The Artsy Guide to Art Stage Singapore
Between eight new curated regional platforms, an exotic waterfront resort venue, and over 140 world-class galleries, Art Stage Singapore will not disappoint in its fourth iteration. At a geographical crossroads in the heart of Southeast Asia, the fair gathers leading contemporary art from emerging and established artists, from Asia and surrounding territories. With its encompassing slogan “WE ARE ASIA”, the fair promises the latest and greatest in Asian contemporary art.
1. When? Where? How?
Art Stage Singapore takes place January 16th–19th, at Singapore’s iconic resort Marina Bay Sands (10 Bayfront Ave, Singapore). Tickets may be purchased for a single day’s admission, or for the entirety of the fair, here.
2. Why Visit?
Offering a comprehensive look at contemporary art from Asia, Art Stage Singapore highlights distinct and noteworthy qualities of art from individual regions and countries. In addition, the fair is unique in that 80% of galleries hail from the Asia Pacific, 36 galleries are from Singapore itself, and includes representation of Australian art. View the full list of exhibitors, here.
3. Asia’s New Art Capital
In addition to Art Stage Singapore, the influx and success of major institutions and exhibitions—including international gallery hub Gillman Barracks, the new National Art Gallery, the Singapore Art Museum, and the Singapore Biennale, which recently had its fourth edition—have contributed to Singapore’s rising status as a prominent art destination.
4. Luxury Accommodations at Marina Bay Sands
Art Stage Singapore’s venue, and its official hotel, Marina Bay Sands, is a luxury resort located on the waterfront of Singapore’s Marina Bay, which spans three 57-story towers, and includes a casino, an art and science museum, shops, various gourmet dining options, nightclubs, and an Art Path featuring installations commissioned by Marina Bay Sands architect Moshe Safdie. The highlight of the hotel, aside from the fair, is its rooftop sky park, which includes a death-defying infinity pool.
5. New Regional Curated Platforms
Now in its fourth year, the fair offers a new component featuring eight regional platforms: Southeast Asia, Australia, Central Asia, China, India, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. These mini museum-like presentations are overseen by word-class curators to highlight each region’s leading contemporary art.
6. The Largest International Showcase of Southeast Asian Art
The Southeast Asia Platform shows leading and emerging artists from Singapore, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Thailand. The platform will be the largest international showcase of contemporary Southeast Asian art to date.
7. Platforms Art Tours and Talks
To complement the regional platforms, the fair offers a series of free talks and tours. Three different hour-long Platforms Art Tours will take place multiple times per day. Visitors can choose between a Southeast Asia tour, an Australia-Taiwan-China tour, and a Japan-Korea-India tour. In addition, platform curators will deliver talks on their selections throughout the fair. See the full agenda and more details, here.
8. An Extensive Talks Program
Art Stage Singapore works with fair partners—the Centre for Contemporary Art, LASALLE College of the Arts, and The National Arts Council, Singapore—to present an extensive talks programme featuring an international lineup of artists, curators, academics, critics, and art professionals. Highlights include:
“Longing Landscapes”: A conversation between artist Qin Feng and
gallerist/curator Ethan Cohen. Friday, January 12, 12pm.
“Hong Kong vs Singapore”: Speakers Matthias Arndt (Director, Arndt Gallery, Berlin & Singapore), Savita Apte (Founding Director Platform, Singapore) “Junior” Laksamana Tirtadji (ROH Projects, Indonesia) discuss perspectives on the two cities in the global art market. Saturday, January 18, 1pm.
Find the full list of talks, here.
9. Take in the Singapore Biennale
While in town the fair, visitors to Art Stage Singapore have the unique opportunity to see the Singapore Biennale as well. Running through February 6th, presented by the Singapore Art Museum (SAM), the National Arts Council and National Heritage Board, this year’s biennale has the theme “If the World Changed” and invites artists and visitors alike, to re-imagine the world we live in. The biennale takes place across multiple venues in Singapore’s Bras Basah.Bugis arts precinct, including the SAM.
10. Don’t Miss Gillman Barracks
Visitors should also plan a trip to world-class gallery cluster Gillman Barracks. Opened in fall 2012, GB hosts leading international art galleries in a renovated military barracks. The contemporary art destination houses exhibition spaces, artist studios, a research center, and multiple eateries, all just a 15-minute drive outside the city, ensconced in lush greenery. At GB visitors will find Arndt, the Centre for Contemporary Art, Equator Art Projects, Fost Gallery, Future Perfect, Ota Fine Arts, Partners & Mucciaccia, ShanghART Gallery, Silverlens, Space Cottonseed, Sundaram Tagore, The Drawing Room, Tomio Koyama Gallery, and Yeo Workshop. Pearl Lam Galleries will also join the ranks of the Gillman Barracks galleries when they open their third space in Singapore on January 17th.
Image of the resort courtesy of Marina Bay Sands
