Press release for the 'In the becoming' exhibition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Release


...in the becoming…


17th Dec 2006 to 16th February 2007
Tavolo Restaurant @ Boon Tat Street

An exhibition of sketches and drawings by artist Rajinder Singh about the mysteries, mechanics and mathematics of life

(7th Dec 2006) The management of Tavolo Restaurant @ Boon Tat Street, a premier Italian restaurant in Singapore and artist Rajinder Singh are proud to present ..in the becoming.., the first of a three exhibitions of sketches and drawings examining the place of drawings in their state of mutual dependence with paintings as the beginning of a visual idea. The exhibition explores how the artist uses this ‘breeding ground’ of visual ideas to brainstorm about the mysteries, mechanics and mathematics of life and the universal rule of nature. He invites his audience through a journey which kicks off on Dec the 17th at Tavolo Restaurant with a first look at his sketches for paintings that will be completed and eventually shown at a major exhibition to be announced early next year.

The artist, familiar with Jungian theories of the subconscious, prepared his sketches and drawings “ free of the dictates of conscious manipulation”. He aims especially to show that his unconscious must draw from a well of experience, emotion and even technique. The unconscious therefore must draw from his practice as an artist but more importantly, from his years of academic exercises in the highest level of mathematics. This is where the visual idea begins.

Rajinder believes that mathematical skill, like his art, is to a degree an acquired talent. It requires pages and pages of proofs, problem set after problem set, example after example just like the thousands and thousands of sketches and doodles and drawings he has produced since he was six. After many years of living in a world of mathematical and art objects like numbers and analytic functions, matrices and differential manifolds, sequences and topological spaces as well as oils and figurative works, sculpture and poetry, abstract narrative and illustrations, the time came when the mechanics of it all receded into the background and the mind, creativity and inspiration are set free and given the tools to express themselves. In drawing or maths, practice precedes art.


Rajinder brings to fore the experience of being an artist and a mathematician at the same time. Does proving a theorem feel very different from creating a piece of art? Does the motivation for doing maths and his inspiration to do art come from the same place?

A mathematician once said – “ Despite the objectivity that has no parallel in the world of art, the motivation and standards of creative mathematics are more like those of art than science. “

In some periods of my life I'm more attracted by the rigour and formality of maths, and at other times I prefer art. I think maths and art are just different languages that can be used to express the same ideas."

What are these ideas? “I think it's how I relate to the world, how I see and understand the world. I feel a relationship with certain objects, or objects of the mind, and I want to express that.”

Rajinder’s sketches are like a blended combination of maths and art. Where does one stop and the other begins? What is X in the equation Art + Maths = X?


ABOUT TAVOLO RESTAURANT


Tavolo, an Italian-Mediterranean Restaurant, nestled right in the heart of Singapore’s Central Business District. Owned and operated by Sagara International Pte Ltd, it is the perfect venue for business lunches, or dining in style.
The works of art dotting the wall ignite the senses for a powerful gastronomic experience. Together with its thoughtful service and comprehensive wine list, Tavolo ensures that dining at the restaurant is a totally memorable affair.
Enjoy the Yellow Fin Tuna or Tavolo Fois Gras or venture forth to the Lamb Rack.
Designed with subtle lighting, Tavolo creates an intimate dining room of warmth and elegance. A restaurant that is sophisticated yet still maintains a relaxed and inviting atmosphere.

For media interviews, images and further information contact:
Tavolo Restaurant is located at 5, Boon Tat Street , #01-01
General enquiries, please contact Joseph +65 6423 1123 or joseph@tavolo.com.sg
The artist can be contacted at 94501724 or raj@unprimed.com

Something about my art

Sometime early last year, I began on a journey with my art that has evolved into me coming face-to-face with my original and enduring love with pure mathematics. My love for art and mathematics has become one. It is a turning point in my life as the two protagonists conspire to erupt my passions. First signs of this manifested itself when I joined ranks with Donna Ong and Chng Nai Wee in my last exhibition to wrestle with chaos theory.On Sunday the 17th of Dec ( day after tomorrow) I reveal to the public for the first time the sketches and the preparatory drawings that led to this exhibition.

With this exhibition of sketches and drawings on the 17th, I invite my audience to join me to view not only sketches from my last exhibition, but work-in-progress(WIP) for a future major solo exhibition of paintings in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia slated for March next year. As an attempt to develop an active discourse around my art, I intend to invite the public into the inner sanctums of my thoughts and the work that I produce as a result as I prepare for my coming solo. I will have at least one other exhibition of WIP, before March 2007. It is my attempt to have an open studio without the open studio. You can say I am going 'out' to my audience rather than inviting them 'in'.

A little about my recent projects:

Mathematical equations are beautiful to me, eg, the equation for the phenomena called entanglement is by itself a beautiful, neat and simple equation. A mathematician once said – “ Despite the objectivity that has no parallel in the world of art, the motivation and standards of creative mathematics are more like those of art than science. “ For my PhD in number theory in the past, the beauty of a mathematical schematic or a proof was an important part of the proof. There was no place for ugly mathematics. I explore this in many ways in my art. I do this fir instance by constructing a structure of 'loose fitting' mathematics, like say the way poetry is to reality, around the lines, the planes and the facets that I sketch to construct shapes and forms. I use sequences, progressions, harmonic analyses and even go as far as applying lessons learnt in the difficult but beautiful and special theory of relativity. In other words, I am using whatever tools I have at hand for analysis and as a narrative of my work. And in the process, I develop art that kind of looks half art and half mathematical schematics. It is at least interesting to me.