Malaysian artist Hoo Fan Chon was born right into a fisherman’s household that often hosted and attended seafood banquets. Fish has at all times been a mainstay in his weight loss program, and has additionally grow to be a recurring motif in the 39-year-old Malaysian’s practice.
This yr, Hoo will likely be given the chance to analysis the plating aesthetic and the obsession of dwell fish, typical of Chinese tradition. He may even discover Finland’s fish tradition, consumption habits and trade.
This is made attainable by SEA AiR – Studio Residencies for South-East Asian Artists in the EU, a brand new programme developed by the Nanyang Technological University Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore (NTU CCA Singapore).
It is funded by the European Union’s Foreign Policy Instruments.
Citra Sasmita, 31, from Indonesia, and Vuth Lyno, 39, from Cambodia, are the opposite two artists provided a three-month residency in an EU nation to hone their artistic practice this yr.
The three had been chosen from a pool of 24 candidates nominated from curators and artists from South-East Asia. They had been chosen primarily based on the standard of their work and relevance of their proposals.
The different 21 candidates may have to be re-nominated and re-apply for the subsequent cycle.
The choice course of for the subsequent cycle will likely be undertaken this yr, and the residencies will occur in 2023.
“This is overwhelming and I’m thrilled to have been chosen for SEA AiR. Through this residency, I’d like to train my concepts and share my initiatives with audiences with totally different cultural backgrounds and materials sensibilities. This is to germinate productive questions and trajectories,” mentioned Hoo.
Hoo’s art work titled ‘Commercial Marine Fish (Pelagic) Of Malaysia’ (acrylic on poster, 2021). Photo: Hoo Fan Chon
The artists had been introduced along with the companion establishments for the primary cycle of SEA AiR on the EU Delegation to Singapore at Raffles City Tower on Jan 10.
Iwona Piórko, EU Ambassador to Singapore, mentioned: “2022 marks the forty fifth anniversary of EU-Asean dialogue relations, and SEA AiR is a becoming begin to this milestone yr.
“SEA AiR brings collectively the EU, Singapore and South-East Asia via the humanities. It embodies the spirit of dialogue and trade which are hallmarks of the connection between our two areas.”
SEA AiR seeks to place Singapore as a hub for artistic trade between the EU and the South-East Asian area. It is devoted to artists who haven’t had skilled expertise in Europe.
Artists chosen this yr are provided a three-month residency between March and June in Europe. They will likely be hosted by up to date artwork establishments which are companions of SEA AiR.
This yr, the three institutional companions are Wiels in Brussels, Belgium, the Helsinki International Artist Programme (HIAP) in Finland, and Villa Arson in Nice, France.
These companions have lengthy histories of operating residency programmes, and nurturing artists via curatorial mentorship, peer-to-peer dialogues and public engagements.
They may even profit from increasing their community via NTU CCA Singapore as a base to wider South-East Asia, a area that has been traditionally under-represented in most artistic residency programmes in Europe.
This is very significant because the EU and Asean enter 45 years of dialogue partnership.
After their residency, the artists will current their works to the Singapore public in a bunch exhibition curated by NTU CCA Singapore. This will occur in direction of the top of 2022.
Professor Joseph Liow, dean of the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences at NTU, mentioned: “We look ahead to seeing (the artists’) practice develop. SEA AiR is a wonderful platform for artists to domesticate world connections and work with prestigious European establishments.
“These partnerships affirm NTU CCA Singapore’s position as a synergic centre that brings forth modern and dynamic collaborations between South-East Asia and the EU.”
Sasmita, who will likely be hosted by Wiels, mentioned: “SEA AiR is a golden alternative to deepen my data, enrich my expertise, and develop my artistic practice.”
She goals to excavate pre-colonial Balinese tradition, and perceive how the views and aesthetic standards fashioned below colonial rule nonetheless persist.
Hoo, who will likely be hosted by HIAP, mentioned: “I need to take this chance to consolidate my previous initiatives into a bigger cohesive practice, and discover a steadiness between object-based artwork making and research-led initiatives.” – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
