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Over the past year, Metis Art’s team has been spending more time discovering the verdant island of Bali. We have been busy setting up an artist residency for emerging Southeast Asian and Indonesian painters at a villa in the heart of Seminyak owned by art patron Michael Chow. There has been a long, rich history of artistic exchange and influence between Singapore and Bali, that we now feel honoured to be a part of. During the recent Singapore Art Week, we spotted several Bali-based artists that shed light on the unique culture and history of the Island of the Gods. 

TABLET: New Paintings by Filippo Sciascia at Yeo Workshop

Based in Bali for decades, an island that has been inhabited since Paleolithic times, Filippo Sciascia’s research bridges the prehistoric, “primitive” and the contemporary. With TABLET, he continues his long-standing fascination with light as an anthropological catalyst.

Customised Postures, (De)colonising Gestures at Gajah Gallery

Curated by Dr. Alexander Supartono, Customised Postures, (De)colonising Gestures is an exhibition that brings colonial photographs and contemporary Southeast Asian art into conversation. This striking work by leading Balinese painter Manou Putra entitled Merayakan Kemenangan (Celebrating Victory) is a fictive recreation of the Dutch Intervention in Bali that confronts us to reconsider the legacy of colonisation.

Translations: Afro-Asia Poetics by the Institutum

This sprawling exhibition curated by Zoe Whitley and Clara Che Wei Pei featured around 100 artists from the African and Asian diasporas. Hanging next to a glittering El Anatsui was Ari Bayuaji, who salvages fishing nets and plastic rope waste from mangroves and beaches in Bali. Bayuaji weaves them with traditional Balinese techniques into a new form of elegant, ecological textile art.

Citra Sasmita’s works using traditional Kamasan temple paintings were also featured in Translations. They reframe historical and mythological narratives from Balinese culture by placing marginalised women front and center.

We believe that one of the best ways to engage with the art world – its histories, artists, and ecosystems –  is to keep hold of a running booklist, and to reserve an appetite for art reading alongside visits to art exhibitions and events.

Our headquarters in Singapore is stocked with a library of international art books and catalogues that often foster engaging conversations with collaborators, clients, or those curious to enter the art world. 

Metis co-director, Cliff Hartono, shares a list of his favourite art reads, updated for 2024. With Lunar New Year around the corner for those who celebrate, it may be a perfect time for leisurely reading between family reunions. Happy reading!

The Value of Art: Money. Power. Beauty by Michael Findlay

Michael Findlay is one of the most respected dealers in the art world, and this book explores the value of art from different perspectives – the commercial, the social and most importantly – the personal. The new expanded edition also discusses digital art and NFTs and recent political developments and their effect on the art world.

The Story of Art by E.H. Gombrich

The Story of Art by Gombrich is a true classic. Going all the way back to ancient art, it goes through the various periods of art and its evolution until the Modern period. I would recommend the larger coffee-table version with the grey cover – the small paperback does not do justice to the images of artworks discussed in the text.

What Are You Looking At?: 150 Years of Modern Art in the Blink of an Eye by Will Gompertz

What Are You Looking At? is an accessible introduction to Modern art that offers a great overview of various art movements, artworks, and artists over the last two centuries. While not a direct continuation of Gombrich’s classic, it does delve deeper into Modern and Contemporary art.

 

Boom: Mad Money, Mega Dealers, and the Rise of Contemporary Art by Michael Shnayerson

So much media attention is given to the auction houses and their record sales that most of the public does not realise that it is the galleries who are the backbone of the art market. Boom details the meteoric rise of mega dealers and blue-chip artists as well as how their often volatile relationships have created the contemporary art market of today. 

Our own Founder, Christina J. Chua is joined by our favourite partnering member’s club in Singapore, Mandala‘s Head of Culture, Anmari van Niewenhove, for a short interview and recap of Singapore Art Week 2023. The two were friends from university, united by their love for literature and reconnected later on by being in the same industry. Anmari was also a former Consultant for Metis Art.

From the return of a mega art fair, ArtSG at Marina Bay Sands, tours and trails for the Singapore Art Week to the Club’s very own Art Bar and Art Jaunt, one could surely say that this tiny red dot is very much alive with all things art – as the Lion City continues its pursuit of supporting, promoting and inspiring professionals in its creative and arts scene.

Guests at the inaugural Metis & More pop-up exhibition, “Enter Eden”.

Christina designed Mandala Club’s Art Jaunt as diversified and comprehensive – carefully handpicked out of 300 events across the island. Members were introduced to upcoming artists, new media masters, blue-chip pieces and Metis’ very own pop-up in an architectural masterpiece, home to fellow member, Jamie QianQian Wu.

The Honolulu Museum of Art not only has a Monet “Waterlilies” in its collection; it also has a verdant waterlily garden of its own.

Everyone’s foray into art is unique. Christina’s journey first started when she came across one of Claude Monet’s Waterlilies at the Honolulu Museum of Art. While being constantly exposed to her sister’s work, she was eventually inspired to embark on her own – as an art critic, gallerist, owning an art-and-tech platform and finally designing a curriculum around Metis Art.

Christina and Anmari also exchanged insights on art fair etiquette, art investment as well as where to find a cheeky glass of bubbly to appreciate art with.

Watch the interview here.

 

We believe that one of the best ways to engage with the art world – its histories, artists, and ecosystems –  is to keep hold of a running booklist, and to reserve an appetite for art reading alongside visits to art exhibitions and events. Our headquarters in Singapore is stocked with a library of international art books and catalogues that often foster engaging conversations with collaborators, clients, or those curious to enter the art world.

Metis co-director, Cliff Hartono, shares a list of his favourite art reads, from a few classics on ways of viewing art and exploring its value, to books on the intimate lives of artists and architects, and the burgeoning rise of art dealers. With Lunar New Year around the corner for those who celebrate, it may be a perfect time for leisurely reading between family reunions. Happy reading!

What Are You Looking At?: 150 Years of Modern Art in the Blink of an Eye by Will Gompertz

What are you looking at? is an accessible introduction to Modern art that offers a great overview of various art movements, artworks, and artists over the last two centuries. For anyone new to the art world, we highly recommend this book as the one to start with.

Ways of Seeing by John Berger

Ways of Seeing is an eye-opening read on the act of looking at images, and how they act upon the viewer. Even 50 years after its publish date in 1972, it remains a classic on ways of viewing and critiquing art. The book accompanies a BBC documentary series of the same name that can be found on YouTube, featuring and directed by Berger himself.

Lives of the Artists, Lives of the Architects by Hans Ulrich Obrist

Hans Ulrich Obrist is amongst leading curators in the art world. Known for his conversation projects that he began in his youth, this book documents conversations with artists and architects into the intimate lives of their creative processes and projects. 

Boom: Mad Money, Mega Dealers, and the Rise of Contemporary Art by Michael Shnayerson

So much media attention is given to the auction houses and their record sales that most of the public does not realise that it is the galleries who are the backbone of the art market. Boom details the meteoric rise of mega dealers and blue-chip artists as well as how their often volatile relationships have created the contemporary art market of today. 

The Value of Art by Michael Findlay

Michael Findlay is one of the most respected dealers in the art world, and this book explores the value of art from different perspectives – the commercial, the social and most importantly – the personal. 

Seven Days in the Art World by Sarah Thornton

In seven day-in-the-life chapters, journalist and sociologist Sarah Thornton chronicles stories from within key parts of the arts ecosystem, including an auction, an artist’s studio, and an art school “crit.” Illustrating what lies beneath the often mystifying spectacle of the contemporary art industry, Thornton offers grounding perspectives on what truly shapes and moves the art world. 

In collaboration with so-far (Singapore) and AORA (UK), Metis Art presents a first of its kind 24-hour virtual programme, HORIZONS, as part of Singapore Art Week 2022. HORIZONS aims to widen latitudes – emotional, social and geographical – and further horizontal, collaborative, sensual and interdisciplinary crossovers. Tune into a variety of programmes that bring new meanings, and explore new horizons of what the arts can encompass. Dial in to a studio visit, embark on a culinary exchange, accompany an artist on a walking tour of their city, or tune into a meditation — HORIZONS is a collection of meaningful and memorable physical meet digital moments from around the globe.

Follow along our 24 hour virtual programme with 4 anchor talks led by art world leaders from around the globe.

 

Art and Technology – Synchronicity 

10am (GMT) | 1pm (GMT+3) | 6pm (SGT)

Our first anchor talk — “Synchronicity” — addresses the conditions of creating within, surviving and inhabiting the future. We propose portals and practices of undoing platform dystopias, and examine the contradictions of Web3.0 within artistic practices. Writer and musician K. Allado-McDowell leads with a metaversal sound meditation session, and is joined by curators Julia Kaganskiy and Shumon Basar for a conversation moderated by Christina J. Chua.

K. Allado McDowell (LA) brings AI, healing, and cultural practice together through writing and performance. They established the Artists + Machine Intelligence program at Google AI, and is co-editor of the recently published, Atlas of Anomalous AI (2020), with Ben Vickers.

Julia Kaganskiy (NY) is an independent curator and cultural strategist. Julia was previously the founding Director of NEW INC, an initiative of New Museum.⁠

Shumon Basar (London/Dubai) is curator and commissioner of the Global Art Forum at Art Dubai, and the author of The Age of Earthquakes and The Extreme Self, together with Douglas Coupland and Hans Ulrich Obrist. ⁠

Christina Chua (Singapore) is Co-Founder and Director of Education and Consultancy of Metis Art. She is also Chief Editor of so-far, a web publication and hybrid platform for experimental art practices, and Strategic Advisor of innovation consultancy ArtBizTech. ⁠

 

Art and Business – Bleeding Edges 

11am (GMT) | 2pm (GMT+3) | 7pm (SGT)

Our second anchor talk — “Bleeding Edges” — concerns the future of technology, art, and business. We question how to build new, interdisciplinary methodologies to sustain museums and the digital arts ecosystem. Leigh Tanner, Elliot Safra and Noah Raford come together in a conversation moderated by Emrah Yayici.

Leigh Tanner (NY) is Head of Global Partnership for HTC VIVE Arts and founder of Museum 2050, a platform for exploring the future of Chinese institutions.

Elliot Safra (NY) is​​ a partner at AndArt agency, a creative agency focused on unleashing synergies between global brands and the art world. Safra led the Christie’s Art + Tech Summit in 2018 and mounted the first institutional NFT exhibition at UCCA Lab

Noah Raford (Dubai) is the Futurist-in-Chief of the Dubai Future Foundation. He was a former advisor on futures, foresight, and innovation in the UAE Prime Minister’s Office, and is currently the Acting Executive Director of the Museum of the Future.

Emrah Yayici (Istanbul) is the Co-Initiator of ArtBizTech, an innovation consultancy and incubator and Chairman of bangprix, its non-profit arm that supports practices that intersect art, technology and science.⁠

 

Art and the Senses – Synaesthesia

12pm (GMT) | 3pm (GMT+3) | 8pm (SGT)

Our third anchor talk — “Synaesthesia” — provides a fresh discovery of synaesthetic healing through the different senses and the mediums of music, dance, performance, wellness and cuisine. The session is introduced through a meditative walkthrough Yorkshire Sculpture Park, followed by a walk through the streets of Dhaka with Ruxmini Choudhary. Curators Ruxmini, Fatoş Üstek and Dr. Helen Pheby join in a conversation moderated by Benni Allan.

Ruxmini Choudhary (Dhaka) is a curator, art writer, researcher, and bilingual translator. Currently she works as the Assistant Curator of the Samdani Art Foundation.

Dr. Helen Pheby (Yorkshire) is the Head of Curatorial Programme at Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

Fatoş Üstek (London) is a curator and writer, working internationally for over 20 years.

Benni Allan (London) is an award winning architect, educator, designer and co-founder of AORA, as well as Founding Director of EBBA Architects – winners of Young Architect of the Year 2021. 

 

Art and the World – Across and Beyond Borders

1pm (GMT) | 4pm (GMT+3) | 9pm (SGT)

 

Our final anchor talk — “Beyond Borders” — upends national and regional boundaries, pointing to surprising crossroads between far-flung regions, building bridges between indigenous and hybrid identities. We traverse latitudes that surpass themselves in an effort to destroy parochialism, and connect again. This dialogue is held with curators Dr. Valentina Locatelli, Ying Tan, and patron Benedicta M. Badia-Nordenstahl, moderated by Jenn C. Ellis.

Dr. Valentina Locatelli (Switzerland) is an independent curator and writer. She is the Co-founder and President of the association art+château, and has worked as an independent curator and at museums including Fondation Beyeler, Kunstmuseum Bern, and MASI Lugano.⁠

Ying Tan (London) is a Senior Programme Manager, Collections at Art Fund. She is also founder of Young Collectors Collective in London.⁠ ⁠

Benedicta M. Badia-Nordenstahl (Singapore) is an art advocate, patron, and collector who has developed a personal collecting method to understand cultural production’s role in transforming collective thought. ⁠

Jenn C. Ellis (London) is a curator, founder and patron from Colombia, Switzerland and the UK based in London. She is founder of curatorial studio APSARA and co-founder of AORA.

 

Visit, tune in, and explore HORIZONS from around the world:

horizons.space

9am 22 January – 9am 23 January 2022 (SGT)

Metis takes a look at five artists whose works explore issues of gender and identity in West and South Asia. Moving from Iraq to India, these artists blend history, myth and politics in contemporary styles that pay homage to rich visual traditions.

Hayv Kaharaman

Detail from Kachakchi, Hayv Kahraman, 2015, oil on linen, 275 x 200 cm. Image courtesy of the artist.

Born in Iraq in 1981, Hayv Karahman fled to Sweden with her family in the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War. Working primarily with paint, her sharp-eyed, evocative style is immediately recognisable. The focus of her works is the female body, particularly in the contexts of refugee issues, diaspora, gender liberation and beauty standards. 

 

Shahzia Sikandar

Still from SpiNN (1), Shahzia Sikandar, 2003. Image courtesy of the artist.

Mythology and history form a lush blend in the works of Pakistani artist Shahzia Sikandar. Influenced by miniature paintings, her intricate works sieve through ideas of colonial legacy and orientalism to centre archetypes of historical feminist resistance. 

 

Newsha Tavakolian

Untitled from Listen, Newsha Tavakolian, 2010-11, archival pigment print, flush-mounted, 105 x 130 cm. Image courtesy of the artist.

Self-taught photographer Newsha Tavakolian (b. Iran) began her career as a photojournalist, shooting guerilla fighters in Syria and Iraqi Kurdistan. Tavakolian’s intimate works often combat the West’s stereotypes of Iran through a personal, unwavering gaze.

 

Bharti Kher

Algorithm for time travel, Bharti Kher, 2018, bindis on painted board, diameter: 157.48 cm. Image courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth.

Considered one of the most important and influential artists in India today, Bharti Kher slips between traditional forms, found objects, Hindu cosmologies and cultural misinterpretation. Kher has been adorning her pieces with bindis, worn by many women throughout India, since 1995. This ubiquitous cultural touchstone takes on a new life in her work, transfigured across myriad dazzling forms and narratives.

Mount Tamalpais, Etel Adnan, 1985, oil on canvas, 130 x 150 cm. Image courtesy the artist and Sursock Museum Collection, Berlin.

The late Etel Adnan was born in Beirut to a Greek mother and Turkish father. Her minimalist, elegant works are love letters to her life’s multiplicities, crossing continents and decades. Adnan has spoken about the shifting topography of feminine identity in the Middle East, particularly at the nexus of Islam and French culture.

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