Cultural Medallion accolade for authors Suchen Christine Lim and Meira Chand, and dancer Osman Abdul Hamid
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SINGAPORE – Three artists were awarded the Cultural Medallion
Author Suchen Christine Lim still suffers from imposter syndrome
The Straits Times
SINGAPORE – Writer Suchen Christine Lim got a phone call from National Arts Council (NAC) chief executive officer (CEO) Low Eng Teong at 10pm, informing her that she would be a Cultural Medallion recipient for 2023.
The 75-year-old chortles: “I thought it was a scam call.”
Settling back into a wooden armchair in her spacious book-lined living room in a Housing Board flat, she offers a cup from a steaming pot of herbal tea. She says that after suffering a mild stroke in 2020, she had not kept up with developments at the NAC and did not recognise Mr Low, who became CEO in March.
Writing is an ‘act of survival’ for Meira Chand
The Straits Times
SINGAPORE – Writer Meira Chand’s first reaction when she received a call about the Cultural Medallion was “Oh my goodness, no. How am I going to tell Suchen?”
The soft-spoken 81-year-old is “great friends” with fellow Cultural Medallion recipient Suchen Christine Lim.
Both were aware the other had been nominated but thought it unlikely that the National Arts Council (NAC), which administers the award, would present it to two practitioners in the same field in the same year. So they made a pact, says Chand, with a laugh. “So I said to her, ‘Look, we’ll go forward hand in hand. And if you get it, I’ll give you a big hug. And if I get it, you give me a hug.’”
Osman Abdul Hamid chose Malay dance over professional football
The Straits Times
SINGAPORE – Backflips, cartwheels, hand and head stands. These are not moves one associates with traditional Malay dance, but veteran dancer Osman Abdul Hamid has spent four decades infusing his choreography with such athleticism.
The 61-year-old was, after all, a star sportsman before he became a dancer. An avid hockey player and basketballer, Osman also played football with Tampines Rovers from 1978 to 1981 and even considered going professional.
Foreseeing that a life in sports would mean a life of injuries, he chose a life of dance instead – surely no less injury-prone a career, but he claims never to have suffered a serious injury from dancing. He went on to co-found Era Dance Theatre with Azrin Abdul Rahim and currently serves as its artistic director.
Meet the five Young Artist Award recipients, from a cinematographer to a poet
The Straits Times
SINGAPORE – Five promising artists were presented the Young Artist Award (YAA) by Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong at a ceremony held at the Istana on Dec 5.
The award, introduced in 1992 and given to artists aged 35 and below, comes with a grant of $20,000 in support of their artistic pursuits.
The Straits Times speaks to the recipients to learn what receiving this prestigious award means to them.
