In January, Singapore will welcome the new decade with art and cultural festivities at the eighth edition of Singapore Art Week (SAW). Themed “Art Takes Over,” the festival takes place from January 11–19, 2020, and will feature more than 100 art events across museums and galleries, independent art spaces, and cultural precincts around the city. There’s art for everyone—from collectors and connoisseurs to those who are drawn to the innovative, quirky, unusual, thought-provoking, and multi-sensorial. Singapore’s signature visual arts celebration features art shows by independent collectives, exhibitions with engaging tech and digital elements, public art trails, film screenings, performances, and more. Here are some of the highlights to catch as you journey through SAW. Don’t forget to share your favorite experiences and see others’ picks using #sgartweek on social media.

STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery

Jan 16–19, 2020

Gillman Barracks

With a focus on art from Southeast Asia, the second edition of S.E.A. Focus returns to Gillman Barracks with 20 leading galleries from Singapore and around the region. Led by STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery, the engaging platform presents some of the best artists from the region.

Tickets and more information available at seafocus.sg. 

Singapore Art Museum

Nov 22, 2019–Mar 22, 2020

National Gallery Singapore, LASALLE College of the Arts, Gillman Barracks, and various locations

Titled “Every Step in the Right Direction,” the sixth Singapore Biennale invites participation through the act of artistic exploration, drawing on the importance of making choices and taking steps to consider current conditions and the human endeavor for change. Led by artistic director Patrick Flores, the biennale features over 70 artists and art collectives, including Ryuichi Sakamoto, Wu Tsang, and Zakkubalan.

For tickets and more information, head to singaporebiennale.org.

Singapore Tourism Board and Chan + Hori Contemporary

Jan 17–19, 2020

National Design Centre

Brought to life by augmented reality technology, seven artists—Gerald Leow, Muhammad Izdi, anGie seah, Eugene Soh, Speak Cryptic (Farizwan Fajari), Amanda Tan, and Daniel Yu—present an immersive art experience, incorporating local Singaporean icons and subcultures into their works and performances. With raw, poetic sincerity and intimate reflection through sculptures, animations, performance art, and moving images, viewers will encounter seldom seen or spoken about fragments of Singapore.

Free admission.

Art Outreach Singapore Limited

Jan 12–Feb 2, 2020, 11 am–7 pm. Closed on Public Holidays

Jan 12–16, 2020 (Live Residency: Lionel Sabatté)
Orchard Road

Launched in the center of Orchard Road, the new initiative Art Encounters showcases three six-meter shipping containers that have been repurposed into a mobile artist’s studio and gallery and will travel to different sites around Singapore over the next three years.

Free admission. More information available at artoutreachsingapore.org.

INSTINC

Jan 13–19, 2020

Artspace@Helutrans

Featuring seven Singaporean artists (Andy Yang, Ezzam Rahman, Justin Lee, Urich Lau, Yen Phang, Yeoh Hwee Wee, and Yeoh Shih Yun) and two Japanese artists (Chihiro Kabata and Yuuri Kabata), “DE:VOTED” presents “a love letter to devotion and intimacy, an ode to togetherness, an homage to the claustrophobia of surveillance capitalism” through light, sound, performance, and technology.

Free admission. More information available at instinc.com.

Asian Film Archive

Jan 10–Feb 2, 2020

National Archives of Singapore, Central Warehouse at 20 Depot Lane

Curated by Cheong Kah Kit, Selene Yap, and Tan Guo-Liang, the fifth edition of the multi-disciplinary event delves into the tension between the themes of time, moving image, and systems of memory through site-specific installations and live performances.

Admission to film screenings and curator’s tours are ticketed. Admission to the exhibition, talks and performances are free.

Ticketing information and more available at stateofmotion.sg.

Jan 11, 2020

Waterloo, Bras Basah & Bugis

Jan 16, 2020

Tanjong Pagar Distripark

Art spaces will stay open until late on two nights—January 11 and 16—with exhibition openings, guided tours, and meetings with artists across multiple venues at the Waterloo, Bras Basah, and Bugis district, and Tanjong Pagar Distripark.

11 January – Waterloo, Bras Basah & Bugis locations:

Objectifs – Centre for Photography and Film

The Private Museum

Singapore Calligraphy Centre

SOTA Art Gallery

Dr Chen Wen Hsi Museum

artcommune Gallery

Galleries at Bras Basah Complex

DECK

National Design Centre

Stamford Arts Centre

16 January – Tanjong Pagar Distripark locations:

Artspace@Helutrans

Gajah Gallery

YH Conservation

SAW, a celebration of Singapore’s vibrant art landscape, is a joint initiative by the National Arts Council (NAC), the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB).

For programme updates and previews, follow SAW on Facebook and Instagram via @sgartweek, and join the conversation with #sgartweek and #ArtTakesOver.

Visit artweek.sg for the latest information and the full SAW 2020 event line-up.