S.E.A. Focus 2021 Debuts Twin Offerings

The Southeast Asian art event anchors Singapore Art Week 
By Ho See Wah

Iwan Effendi, ‘The Visitor’, 2019, 2020, rattan, wood, paper, washi, charcoal on paper, installation dimensions variable. Exhibition installation view. Photo by Toni Cuhadi, image courtesy of S.E.A. Focus, Singapore.

S.E.A. Focus 2021 finds its footing in a year of uncertainty, where cancelled or postponed plans are the norm. In its third year running, the event remains firm in its mission of showing the best of Southeast Asian art to an international audience. It is in this spirit that it presents its twin offerings, one being S.E.A. Focus Digital for a wider reach in times of restricted travelling. The other is S.E.A. Focus Curated, which maintains its physical presence in Singapore where larger-scale events have resumed. Organised by STPI – Creative Workshop and Gallery and supported by National Arts Council, both components will run from 22 to 31 January 2021, featuring 27 galleries and 43 artists.

A notable difference this year is the format of its physical presentation, S.E.A. Focus Curated at Tanjong Pagar Distripark. It eschews the traditional booth structure from its previous editions, and of art fairs in general, opting for an open and dynamic spatial layout. This is in line with their conceptual vision for the showcase where it can be viewed as a single exhibition. Titled ‘hyper–horizon’, the curatorial premise points to an unknown horizon that we are reaching for in uncertain times. At the same time, it is exactly this unpredictability that allows for new and surprising possibilities to blossom. 

Hu Qiren, ‘#5, A Grocer's Essentials’, 2020, archival pigment print on aluminium composite panel, 118.9 x 78.9cm, edition 1 of 3. Image courtesy of Richard Koh Fine Art.

One can look forward to familiar names in the Southeast Asian art scene at ‘hyper–horizon’. A mainstay of S.E.A. Focus is Richard Koh Fine Art, based in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. They are presenting Hu Qiren, whose artworks take a playful and ironic poke at the way that the pandemic has transformed our ways of living, as well as raising questions on the global circulations of supplies deemed essential.

Nadiah Bamadhaj, ‘Anthropocene Series’, 2019 charcoal on paper collage, 100 x 340cm (triptych), 100 x 100cm (each). Image courtesy of A+ Works of Art.

Hà Ninh Pham, ‘Institute of Distance’, 2020, videogame, duration variable, edition of 20 + 2 AP. Image courtesy of A+ Works of Art.

Joining for the first time is A+ Works of Art from Kuala Lumpur, with works by Yogyakarta-based Nadiah Bamadhaj and Hanoi-based Hà Ninh Pham. Using her signature technique of charcoal on paper collage, Bamadhaj’s ‘Anthropocene Series’ highlights the devastating effects enacted by humans upon the planets’ biodiversity. And an interactive work that visitors can look forward to is Pham’s ‘Institute of Distance’, which takes the form of a video game that visitors can download to play. In the game, each character’s death may result in a boon or a bane for the main player. The game’s conceptual premise encapsulates the artists’ belief in making personal choices as a means of existence, and the idea of trials and errors. 

Other notable Southeast Asian galleries include Bangkok CityCity Gallery with works by Thai artists Dusadee Huntrukal and Korakrit Arunanondchai, Nova Contemporary with works by Thai artist Kawita Vatanjyankur, and Silverlens Galleries with works by Philippine artists Pow Martinez and Gregory Halili.

Rirkrit Tiravanija, ‘untitled 2016 (nothing)’, 2016, saffron dyed cotton, thread, metal grommets. Dimensions variable. © Rirkrit Tiravanija. Photo by Toni Cuhadi, image courtesy of S.E.A. Focus, Singapore.

S.E.A. Focus will also see representation from galleries outside of Southeast Asia. Edouard Malingue Gallery, with spaces in Hong Kong and Shanghai, will showcase strong artworks by well-known artists Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Thailand), Ho Tzu Nyen (Singapore) and the collective Tromarama (Indonesia). Visitors who are familiar with Ho’s oeuvre can delight in experiencing in person his long-term ongoing project, ‘The Critical Dictionary of Southeast Asia’. Berlin-based neugerriemschneider will present the artworks of Rirkrit Tiravanija (Thailand, Germany, USA) and Tobias Rehberger (Germany). A particularly interesting work is Tiravanija’s monumental, site-specific work, ‘untitled 2016 (nothing)’ that takes its conceptual reference from Buddhist philosophy. 

The galleries will also take part in S.E.A. Focus Digital, an exclusive online platform in collaboration with its Main Online Partner, Artsy. This measure by the event ensures its continual reach toward a more global audience, and echoes the wider trend of large-scale events pivoting online. Overseas audiences can also expect a plethora of online activities, such as visits to artist studios and spaces like Museum MACAN. Additionally, there will be a series of talks that bring together artists, professionals and thought leaders from various facets of the industry, such as 'Digital Horizons', which discusses the move of art into hyperspace and ‘How much for that banana duct-taped to the wall?’, which will ask how art is valued in the art market and how it is collected.

‘hyper–horizon’ (2021), exhibition installation view. Photo by Toni Cuhadi, image courtesy of S.E.A. Focus, Singapore.

In spite of the challenges posed by the difficult year, the event has organised an interesting line-up of artists, galleries and programmes. Emi Eu, Project Director of S.E.A. Focus and Executive Director of STPI says, “The integrated onsite and online art experience allows S.E.A. Focus to become a global meeting place where collectors, artists, galleries and the public can engage with one another.” This tallies with its positioning of being a converging point for generative dialogues on contemporary Southeast Asian art and its practices. In light of this, how the event progresses to expand and refine on its offerings is highly anticipated, and we look forward to S.E.A. Focus continually moving toward hyper horizons. 


S.E.A. Focus runs from 22 to 31 January 2021. Please visit seafocus.sg for more information.