Singapore Art Museum (SAM) has announced that the seventh edition of Singapore Biennale will take place next year, from 18 October 2022 – 19 Mark 2023. Details for the theme have not yet been announced, but the artistic directors of the biennial have been revealed to be an international team of four: Binna Choi (director at Casco Art Institute: Working for the Commons, Utrecht), Nida Ghouse (writer and curator), June Yap (director of Curatorial & Collections at the Singapore Art Museum) and Ala Younis (artist and curator).
In a statement on their upcoming plans for Singapore Biennale, the co-artistic directors have said: ‘While the region of Southeast Asia remains the Singapore Biennale’s immediate context, this edition will journey through unfamiliar terrains and beyond geography itself. In an attempt to apprehend and grapple with questions pressing for humanity, the Biennale will conceive ways in which to relate to a public without relying on spectacle. Turning away from the conventional preoccupation with the visual, it will dwell instead on interiority, gather around other senses and sensibilities. Artists, curators, researchers and publics will be invited to imagine the possibilities of a biennale, of art and life, and of being.’
In separate statement, Director of SAM Eugene Tan said: ‘SAM has always envisioned the Singapore Biennale as a key platform for the discourse of Southeast Asian art, and for the deep exploration of the human condition through contemporary art. Over the years, the Biennale has become a distinct mark of Singapore’s position as an art node in the region, connecting artists within the region and bringing them into global conversations on the art of our time. The Biennale seeks to not only present art that speaks to the urgent issues we face today, but also invites audiences to make space for these dialogues and collectively reflect on the role of art in finding a way forward. We are delighted to introduce our Co-Artistic Directors for this upcoming edition to our audiences. Their artistic direction has been shaped in part by the impact of the pandemic on the region over the last two years and the question of what it means to be living in our present conditions.’
