Ong Sor Fern Senior Culture Correspondent recommends

Arts Picks: Printmakers' assembly

It's A Balancing Act, Very Balanced Approach, Delicate, Tough, Never Ending by Veronyka Lau is one of the works on sale.
Dreamy pre-Raphaelite Sleeping Beauty by Thai artist Kraisak Chirachaisaku. PHOTO: STPI - CREATIVE WORKSHOP & GALLERY
It's A Balancing Act, Very Balanced Approach, Delicate, Tough, Never Ending by Veronyka Lau is one of the works on sale.
Watch out for dancer Sandhya Suresh’s video. PHOTO: THE SUBSTATION

PRINTMAKERS' ASSEMBLY

The latest online show by STPI - Creative Workshop & Gallery is a nice survey of works by 25 artists from 16 cities. The 65 prints showcase the diversity and richness of print practice around the world.

Thai artist Kraisak Chirachaisakul's dreamy pre-Raphaelite Sleeping Beauty (US$1,405 or S$1,963) is astonishingly detailed, executed with multi-plate drypoint etching on paper.

Equally atmospheric is the Samudra series from Malaysia-based artist Ilse Noor, inspired by the oceans as well as shapes from Hindu-Buddhist relics. Her two works at the show are priced at $4,700 and $5,500.

There are plenty of more affordable works. Singapore-based Joseph Chiang has a series of vivid black and white graphic prints of shophouse windows in linocut and paper relief, priced at just $280 each.

WHERE: str.sg/JdRM WHEN: Till June 21 ADMISSION: Free INFO: E-catalogue at str.sg/JdRA

ISOLATION

Over the circuit breaker period, contemporary arts centre The Substation has been sharing works commissioned from 18 artists for its Isolation series. The last works went up earlier this week and the whole series can be accessed via The Substation's Facebook page playlist (str.sg/JdFZ) or its Instagram channel (str.sg/JdF4).

The works cut across different disciplines and there are collaborations between artists as well. Watch out for dancer Sandhya Suresh's video, a simple recital of traditional Odissi training steps unfolding in tightly controlled measures against a green wall and a contemporary electronic music track.

T.H.E. Dance Company's Anthea Seah's video piece cleverly uses effects and editing to make the most of showcasing a single dancer in a confined space. The segments layering images of Seah with her shadows are particularly effective.

Another piece which layers images and sound to moving effect is artist Wendy Toh's short film, which captures her grandmother's daily routine. It is a loving document as well as a thoughtful exploration of time, and how one's perception of it expands and contracts at different periods of one's life.

Watch out for artist Ila's Awash, juxtaposing meditative statements about the circuit breaker with a sensual video of hand-washing, and poet Cyril Wong's recital of three poems reflecting on media, isolation and creation.

WHERE: Facebook at str.sg/JdFZ, Instagram at str.sg/JdF4 ADMISSION: Free INFO: str.sg/JdFo

MOVING IN PLACE

It's A Balancing Act, Very Balanced Approach, Delicate, Tough, Never Ending by Veronyka Lau is one of the works on sale. PHOTO: CODA CULTURE

Buy a work of art and support migrant workers. Art gallery Coda Culture's online charity sale is offering 16 works donated by artists, each priced at $750, the average monthly salary of a migrant worker.

Proceeds will go to Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2). TWC2 is raising funds to help workers in dormitories pay for SIM cards so they can stay in touch with their families. Funds will also be directed to newly warded workers to facilitate contact tracing and buy chargers for patients warded without their belongings.

The works range from mixed-media pieces to photographic prints to performance art. Multidisciplinary artist Loo Zihan's Temporary Measures: A Procession Of Physical Proximity is an intriguing one-on-one work involving a 9.5km walk which takes about three hours.

INFO: str.sg/JdRj

THE LITTLE PLAYERS CRAFT KIT

PHOTO: THE FINGER PLAYERS

Parents on the lookout for kids' activities that do not entail staring at a digital screen can check out The Finger Players' puppet-making kit.

Each craft kit is priced at $19 and is targeted at children aged seven and up. The kit comes with materials for children to customise their own finger puppets. They can exercise a little creativity and practise fine motor skills at the same time.

For this project, The Finger Players is partnering AMKFSC Community Services, which operates four family service centres, and children's bookshop Woods In The Books. You can buy two kits and share one with AMKFSC's beneficiaries.

Another option is to buy a kit together with a curated Sunbeams Surprise package. There are three packages available from Woods In The Books, which range from $55 to $80.

PRICE: $19 a kit INFO: str.sg/JdhR

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on June 05, 2020, with the headline Arts Picks: Printmakers' assembly. Subscribe