BMW YOUNG ASIAN ARTISTS SERIES II: Singapore Edition: David Chan, Donna Ong, Phunk Studio
12 February – 7 March 2009
Singapore Tyler Print Institute (STPI) and BMW Asia are proud to present The BMW Young Asian Artists Series (BMW YAAS) II: Singapore Edition, featuring rising stars: David Chan, Donna Ong and Phunk Studio. A second installment of this initiative started by STPI and BMW Asia in 2005, this programme identifies and enables young and promising Asian artists to make their mark. The artists spent two weeks working alongside STPI's workshop team exploring new ideas and print techniques to create fresh, innovative and cutting-edge works for this exhibition.
Following the resounding success of the inaugural exhibition in 2007, the second cycle of sponsorship by BMW Asia began in 2008 with special focus on Singaporean artists. “This is testament of BMW Asia's long term commitment to provide opportunities for young artists to develop their careers. The Singapore Edition provides budding artists here the resources to support their creative processes to make new works.” says Emi Eu, STPI's Deputy Director for Development and Programming.
BMW Asia's involvement with STPI was a natural culmination of efforts and shared vision to nurture the next generation of artists who have the potential to add vibrancy to the arts scene here. At STPI, the artists were given the opportunity to explore the print medium and further expand their creative boundaries and produce works that none could otherwise have achieved alone.
STPI selected local artists who showed considerable promise in their early careers and they come from diverse creative practices, thus widening the possibilities of works produced in the print genre.
David Chan, winner of UOB Painting of the Year Award 2004 (Representational medium), is recognised for his tongue-in-cheek paintings of artificially coloured hybrid animals that represent modern society's ambivalence towards genetic modification. Chan created specially flocked prints for his fine drawings of humming bird hybrids, heightening the sensory dimension of this series.
Voted one of Singapore's heroes (Time Out UK), Donna Ong had been captivating audiences with her creations of curious objects and compelling installations. She pushed the boundaries of printmaking by creating three-dimensional works in print that resemble dioramas of mysterious caves and quarries – symbolizing a hidden realm of secret desires.
Phunk Studio - “Asia's hottest agency” (Computer Arts, UK) and “The Champion of Singapore's Graphic Scene” (Creative Review, UK) describes the crossover from graphic design to printmaking at STPI like performing in a band “unplugged”. They have successfully created a vision of a globalised theme park fusing Hong Kong pulp fiction, Japanese manga and Western popular culture in a series of complex silk-screened prints that exude hip visual appeal.
BMW Asia is an active partner in the Singapore government's efforts to build and nurture a design industry here. Its generous sponsorship and support gave STPI full confidence to forge ahead with this project and help young artists achieve the breakthrough they are looking for. Artists were given free reign to exercise their imagination and explore printmaking as a powerful means of projecting their ideas and visions – as encapsulated in this exhibition.
The managing director of BMW Asia, Mr Johannes Seibert, said the company has always been an avid supporter of the arts, “We are pleased to see that the artists we have supported from the last Series are doing well. We strongly believe that talent should be supported and nurtured, which is why we are once again supporting the second series and specifically focusing on local Singaporean talents. We hope this initiative has provided inspiration and opportunity for the young local artists as they develop their careers”.
Prospective art buyers and collectors should be on the look out for works by promising young artists who are starting their careers. These artists works available under $5,000, is a viable option.
STPI PUBLIC PROGRAMMES
Sat 14 Feb 2.30 pm
Artists Talk/Exhibition Walkthrough
Come and get to know Singapore‟s top artists and their creations at STPI.
Sat 21 Feb 10.00 am – 5.00 pm
Etching Workshop
Create aquatint etchings with STPI printer Chong Li Sze and Tamae Iwasaki. ($170)
Sat 28 Feb 10.00 am – 5.00 pm
Open Studio Tutorial
Join STPI Chief Printer Eitaro Ogawa and printer Tamae Iwasaki for an open studio tutorial. Participants should have basic printmaking knowledge and experience. ($120)
About STPI The Singapore Tyler Print Institute (STPI) is a publisher and dealer of fine art prints and works on paper. We collaborate with highly respected contemporary artists, who come to us from around the world to create and publish exciting new works. The only organization of its kind in Asia, STPI aims to push the frontiers of print- and papermaking internationally.
About BMW Asia BMW Group Asia in Singapore is the regional hub of the Group in Southeast Asia. Established in 1985, it has two major roles. The first is market responsibility for Southeast Asia, with the management of the BMW Group subsidiaries in Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines as well as all importers in the Asia-Pacific region.
Second, the office in Singapore is the regional base for key corporate functions like purchasing, corporate audit, corporate security, corporate sales, direct sales and special vehicles, as well as corporate affairs. In 2006, the regional office added new corporate capabilities to its portfolio: the Asia-Pacific Treasury Centre (one of three BMW Treasury Centres worldwide), the Asian studio for BMW DesignworksUSA, a strategic design consultancy within the BMW Group and BMW Group Financial Services.
In addition, the BMW Group also established an Asia-Pacific regional office for Rolls-Royce cars in Singapore. Since January 1st 2003, the Rolls-Royce brand has been part of the BMW Group, which presents itself with three brands: BMW, MINI, and Rolls-Royce.
