhibition series. She has also lectured on Museum-based learning and Southeast Asian art history at institutes of higher learning in Singapore. Her recent speaking engagements include presentations on Southeast Asian contemporary art at Frieze Academy London and Bloomberg’s Brilliant Ideas series.