The World of Studio Ghibli
Photograph: ArtScience MuseumSpirited Away Installation featuring No-Face
Photograph: ArtScience Museum

The best art exhibitions in Singapore

Left right up down, art is everywhere we look! Don't miss out on the best ones yet

Mingli Seet
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Ongoing

  • Art
  • Art

“I don’t like Ghibli films,” said no one ever. Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration. But for the Ghibli fans, we’ve got great news for you – ArtScience Museum will be presenting The World of Studio Ghibli, showcasing the world of well-loved animation studio, Ghibli, from October 4, 2024 to February 2, 2025.

This will be Studio Ghibli’s first ever showcase in Singapore and also one of the largest editions to date, exploring its iconic animation and storytelling. The World of Studio Ghibli was first presented in Japan back in 2013. It then moved on to South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Bangkok, with each edition slightly different from the last. The upcoming iteration will feature new additions from Studio Ghibli’s latest film The Boy and the Heron.

  • Art
  • City Hall

Step into the world of Kim Lim, where light, space, and rhythm dance in perfect harmony. National Gallery Singapore presents Kim Lim: The Space Between. A Retrospective – the most extensive exhibition of her work yet. With over 150 pieces, including sculptures, prints, and rare archival materials, this show is a deep dive into the art journey of the Singapore-born British sculptor. As the third chapter in the Gallery’s SG Artist series, this is also a great chance to rediscover a visionary artist who shaped 20th century sculpture and printmaking.

Organised into four distinct sections, Kim Lim: The Space Between. A Retrospective traces Lim’s creative evolution across four decades, offering fresh perspectives on her ability to transform simple forms into powerful metaphors.

 

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  • Art
  • Mixed media

Ever so often, you chance upon a source of inspiration that prompts you to reflect on yourself and the world around us – for us, it is both the artworks of Teo Eng Seng and the man himself. If you’re curious to find out how so, then your next art date should be to National Gallery’s upcoming exhibition, Teo Eng Seng: We’re Happy. Are You Happy?, running from September 6, 2024 to February 2, 2025.

  • Art
  • Harbourfront

What if the most mundane moments of your day held the potential for artistic revelation? Everyday Practices, the inaugural exhibition at the Singapore Art Museum’s new gallery in Tanjong Pagar Distripark, takes this concept and runs with it. With 21 thought-provoking artworks from 19 artists and 1 collective spanning 10 Asian countries, the exhibition delves into the rhythms of daily life, asking what happens when ordinary actions are pushed to their limits.

Inspired by Hsieh Tehching’s legendary One Year Performance 1978-1979, the show offers an engaging look at how routine can be transformed into art, tapping into resilience and endurance. Complementing the exhibition are a series of public programmes designed to spark conversation and fresh perspectives on the contemporary world.

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  • Art
  • Art

If your idea of a good time involves dabbling in artificial intelligence (AI) and mingling with cutting-edge tech, then September is your month – head down to the ArtScience Museum for In the Ether: A Festival of Technology and Innovation, a technology-centred festival that will take over three floors of the museum.

This event will gather the Avengers of technology – over two dozen technologists, scientists, designers, artists and studios – to hold conversations about the convergence of science, technologies and creativity. This pool of industry experts include Google Creative Lab, Ouchhh Studio, speculative architect and director Liam Young, and digital artists Lynette Wallworth and Ian Cheng.

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  • Art
  • Art

Amid our planet’s climate chaos, one artist imagines a sea of hope. Opening on September 21, Cesar Jung-Harada: An Ocean City Imagined at ArtScience Museum offers a glimpse into a future where humanity thrives alongside nature.  

In An Ocean City Imagined, Cesar’s ideas take shape through large-scale installations, centred around the ‘International Ocean Station’ – an ambitious speculative design for a floating city referencing Singapore and its nearby geography, inspired by the International Space Station. This futuristic city will show us alternative ways of living after we have fallen victim to the negative effects of climate change.

  • Things to do
  • Exhibitions
  • City Hall

If your kids are digital natives whose playtime involves devices, prepare to snatch them away from their tech and bring them for a playful romp around town. Centred around elements of play, the National Museum of Singapore’s newest exhibition, Play:Date – Unlocking Cabinets of Play, features over 250 locally and globally recognisable toys spanning the eras. Running from now until January 5, 2025, the free showcase promises to be eye-opening for both children and adults.

 

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  • Art
  • City Hall

If you’ve seen the widely-discussed artwork featuring a banana taped to a wall that sold for over a hundred thousand dollars, then you would know that there are no boundaries in modern art. This inevitably leads us to the pressing question: What exactly is art? With this question in mind, take a trip to the National Gallery’s latest show, Figuring A Scene.

The exhibition is divided into six segments: ‘Shadow’, 'Fruit’, ‘Fire’, ‘Air’, ‘Wax’ and ‘City’. These different points of focus hope to further aid our understanding of the displayed works beyond its historical or societal contexts. 

For example, in the segment ‘Fruit’, the show examines the diverse portrayals of the King of Fruits, Durian, throughout several mediums of art – from sculptures to paintings and photographs. With each medium offering its own unique point of view, visitors can reflect on its status during colonial times and uncover how this fruit has evolved into an iconic symbol of Singapore's national identity.

For more information, visit their website here.
Download the e-catalogue here.

  • Art
  • Contemporary art
  • Orchard

At its core, this exhibition is a gathering of Asia’s most prominent artists happening alongside the debut of Tang Contemporary Art. The showcase will highlight acclaimed talents like Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, Thai painter Kitti Narod, street artist Gongkan, and Filipino artist Tiffany Lafuente. Beyond celebrating these remarkable artists, the event also shines a spotlight on the diverse and dynamic artistic offerings of Tang Contemporary Art.

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  • Art
  • Sculpture
  • City Hall

Over 100 years ago in the year 1864, 84 pagodas were hand-carved in Shanghai at the Tushanwan Workshop by Jesuit missionaries. Many of them then went on to influence several other celebrated artists that we have come to know of today, such as watercolourist Xu Yongqing and sculptor Zhang Chongren. Today, these 84 pagodas are now being reunited in Singapore at Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM)’s exhibition Pagoda Odyssey 1915: From Shanghai to San Francisco. 

  • Art
  • Jurong East

Ever wondered what the future looks like? Forget time machines – The Copernican Principle is your ticket to ride. Inspired by the groundbreaking ideas of Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, the exhibition curated by Jan Swierkowski brings an innovative blend of art, science, and interactive arcade games to Science Centre Singapore. Get ready to navigate time and space with nine arcade games that feel like a blast from the past and the future at the same time. These games developed by Instytut B61 in collaboration with Tomasz Wlazlak combine 80s aesthetics with futuristic dilemmas like space pollution and AI revolutions, all while questioning the fate of mankind. From creating lunar nature reserves to dodging space junk, it’s a cosmic challenge that’s part nostalgia, part mind-bending fun.

Public task financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland within the grant competition “Public Diplomacy 2024”

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  • Art
  • Photography

The Amazon rainforest is a vast and fragile ecosystem, and many of us go through life without ever having the chance to explore its depths. Amazônia offers an intimate look at the Amazon through the lens of renowned photo artist and photojournalist Sebastião Salgado, featuring over 200 stunning black-and-white photographs from his daring seven-year expedition. This breathtaking exhibition celebrates the rainforest and its indigenous communities while urging us to reflect on the delicate relationship between humanity and nature. Amazônia has captivated more than 1.4 million viewers worldwide, gracing iconic cities like Rome, London, and Zurich. 

This exhibition will also be accompanied by an immersive audio experience crafted by French musician Jean-Michel Jarre, inviting visitors to explore the enchanting sounds of the rainforest as they journey through its striking imagery.

Festivals

  • Art
  • Photography

You know what they say: a photo speaks a thousand words. Head over to the 9th edition of the Singapore International Photography Festival (SIPF) between October 18 to November 24, 2024, to uncover the captivating stories revealed through the lenses of photographers from around the world. This year’s edition will take place across different areas in Singapore – from Gillman Barracks to the National Design Centre.

If this is your first time hearing about SIPF, here’s a quick summary: SIPF, led by independent non-profit organisation for photography DECKis a biennial gathering that brings together creatives all around the world in the name of art and photography. It also acts as an important platform for Southeast Asian photographers, assisting their journey towards debuting in the international scene. 

Visitors can look forward to an exciting lineup of exhibitions, featuring standout works from photographers all around the world, including homegrown ones. And alongside the exhibitions is a two-day ‘9th SIPF Photo Market’ where international publishers and photographers gather to showcase their works through the medium of photobooks.

For the full list of exhibitions, check out SIPF’s webpage here. Purchase your tickets here.

  • Things to do
  • Events & Festivals

In a city that never stops reinventing itself, Singapore Design Week 2024 (SDW) returns from September 26 to October 6 in a citywide celebration to honour the everyday people who reshape the way we live with their brilliant ideas. 

Themed 'People of Design,' the festival is painting the town red with over 80 events, which includes key events across three design districts – Bras Basah.Bugis, Orchard, and Marina. At BrasBasah.Bugis, the People of Design Showcase Series sees different designers reimagining everyday activities – eating, sleeping, commuting, and more – through site-specific installations across multiple venues like Bugis Village, the National Library building, and pre-war bungalow 42 Waterloo. 

At Marina Central, Neufolk: Bridging Tradition and Future in Design offers a series of activations that blend community spirit with forward-thinking Singaporean design, while over at Orchard Road, Re-Route: Orchard invites you to 'Be Here Now' with an investigative design approach that reinvents the iconic shopping belt experience.

Anchored by three pillars – Design Futures, Design Marketplace, and Design Impact – this year’s festival lineup is designed to inform, intrigue, and inspire. The expanded Design Futures Forum – now a two-day conference – brings together heavyweights to engage you on the intersection of design, technology, and sustainability. Metaverse trailblazer Cathy Hackl from Spatial Dynamics will be delivering her keynote virtually,  alongside fellow tech futurist Lindsey McInerney who will be presenting in person.

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