Buku
Nothing is forever: rethinking sculpture in Singapore
This book is based on research conducted by the National Gallery Singapore and since the last major sculpture exhibition of note organized by the National Museum art gallery in 1991. While critically surveying the sculpture scene in Singapore, the authors explore the role of practitioners and mediums in the shaping of Singapore’s art history.
An exhibition is currently being held in the national Singapore art museum from 29 Jul 2022 – 05 Feb 2023 with the same title, and this book reflects pieces being displayed in that exhibition. This exhibition and the book that accompanies it are meant to represent a turning point in Singaporian art and sculpture, allowing artists to express themselves in new ways and find new methods of representing topics that they want to talk about, representing a shift in what sculpture ‘should’ be and moving towards new ways of sculpture.
Divided into four sections titled “power”, “the spiritual”, “the corporeal” and “making, unmaking, remaking”, the authors tackle a largely unexplored area of art history through diverse perspectives. In addition, interviews with artists and curators tackle questions such as “what is sculpture” and “what makes an artist and artist”. The way in which these topics are explored allow the reader to form their own opinion on complex matters.
Covering the shift of sculpture from the constraints of hyper-realism to abstraction, this book looks at the way in which artists in southeast Asia took advantage of this new artistic freedom. Although the importance of human figure continued to be important in Singapore’s art world, artists in Singapore were in step with the global shifts towards abstraction, divorcing from the obligations of likeness.
The interrelation of art and politics is present in all art forms, but sculpture is often the most impacted. Commissioned pieces by both private and public companies, as well as the government itself, allow artists to receive recognition for their work and improve their practices. Do descriptions of the intended meanings of artworks add to the viewer’s experience or limit it? Is it the viewer’s interpretation that matters or the artists’ intended meaning? In the “the spiritual” section, the many references towards the unresolved relationship between modern sculptural art and religious iconography challenge the viewers perspective on what makes a sculpture ‘art’ or simply repetition of previously designed ideas.
Materials’ meanings and their relationship to the body is paralleled in many of the interviews conducted, alongside the developments of the use of bodies in performance art alongside the sculpture. The tracking of how the body is represented over time reveals the shifts in sculptural values. As time moved on, the boundaries between sculpture, painting, and performance began to blur, and the sculptural discipline in Singapore became more complex and multi-faceted as artists began to experiment with an assortment of methods and materials, expanding sculpture’s parameters. The last two chapters of this book are dedicated to mapping the ASEAN sculpture gardens and a timeline of sculpture from the late 1800s to 2022.
This book is very important for anyone who wishes to learn more about the development of sculpture in Asia and the current views on art making in Singapore and how it’s developing.
[terjemahan dalam Bahasa Indonesia]
Buku ini didasarkan atas penelitian oleh Galeri Nasional Singapura dan sejak pameran patung catatan besar terakhir yang diselenggarakan oleh galeri seni Museum Nasional pada 1991. Sambil meninjau secara kritis skena patung di Singapura, para penulis mengeksplorasi peran praktisi dan medium dalam membentuk sejarah seni Singapura.
Buku ini mencerminkan potongan-potongan yang ditampilkan dalam pameran “Nothing is Forever” yang diadakan pada 29 Juli 2022 – 05 Februari 2023 di museum seni nasional SIngapura. Merefleksikan titik balik dalam seni secara umum dan seni patung secara khusus di Singapura, “Nothing is Forever” memungkinkan para seniman untuk mengekspresikan diri mereka dengan cara baru dan menemukan metode baru dalam merepresentasikan topik yang ingin mereka bicarakan, mewakili pergeseran macam apa yang seharusnya terjadi, dan bergerak menuju cara-cara baru.
Dibagi menjadi empat bagian, yakni “Power”, “The spiritual”, “The Corporeal” and “Making, Unmaking, Remaking”, para penulis mengeksplorasi area sejarah seni yang sebagian besar belum dijelajahi melalui berbagai perspektif. Selain itu, wawancara dengan seniman dan kurator menjawab pertanyaan seperti “Apa itu patung?” dan “Apa yang membuat seorang seniman dan seniman?”. Cara topik-topik ini dieksplorasi memungkinkan pembaca untuk membentuk pendapat mereka sendiri tentang masalah yang kompleks.
Meliputi pergeseran seni pahat dari kendala hiper-realisme ke abstraksi, buku ini melihat cara para seniman di Asia Tenggara memanfaatkan kebebasan artistik baru ini. Meskipun pentingnya sosok terus menjadi penting dalam dunia seni Singapura, para seniman di sana berdinamika sejalan dengan pergeseran global menuju abstraksi, memisahkan diri dari kewajiban keserupaan.
Keterkaitan antara seni dan politik hadir dalam semua bentuk seni, tetapi seni pahat seringkali yang paling terpengaruh. Karya pesanan perusahaan swasta maupun publik, serta pemerintah itu sendiri, memungkinkan seniman menerima pengakuan atas karya mereka dan meningkatkan praktik mereka. Apakah deskripsi makna yang dimaksud dari karya seni menambah pengalaman pemirsa atau justru membatasinya? Mana yang penting, interpretasi pemirsa atau makna yang dimaksudkan seniman? Pada bagian “The Spiritual”, banyak referensi tentang hubungan yang belum terselesaikan antara seni pahat modern dan ikonografi religius yang menantang perspektif pemirsa perihal apa yang membuat patung menjadi ‘seni’ atau sekadar pengulangan ide yang dirancang sebelumnya.
Makna material dan hubungannya dengan tubuh disejajarkan dalam banyak wawancara yang dilakukan, di samping perkembangan penggunaan tubuh dalam seni pertunjukan di samping patung. Pelacakan bagaimana tubuh direpresentasikan dari waktu ke waktu mengungkapkan pergeseran nilai pahatan. Seiring berjalannya waktu, batasan antara seni pahat, lukisan, dan pertunjukan mulai kabur, dan disiplin seni pahat di Singapura menjadi lebih kompleks dan beragam karena para seniman mulai bereksperimen dengan beragam metode dan bahan, memperluas parameter seni pahat. Dua bab terakhir buku ini didedikasikan untuk memetakan taman patung ASEAN dan linimasa seni patung dari akhir 1800-an hingga 2022.
Buku ini sangat penting bagi siapa saja yang ingin mempelajari lebih lanjut tentang perkembangan seni patung di Asia, pandangan terkini tentang produksi seni di Singapura, serta bagaimana perkembangannya.
22-11332 | 730 Gun n | Seni Patung, Plastis, Obyek, dan Desain Produk (seni patung) | Tersedia |
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