SingaporeMotherhood | Family Fun
January 2018
Singapore Art Week 2018: Family-friendly and Inclusive Events to Discover, Experience and Engage with Art #SAW2018
From the art-centric Bras Basah.Bugis precinct and Gillman Barracks to far-flung Jurong, East Coast and even Pulau Ubin, here’s what families and kids can look forward to at SAW 2018.
Singapore Art Week (SAW), our country’s premier celebration of visual arts, returns for its sixth edition from 17 to 28 January. With over 100 diverse visual arts events taking place across the island, there’s lots to get young imaginations revving. Attend immersive festivals and art fairs, newly launched exhibitions and galleries, exclusive talks and tours, and be amazed and inspired by home-grown, regional and international artists and artworks.
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Along the way, everyone is invited to find their own art journey. Everyone includes people from all walks of life, young and old. In fact, a stronger focus on family-friendly and inclusive activities ensures that no one is left out. Throughout the 12-day event, Discover interactive installations such as a life-size interactive block-stacking game, Experience fun encounters as heritage buildings in the Civic District transform into vivid canvasses, and Engage with art through larger-than-life tours around town.
We’ve rounded up eight kid-friendly and inclusive events to get your family’s creative juices flowing at SAW 2018:
1. I SΦ with my Little Eye & Baby Space
Baby Space, 2017. Credit: The Artground
Tots 12 months and under (and a parent) can take part in a multi-sensory workshop combining contemporary dance, music and visual art. Baby Space is an immersive experience designed to trigger the little ones’ curiosity, encouraging interaction and exploration.
On the other hand, older kids up to 12 years will love exploring and climbing about an interactive geometric visual space at I SΦ with my Little Eye. This ongoing exhibition at The Artground takes them on a unique journey as they ‘spy’ out new ways of visualising and moving through 3D structures.
When
Baby Space: 12 to 28 January | Various showtimes
I SΦ with my Little Eye: Till 1 April | Wednesdays & Thursdays 9.30am-5pm; Fridays to Sundays 9.30am-6pm
Where The Artground, #01-40 Block J, Goodman Arts Centre, 90 Goodman Road
Admission Free admission to the exhibition | Workshops and shows are ticketed
2. Is Anyone Home? An exhibition exploring childhood in Singapore
Super Boccia Banana. Credit: Jean Loo & Superhero Me
Discover the eclectic and entertaining worlds of six unique children at Is Anyone Home?, an exhibition that encourages free play through a series of mixed media artworks. On weekends, take part in inclusive co-creation workshops and artist talks designed to inspire courage and curiosity. One of the activities even lets you get hands-on with oversized blocks in various shapes modelled after Froebel Blocks, the world’s first educational toys for kids to discover interconnectedness through form and movement. Presented by inclusive arts movement Superhero Me, it seeds possibilities of a future where children of varying abilities can grow and learn together.
When 17 to 31 January | Monday to Sunday 10am-7pm
Where Stamford Gallery, National Museum of Singapore, 93 Stamford Road
Admission Free admission to the exhibition | Workshops are ticketed
3. ARTWALK Little India
Kanmani, Melissa Quek x Tinu Verghis, 2017. Credit: Singapore Tourism Board
Both adults and kids will love the puppetry programme at this year’s edition of ARTWALK Little India, where you can learn to decorate hand puppets inspired by the murals around Little India. This will be especially interesting after going on an ARTWALK Trail to discover said murals and art installations! There will also be storytelling sessions, cultural performances and film screenings of K. Rajagopal’s trilogy The Day I Lost My Shadow.
When 18 to 27 January | Performances & activities on Thursday to Saturday 6pm-9pm
Where Various locations in Little India Precinct
Admission Free
4. Light to Night Festival 2018: Colour Sensations
Light to Night Festival, 2017. Credit: National Gallery Singapore
The second edition of the annual Light to Night Festival explores the sensation of colour through visual, literary and performing arts. The best part? It transforms major cultural institutions and parks across the Civic District and Marina Bay into spectacular works of art! There’ll be lots of fun activities going on throughout the night. We recommend purchasing yummy delights at the Festival Food Street and joining the giant picnic on the Padang just before night falls. Then sit back and enjoy the multimedia projection show set to unfold across the façade of National Gallery Singapore.
When 19 to 28 January | Various timings
Where National Gallery Singapore | Padang | The Arts House | Victoria Theatre and Victoria Concert Hall | Asian Civilisations Museum | Empress Lawn | Esplanade Park | Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay
Admission Free
5. Singapore Art Week at SAM
Community Day, 2017. Credit: Singapore Art Museum
Celebrate Singapore Art Week at the Singapore Art Museum (SAM) over two art-filled weekends, with something for the whole family. Bring picnic baskets and mats and relive the old days of outdoor movie screenings and chill out at an art market. There’s everything from local crafts and accessories to gourmet snacks on sale at the museum courtyards. Families can also get creative with hands-on workshops and an Instagram photo booth. While you’re there, experience SAM’s latest exhibition, Cinerama: Art and the Moving Image in Southeast Asia, about the shifting boundaries between moving image, film and art.
When 20, 21, 27 & 28 January | Saturday & Sunday 10am till late
Where Singapore Art Museum, 71 Bras Basah Road | SAM at 8Q, 8 Queen Street
Admission Free
6. Fun with Colour Clay @ Telok Kurau Studios
Fun with Colour Clay @ Telok Kurau Studios, 2017. Credit: Teo Huey Ling
For just one special day, Telok Kurau Studios opens to give the public a peek into a day in the life of a working artist in Singapore. During their open house, kids and adults can take part in artist-led workshops, such as Fun with Colour Clay with Teo Huey Ling. Under her expert coaching, roll, pinch and mould the clay into adorable creatures. You’ll learn about the correct proportions of animals, how to mix coloured clay and simply get some hands-on fun!
When 21 January | Sunday 11am-12pm
Where Telok Kurau Studios, 91 Lorong J Telok Kurau
Admission Free admission to the open house | Workshops are ticketed
7. Décor-art Your Home
Laundry Room, Making It Home 2017. Credit: Richard Kearns & Playeum
In conjunction with SAW 2018, Playeum invites kids aged 1 to 12 years and their families to enjoy an afternoon of exploring unconventional ways to Décor-art Your Home. Make your own handheld paper décortrope and learn the science behind this simple yet fascinating optical illusion. Little engineers and architects can build upon an elaborate cityscape using strips of paper. Then roll with all manner of spools and help create a large collaborative mural that will be displayed at Playeum as part of the ongoing exhibition Making It Home (till 29 April).
When 27 January | Saturday 2pm-6pm
Where Playeum Children’s Centre for Creativity, #01-23 Gillman Barracks, 47 Malan Road
Admission Standard admission fees apply
8. Larger Than Life: The Unspoken Histories of Jurong Neighbourhood
Larger Than Life, 2017. Credit: Vertical Submarine
Most people think of Jurong as just a large industrial estate, but it’s much, much more than that. Journey to the west to discover Larger Than Life, a public art showcase of art sculptures and installations by local artists. Each piece explores a theme, characteristic, or forgotten history about Jurong and its people. From 2pm on 20 January, take part in a guided tour and artist talk for an up-close look at the artworks.
When Till 28 January | 24 hours daily
Where Jurong East Central (Canopy @ J Link & open field beside Jurong Regional Library)
Admission Free
Singapore Art Week 2018
When 17 to 28 January 2018
Where Various locations
Admission Both free and ticketed
Visit www.artweek.sg for the full listings of SAW 2018. For programme updates and previews, follow @sgartweek on Facebook and Instagram. Join the conversation with #SGArtWeek and #SAW2018.
This message is brought to you by Singapore Art Week 2018, a joint initiative by the National Arts Council, the Singapore Tourism Board and the Singapore Economic Development Board.
Header image: Cribs (exhibition view at Palais de Tokyo), 2015, Gerald Leow
Feature image: The Water Boy, 2017, Jean Loo & Superhero Me
All content from this article, including images, cannot be reproduced without credits or written permission from SingaporeMotherhood.
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