My expressions of interest

Drove up to the Adelphi building today to an unceremonious handing in of my Expressions of Interest for the Singapore Biennale 2008. It was a necessary effort but altogether futile. A package of dashed hopes left my hand into the keeping of a stone-faced receptionist at the cold, officious, lifeless NAC cubby hole. Agathe's mural cheered me up some. A fellow artist followed me in looking nearly as glum. CK was smilingly pessimistic. His package looked better than mine. Some serious prep must have gone into making it. I wish him luck as I sidled out... wondering.. what would it take?

It would be a wonderful lifeline to any struggling artist. I am sure I need it more than the next artist. Somebody will throw me a bone I am sure. Some body, some day..

Here is my response to WONDER. There is not enough 'WONDER' in it I fear..


A response to the concept of wonder in my art practice.


Let me start by introducing a simple mathematical problem to tell you what I do.

Show that √2 = p/q, where p and q are integers is bizarre or contradictory!

You might look at this problem and engage in mathematical free association and write the following sets of equations:

√2= p/q
√2 = p
p = √2 q
(√2)2 = (p/q)2
2 = p2/q2
p2 = 2q2

If you are involved with this maths, you will get excited about the last equation (in bold). You will experience excitement and pleasure even before you know where it will lead you. You will scarcely look back at any of the other equations or even the original question - even if the next steps turn out to lead nowhere.

There is something about that last equation that seems ‘right’. Mathematicians experience beauty in that last step. The aesthetics of the equation takes hold of the unconscious and brings pleasure and excitement. What is it? Is it its seriousness, its depth, its generality, unexpected or inevitability?

From the last equation it can be easily deduced that p is even and hence q must be even, and the original equation cannot hold without common factors. QED

My art practice is wholly based on the wonder of mathematics. I am motivated by the aesthetics of elegant mathematics now in my art as I was as a mathematician in my past. I hope to tap on this phenomenon to push elegant and powerful mathematics as objects of art. I hope to do this thru my paintings.

I want the secret to be out that the keys to mathematics are beauty and elegance and not dullness and technicality. I believe that one’s intellectual and aesthetics life cannot be complete unless it includes an appreciation of the power and the beauty of mathematics. But more so, I want this appreciation of the power and beauty of mathematics to educate us about beauty in general. In my art, I am committed to elucidating our search for beauty thru the aesthetics I have been party to in mathematics.

To describe the world around me I have the language of mathematics and I have the amazing experience of doing mathematics at a pretty high level where beauty and aesthetics play such an important role. But it is well known that this experience is only available to one who is involved in mathematics. You cannot much appreciate it by viewing equations and proofs. The aesthetics of mathematics is not a spectator sport. This is my challenge.

Also, I am actively working with a slightly altered concept of ‘psychical distance’, introduced by Edward Bullough in 1912 in his influential paper –“Psychical Distance as a Factor in Art and Aesthetic Principle”. I use the lessons from this paper in my paintings, drawing my audience using images that bring my audience in close psychical distance to my paintings painted using mathematics that more often than not increases their aesthetic distance. In this way, I ‘trap’ my mathematics-averse audience to experience the wonder and beauty of maths.

Singapore to curate and present art exhibition in Seoul

I have been getting a bunch of hits from Korea. Here's why...


Singapore has been invited to participate in an exhibition in South Korea.

Called City_net Asia 2007, it will be held at the Seoul Museum of Art from 10 October to 11 November.

Singapore is the first Southeast Asian country that has been invited to curate at the event, and Singapore Art Museum (SAM)’s curator, Ms Joyce Fan, will be in charge.

The works of eight local artists will be featured at the exhibition.

These artists are Tan Kai Syng, Tang Ling Nah, Terence Lin, Jeremy Sharma, Rizman Putra, Vincent Leow, Ye Shufang and Michael Lee.

Their works will focus on the theme of ’DomestiCity’, showing how art is created within Singapore’s urban spaces.

The project will feature the works of a total of 60 artists from SAM, South Korea’s Seoul Museum of Art, China’s Guangdong Art Museum and Japan’s Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art.

Taken from here

'Wonder' as a theme for Singapore Biennale 2008

Wonder is the theme for SB2008.

Its conceptual scope issues a challenge to the contemporary world, a world that no longer questions choices, nor allows for things and events to awe us. Through contemporary art, Wonder calls on us to question and be curious; to reach beyond the
surface, surpassing the apparent and to allow ourselves be surprised, awed, tantalised and challenged. All of which is an aperture to the World.

There are many issues that challenge our world today. The second Singapore Biennale
proposes other possible ways of seeing and arriving at truths and answers, resolutions and compromises, and even the creation of new questions, to the challenges presented to and by humanity. It seeks to revolt against our belief and trust in theories, logic, science and technology, politics and economy that consciously regulate the world we live in. Criticism, skepticism and doubt exist on the flipside of creative thinking, which brings about a different kind wonderment of
and to the world.

To wonder is a process of questioning, feeling or thinking about something. It is about looking at things with fresh eyes and from different perspectives. The site of a creative critical spirit, it operates either as a means to an end or as a sense generated when we encounter an object,subject, thing, event, site, or experience. Embedded in the production and thinking of much of contemporary art is this creative critical spirit. It challenges what we know and seeks to encourage us to think about our now, our pasts, and our futures. To wonder and question is thus a critical comment on the first edition’s theme, Belief, which at the same time contextualises it.

“With Wonder, we want audiences to question the world around us, to inspire them to have a healthy skepticism about what we know and believe, to be surprised and move them towards a new revelation or understanding of our world. We aim to provide a commentary on the identity of individuals in a multi-cultural world, recognise the dignity of individual human beings and their communities and make reference to the fact that different cultural viewpoints are varied and valid. We want audiences to be involved in the experience and creation of artworks through greater interaction during the next Biennale, resulting in greater development of understanding
and critical thought regarding the events of the world.” says Fumio Nanjo, artistic director of SB2008.

SB2008 aims to make people aware of this sense of wonderment and their capacity for it, as contemporary art brings about moments of surprise, enchantments, shifts in perspectives, new experiences and ultimately, enrichment.

A major part of the Biennale programming involves cultivating a deeper public engagement with contemporary arts. This will be conducted through the Encounters series of talks, workshops and events. These regular dialogue sessions provide a discursive platform for Singaporeans to voice issues and concerns pertinent to our society and contemporary art. In addition, a series of education projects focusing on primary and secondary school children will accompany the Biennale. This programme will also include a number of artist residencies and workshops.

SB2008 promises to be refreshing and surprising for audiences. Together with the two curators, Nanjo will be researching on artists and art practices from various parts of the world with a special focus on Asia and its region; further establishing Singapore as the hotbed for research, documentation and presentation of Asian contemporary artforms. They will provide for accessibility of programming to multiple levels of audiences – local, regional and international and pay special attention to outreach and education, allowing for a deeper engagement with contemporary art by the people of Singapore.

Singapore Biennale 2008
Curatorial Statement

Context
The Singapore Biennale 2008 (SB2008) succeeds the successful first version of the Singapore Biennale, entitled “Belief” in 2006 by developing, expanding and reflecting on the inaugural Singapore biennale of international contemporary art.
The artistic director, together with the curatorial team, has decided on the theme “Wonder” for SB2008. It performs as a critical commentary to the first edition, as well as introduces a critical stance with regard to events in the world.

Definition and General Focus
“Wonder” is a feeling of surprise and admiration caused by something beautiful, unexpected or unfamiliar” and as a verb, it is not only to” feel curious” or “desire to know”, but also to “feel doubt.” – Concise Oxford Dictionary, 11th Edition, pp 1658, 1859

The notions of wonder have developed historically. The Latin word mirari means to wonder or marvel at, while miraculum was used in the Latin translation of the Greek New Testament to indicate “anything wonderful, beyond human power, and deviating from the common action of nature, a supernatural event.” (“Miracle”, Encyclopedia Brittannica).

Due to the natural sciences,this mystical or faith-induced idea of wonder became more metaphysical, and another derivation came about: admirari (and then admiration). (Condensed from: A Philosophy of Wonder,Howard Parsons, Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, V30, N1 (Sep 1969)).

Following the direction taken by the sciences, Aristotle declares the beginning of philosophy is wonder) and specula (speculation) being drawn from wonder. The creation of much of contemporary art takes its cue from these two bodies of thought. The bodies of thought: being that of faith and science, the opposites. Philosophy is considered a science.

Wonder issues a challenge to the contemporary world that neither questions choices
intelligently nor allows for things and events to awe us. Hence the scope for this exhibition: That Wonder, through contemporary art, would call us to question and be curious; to let ourselves be surprised, awed, tantalized, challenged. A moving on from Belief at SB2008.

Wonderment of the World and Role of Art
Much of modern life, the failure of modernism/modernity, all seem pre-designed to foreclose the possibility of wonder, of newness, of surprise, of the sublime, the unexpected, and useless beauty. The world of today is conflicted; with accidents and catastrophes, wars and natural disasters. Much has been caused by humanity: the imposition of worldviews (ideas or power),abuse of technology, uncontrollable natural phenomena.

We seek to create a self-reflexive check on our responsibility as human beings living among other human beings by respecting differing visions of the world and its events. For the development of this self-reflexive criticality we have to open and stimulate avenues for discussion and dialogue, regarding all issues relevant to humanity at large, opening eyes and minds.

Through this expansive gesture, we arrive at the many issues that challenge our world
presently; SB2008 proposes other ways of arriving at truths and answers, resolutions and compromises, even the creation of new questions to the challenges presented by the world. Helene Cixous writes that “going from illusion to illusion, one also comes to understand the world.” SB2008 seeks to revolt against theories, logic, science and technology, politics and economy that consciously regulate the contemporary world. Criticism, skepticism and doubt exist on the flipside of creative thinking, which brings about a different kind wonderment of and to the world. And if we go via Cixous, from illusion to illusion, we can seek to understand the world using wonder, as both process and result.

To wonder is a process of questioning, feeling or thinking about something. It is the site of creative critical spirit. It operates either as a means to an end or as a sense generated when we encounter an object, subject, thing, event, site, or experience. Embedded in the production and thinking of much of contemporary art is this creative critical spirit (which we view as wonder). It challenges what we know. It seeks to encourage us to think about our now, our pasts, and our futures by presenting other possible viewpoints. Belief, the theme of Singapore’s inaugural
biennale, is by definition, a fixed viewpoint. To wonder and question is thus a critical comment on Belief and by shifting one’s perspective on Belief, contextualizes it as well.

In spite of its problems the world still contains much beauty and possibilities. A sense of wonder therefore produces a positive awareness of our world with the constant questioning and reinterpretation of the reality that surrounds us.
SB2008 aims to make people aware of this sense of “wonder” and their capacity for it, as they engage with the artwork as apertures to the world, bringing about moments of surprise, enchantments, shifts in perspectives, new experiences and ultimately, enrichment.