Arts Picks: STPI and Nafa exhibitions, SCO string concert

New Releases Old Friends

STPI, which specialises in print and paper works, brings together a group show of international artists whose works were developed during their residencies at the creative workshop and gallery.

This is a typically inventive affair, including 53rd Venice Biennale’s Golden Lion awardee Tobias Rehberger’s “stained tablecloth” that is draped over a table. Visitors are invited to sit around the everyday object in a disruption of gallery space.

There is also 1987 Turner Prize awardee Richard Deacon’s sculptures fashioned from large-scale marbled paper. Ignore their brightly coloured hues and one might discern a local touch, inspired as they are by the Housing Board flats in Singapore.

STPI said part of the exhibition’s title is inspired by San Jose Museum of Art’s honoree Pae White’s solo show, Friendship Is Magic, with STPI in 2021, during which she was guided to wander around Singapore by the relationships formed with the workshop team.

Her Unlost simulates the multicoloured, overlapping threads she is known for in her installations.

STPI is also holding its annual open house on March 22 and 23. Visitors will get a chance to experience various printmaking and papermaking techniques under STPI staff’s guidance.

Where: STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery, 41 Robertson Quay
MRT: Fort Canning
When: March 22 to May 4, 10am to 7pm (Mondays to Saturdays), 11am to 5pm (Sundays)
Admission: Free
Info: 

stpi.com.sg

Beyond Print

Likewise an exploration of the printmaking medium, Beyond Print at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts features both contemporary works and items from Nafa’s print archive and letterpress collection.

The 18 contemporary works are by Nafa artists and designers, ranging from artificial intelligence-guided fashion print designs to a 3D print of a crab mounted on a wooden panel – an exploration of the tension between natural evolution and bodily enhancement.

Nafa’s letterpress collection includes printing blocks of wedding invitations, a newspaper mould of Sin Chew Jit Poh – which ceased publication in Singapore in 1983 – and everyday products salvaged from local printing shops dated from between the 1950s and 1980s.

Ms Sabrina Long, dean of the faculty of art and design at Nafa, says printmaking is a “timeless and versatile art form”. “It is the foundation of art and design, deeply rooted in craftsmanship yet constantly evolving through innovation,” she adds.

“As a leading arts institution, we have a responsibility to preserve Singapore’s letterpress heritage while also pushing the boundaries of print for future generations.”

Where: Lim Hak Tai Gallery, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, 90 Bencoolen Street
MRT: Bugis/Dhoby Ghaut
When: Till April 20, 11am to 7pm (Tuesdays to Sundays), closed on Mondays
Admission: Free
Info: 

nafa.edu.sg/expanded-events

Night Of Bowed Strings

The Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) is presenting a Night Of Bowed Strings, performed by its bowed strings section under the artistic direction of principal conductor Quek Ling Kiong.

The programme includes the Singapore premiere of Merriment In Kazakhstan, written by Chinese composer Kuan Nai-chung.

Cello and double bass musicians will enact Desiring Intimacy, which integrates Shanxi folk songs, rearranged by erhu major Liu Zhiyue; while the entire section will pour its heart into the majestic Defending The Yellow River From Yellow River Capriccio, composed by 20th-century composer Xian Xinghai.

Four of the seven pieces for the night are Singapore premieres, while another two are world premieres.

A spokesperson for the SCO says: “The concert is set to be a colourful extravaganza where passions run high.”

Where: Singapore Conference Hall, 7 Shenton Way
MRT: Tanjong Pagar/Downtown/Shenton Way
When: March 28, 7.30pm
Admission: $30
Info: 

str.sg/jEtK