The (Takashi Murakami- invented) icon Mr DOB grins playfully at the viewer from the canvas in a Sonic- the- Hedgehog blue. Mr DOB is a slick invented fantasy in the form of a pleasure pill, designed to amuse, tickle and entertain. Seemingly innocuous, it is however a sharp, tongue-in-cheek, subversi...
This work is carried by the powerful, emphatic brushstrokes of black ink on paper, unrestrained and expressive. The kanji characters spell the name of Kanzan (Hansan in Chinese), a mythologized figure in the canon of Chinese Buddhist tradition. The work is the barest of statements,......
An imitative tribute to Henri Rousseau’s Myself: Portrait Landscape, the artist has embellished the painting with heavy and familiar references, making it his own. The little girl in the centre of the painting eyes the viewer with an unflinching gaze, and is a representative portrait......
The pixelated appearance of this work is as though a magnifying glass has been placed in front of it. The scene depicted is a pleasing portrait of familial relationship. Captured in time, there is a sense of nostalgia, of the artist looking back fondly, heightened......
Towering plastic baskets in garish hues of colour hung from the ceiling, taking on the scale of an expensive artwork commissioned especially for the building. Yet the material used subverts the feeling of grand occasion, being cheap, disposable plastic- more at home instead in a floating outdoor mar...
This work was presented as a framed newspaper article, beckoning viewers to approach the work and ‘read the news’. Presenting the artist’s tongue-in-cheek point of view, the work is literally ‘fake news’, a comic-like pastiche of thought and thinking, utilising and (at the same time) subve...
The work depicts a nondescript mound of earth having the appearance of any other landform but for the fact that it is shrouded in a dank, chemical blue. Suffused in the colour of toxic fumes and chemical pollution, the earth is covered by an atmospheric fog, creating a sense of suffocation. The view...
‘Rapport Circus’ showcases a series of works by Park Min Joon in a variety of mediums, ranging from mixed media installation to acrylic painting. Telling the story of ‘Rapu’, a fictional character created by the artist, Park Min Joon uses the trope of the circus as a beautiful, macabre, biz...
In its twelfth incarnation this year, the Gwangju Biennale invites viewers to consider the theme “Imagined Borders” as a point of lift off. Exploring geopolitics, migration and the state machinery working behind, this biennale comes at a most pressing time; the transpolitical issues in our......
Yet, unmistakable signs of human activity lie in the title of each artwork. Titles such as Ice cream caldera or Micro space surfingascribe a familiarity to the work, a link to a comfortable routine. The ways in which the objects are situated bring to mind furniture arranged in a home. Along with the...
For a nation-state that only recently celebrated its 48th year of independence, it might seem premature to attempt a determination of just how far we have come in terms of the development of our art scene. This is especially so given that openness and ease......
Yu Nan Cheng’s paintings feature splashes of thick paint applied with a palette knife depicting what seems to be hundreds, or thousands of people on canvas. In his Tai Chi Series, row upon row of taichi practitioners are neatly organised and arrayed against a symbolic......
Hong Zhu An’s art feature washes of subdued colour diffused in layers upon each other, resembling waves upon water. The paintings appear abstract and Modernist in style at first glance, replacing usual depiction of subject matter with mammoth blocks of colour....
Standing in front of Jonathan Matas’ work, titled “At the Zoo”, and trying to comprehend it, can be a helplessly personal exercise. There is too much detail in any one part of the canvas, for any coherence or system of thought to be applied to the artwork. The colours splash out at you in thei...
The Colony “The Colony”, by its title, immediately points to a tension between the oppressor and the oppressed. The artist Dinh Q. Lê, using drones as aerial cameras, films the Chincha Islands in three parts; the claim to fame of the islands lie in that......
In his work, the artist Daniel Arsham does not dictate a choice between the two. Instead, he draws out spaces between time(s); a floating dimension between time periods....
Stepping into an exhibition of Paresh Maity’s works is like entering a hushed, intimate gathering where many are invited, but few are chosen to share its secrets. The artist seems to prefer close-up views of faces in his work, this lending an intimate, personal feel to the collection. There is a s...
This scintillating combination of words: Authority, Sex and Money, comprise the title of a current solo exhibition by contemporary Chinese artist Nan Qi. Indeed the ascent of the modern Chinese economy has allowed a Gatsby-esque transformation that is starkly and humorously displayed in Nan Qi’s.....
Art Plural Gallery has devoted its entire two-storey space to a showcase exhibition of works by the Chinese artist Qiu Jie- and what an expansive treat to the eyes indeed. In a departure from the strident images one would normally associate with the Cultural Revolution,......
How many faces does LKY have? Potted plants demarcate a rectangle of pleasing green astro-turf, and light brown park benches sit facing a row of artwork by the artist y/x. You could be forgiven for thinking you had strolled into an artificial garden by accident.......