The Great Leap

From famous arts schools setting up campuses here to an increase in state funding, the Singapore arts scene is set for dramatic changes. But can we truly be a Renaissance City?

BY JEANINE TAN

When 28-year-old American Warren Tessler decided to pursue a graduate course in filmmaking, he had to decide between two schools: the prestigious American Film Institute in Los Angeles, and the newly established Singapore campus of New York’s renowned Tisch School of the Arts.

He opted for the latter.

His decision to study at the Singapore campus of Tisch, instead of the famous American Film Institute, was largely influenced by a desire be part of something new and exciting.

“Singapore has a reputation for being stuffy and uncreative, and I did ask myself if I’d be comfortable as an artist here,” says Tessler, “But Singapore is trying to liberalise and position itself as an arts hub. Over history, artists have always been movers and shakers in places where things are changing.”

When it comes to the arts, Singapore is gunning for big changes.

The numbers say it out: It took 46 years for Singapore to have two arts schools – from Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts in 1938 to LASALLE College of the Arts in 1984.

But in the last decade alone, five arts schools have sprung up, including two prestigious foreign institutions, bringing the total to seven (see below).

Nowhere is this transformation more pronounced than the mega campuses built to train a new breed of arts students.

By next year, the new School of the Arts Singapore (SOTA), which opened its doors this year to provide an arts-based education for youth aged 13 to 18, will move into its new $100-million campus at Kirk Terrace.

Nanyang Technological University’s School of Art, Design and Media is housed in a $37-million creation of glass curves, while Republic Polytechnic’s Woodlands campus’ breathtaking performing arts centre has prompted some to term it as a “mini-Esplanade”.

That’s not all.

In this year’s Budget, the Ministry of Communication, Information and the Arts (MICA) pledged $115 million over the next five years to the Renaissance City Plan, which was frst proposed in 2000.

The money will fund content creation, developing a sustainable arts system and public outreach programmes.

By 2012, the government hopes that the arts can double its contribution to Singapore’s GDP.

Writer and poet Isa Kamari, who won the Cultural Medallion in 2007 for his contributions to Malay literature says, “The arts scene has developed to such an extent that we are more daring and adventurous in terms of presentation and ideas. People are also more appreciative of the arts because they are able to see the economic role the arts can play, and the great potential it has.”

A New Era

Perhaps a significant change in the way the arts is viewed in Singapore can be seen in the way SOTA operates.

For the over 2,000 students attending classes at its current Goodman Road campus, acceptance are based on auditions measuring their talent – rather than the normal yardstick of PSLE grades.

In fact, a few of the male students who had been accepted for the dance programme even auditioned with hip-hop moves, instead of more traditional dance forms.

“We filter potential students using talent rather than grades, which is a new chapter in our education history, because we have been trained to see education in very specific terms,” says SOTA principal Rebecca Chew.

Chew adds that when the school first began publicising its curriculum, parents were firing questions about the International Baccalaureate diploma, which is what students graduate with.

But then a shift happened – parents began to simply ask, “How can I get my child into SOTA?”

“It was very telling for us, the change in mindset from just focusing on grades, because it showed that parents had a belief in an arts education,” says Chew.

Cultural Desert No More?

Aside from the annual Singapore Arts Festival, the Republic has organised its own mega arts events in the last fve years, such as the visual arts-focused Singapore Biennale and the Singapore Season, a showcase of local works to the world.

“Over the last 10 years, arts activities have more than tripled,” says Elaine Ng, director of performing arts development at the National Arts Council (NAC). “Now, one in three Singaporeans attends an arts event a year, as compared to one in 10 a decade ago.”

On the ground, independent groups are also quietly championing their own causes.

The Substation, established in 1990, continues to play a significant role in the independent arts movement by organising events like Moving Visuals, which give students and amateurs a chance to screen their films.

It also provides a space for artists to express themselves, away from commercially-endorsed platforms.

Individuals are also doing their part for the arts – often at the expense of their own pockets.

Last year, Singapore’s first independent cinema dedicated to local films, Sinema Old School, was set up by two young men on a personal quest to nurture an appreciation of such films.

There is also the lesser-known Rojak, a loose collective of local artists, designers and filmmakers, who organise informal, open to all, get-togethers every week to share and discuss their works.

Hopes And Promises

“If Singapore is really serious about creating an arts hub, it has to relax its attitude about what people can say. That’s going to be a real test,” he says.

Poet Kamari also spoke up for more freedom of expression for Singaporean artists.

“We mustn’t forget that aside from the mainstream and official, there are also many other art forms. The underground arts scene, for example in the areas of alternative music and more controversial plays, should be given more leeway,” he says.

Meanwhile, some arts practitioners choose to view the recent increase in state funding with caution.

Ng Siew Eng, the general manager of the Singapore Lyric Opera, says, “You have to analyse the increase. If the funds are not spread out to support the various areas of the arts, but only to one particular aspect, it may not be such good news for us.”

Natalie Hennedige, artistic director of Cake Theatrical Productions, hopes that increased funding doesn’t mean that the industry has to show more “products” to account for the money.

“The way things work here in Singapore, it’s often ‘Wham, bam! Here’s the show.’ But the arts is a process and you need to invest in its development,” she says. “Artists need time to breathe and develop, so that you see works of craft and value, and not just pizzazz.”

Artistic DNA

To bond ordinary Singaporeans to the arts scene – more local acts may be the answer, says postgraduate student Lorraine Lim.

“There is nothing wrong with work by foreign artists or importing shows from overseas, but how will that set the Singapore arts scene apart from any other arts scene in any other city?”

Local shows, on the other hand, tell stories that Singaporeans can relate to.

So, how much further does Singapore have to go?

SOTA’s Chew believes the right ingredients are in place – now, the Singapore arts scene just needs time to blossom.

“The young seeds are sown now, and given the chance to grow. At the present, there’s a time lag between what is being done and tangible results, because some improvements we don’t see immediately. Should more be done? Many people will say yes. But is more being done? I’ll say yes, definitely.”

Carving An Arts Education

LASALLE College of the Arts

Offering one of the widest range of arts-related programmes accredited by Britain’s Open University, LASALLE has diploma, graduate and Master programmes in eight core areas: design, media arts, dance, film, fine arts, theatre, music and arts management.

Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts

NAFA started out as a fine arts school in 1938, and while the school is still famous for the fine arts, it has since expanded and now offers diploma courses, graduate and master’s programmes in many of the same areas as LASALLE.

School of Art, Design and Media at Nanyang Technological University

The new school on the block at NTU offers Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in digital animation, digital filmmaking, photography, interactive media, product design and visual communication.

School of the Arts (SOTA)

Singapore’s frst school dedicated to the arts offers students aged 13 to 18 an integrated arts and academic curriculum. Students are selected via auditions and specialise in one of four disciplines: dance, music, theatre and visual arts. They graduate with an International Baccalaureate diploma.

Sotheby’s Institute of Art Singapore

The Singapore arm of London’s famed Sotheby’s Institute, its only branch in Asia, offers Masters programmes in Art Business and Contemporary Art, which are awarded by the University of Manchester.

Tisch School of the Arts Asia

Aspiring filmmakers and screenwriters now have the chance to enjoy the same film education as their peers at New York’s famous Tisch School of the Arts, which spawned directors like Martin Scorsese and Lee Ang. Tisch Asia offers Master of Fine Arts programmes in Animated and Digital Arts, Dramatic Writing and Film.

Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, National University of Singapore

Dedicated solely to aspiring musicians, the Conservatory offers a Bachelor of Music degree programme, with a major in Performance or Composition.



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