Shawn Hoo

Shawn is a journalist on the arts beat at The Straits Times. He reviews books and reports on theatre and the visual arts as well as other cultural issues, for the Life desk. Prior to joining ST in 2022, he spent two years teaching writing and literature at higher education institutions in Shanghai and Singapore. He believes the arts, arts education and arts writing are essential.

Email

Latest articles

BookTalk: Publisher and bookseller Tan Waln Ching reads non-fiction in Chinese and English

City Book Room owner Tan Waln Ching at the bookstore's new location at The Modules on 8 June 2022.

Late Malaysian pioneer poet Wong Phui Nam’s new and selected poems published by NUS Press

In The Mirror: New And Selected Poems Of Wong Phui Nam (2025) includes new poems by the late Malaysian poet.

The Straits Times Weekly Bestsellers Nov 1

The Necessary Stage’s SG Insecure offers a quiet history of surveillance in three plays

The Necessary Stage's SG Insecure, which plays at Practice Space till Nov 8, offers a history of surveillance in three plays.

Singapore Biennale 2025: Four ways to see art and clock steps

(Clockwise from top left) Kate Newby’s A Line Through Time (2025), Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s Temple (2025), Hyphen’s Tokoh-tokoh, pengabdian, dan peradaban (Figures, dedications and civilisations) (2025), and Salad Dressing’s Square Forest (2025).

Singapore Biennale 2025, Tanjong Pagar Distripark edition: See art indoors on hot or rainy days

Indian collaborative studio Camp’s Metabolic Container (2025), Indonesian art collective Hyphen’s Tokoh-tokoh, pengabdian, dan peradaban (Figures, dedications and civilisations) (2025), Ming Wong’s Filem-Filem-Filem (2008 to 2010), and Cui Jie’s Thermal Landscapes (2025).

Singapore Biennale 2025, Civic District edition: Five must-see artworks, one in a law firm

(Clockwise from left) Faysal Altunbozar’s Feeder No. 8, 9 and 10 (2025), The Observatory & DuckUnit’s Membrane (2025), Taiwanese artist collective lololol’s Light Keeper, Maha Maamoun’s The Subduer (2017), and Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s Temple (2025) (centre).

Singapore Biennale 2025, Orchard edition: See five artworks at strata malls and old Raffles Girls’

See art at Lucky Plaza and Far East Shopping Centre from Oct 31 to March 29, 2026.

Singapore Biennale 2025, Rail Corridor edition: Take a family-friendly hike for four must-see artworks

See art in Tanglin Halt and Wessex Estate from Oct 31 to Mar 29, 2026.

Singapore Biennale 2025, opening Oct 31, unpacks the ‘masterplanned’ city

shbiennale29/ST20251027_202543000546/Ng Sor Luan/Media preview of Singapore Biennale 2025 on Oct 27, 2025.

E-paper

Newsletters

Podcasts

RSS Feed

About Us

Terms & Conditions

Privacy Policy

Need help? Reach us here.

Advertise with us

MDDI (P) 046/10/2025. Published by SPH Media Limited, Co. Regn. No.202120748H. Copyright © 2025 SPH Media Limited. All rights reserved.