Artists Village/FOI/RITES - lee wen 李文

The Artists Village
The Artists Village (TAV) was formed within a rural-scape (or kampung) and founded by Tang Da Wu at 61-B Lorong Gambas, Ulu Sembawang in 1988. TAV engendered some of the radical shifts in generating new ways and manners of thinking and making art in the history of contemporary art in Singapore. They are also known for producing works that are conceptually challenging during a period marked by a sense of urgency and impetus for artists to critically re-look and examine existing assumptions, values and concepts of art-making. Some of the TAV projects include: Post Ulu (1999), AIM (2000), and the Public Art Library (2003).
The Artists Village is dedicated to the promotion and encouragement of experimental and alternative arts in Singapore. It endeavors to establish an open space for artists to mature at their own pace, and to provide an environment conducive for artists to experiment, experience and exchange ideas.

Future of Imagination
“Future of Imagination” (FOI) , a time based, performance art event was first held at the Substation on 6 December 2003. The event was initiated as a  test on the resumption of funding support a 10 year proscription, ie. not a categorical ban but an unfortunate hard handed policy held by the National Arts Council of no funding on performance art after a controversial performance in 1993/1994 new year's gig. Although funding helped to improved our ability to invite more international artists, we still work under constrains of licensing and censorship as well as the limited budget and other intrinsic conditions of the local art scene. We try to organize the event responding to shifts and unique situation in Singapore's rapidly changing scenario at the same time taking into account international trends with our own experiences and encounters. We would like to reiterate our concerns and aspirations to reinvigorate a positive situation for performance art and time-based art practitioners in Singapore. Our aims remain to significantly re-define and to kindle interests as well as promote the visibility of the practice of performance art and time-based art. The artists who have helped to work on this project includes Kai Lam, Jason Lim, Jeremy Hiah, and various members of The Artists Village.

Rooted In The Ephemeral Speak
Rooted In The Ephemeral Speak (R.I.T.E.S.) is an artists-initiative organised as a non-profit event to platform new ideas and artists in sonic art, time-based and performance art-related practices. Its objectives are to present an eclectic mix of performances that is informed by visual aesthetics, technological integration and conceptual integrity involving art making and the social and cultural contexts that are related to performances. It explores art activities that are spatial, the way in which performance is linked to cultural, ethnic and geographical elements of the body, and at the same time exploring how all these elements can be bounded to the global, technological, cultural and economic shifts in our daily life.