Page 19 - NAFA Annual Report 2015/2016

Collaborative concerts with Tainan National University
of Arts and National Dong Hwa University

Head of Vocal Studies, Dr Jessica Chen, and seven students from the Vocal Studies
faculty participated in an exchange programme, presenting a collaborative concert with
students from the Masters programme at the Tainan National University of Arts. Staff and
students of Tainan also visited NAFA between 15 and 22 October 2015 and performed
with NAFA students on 19 October. In another notable exchange, students from the
National Dong Hwa University in Taiwan visited NAFA’s School of Music and staged
a concert with the NAFA Orchestra on 29 October 2015.

Exhibitions at the Art Galleries

The Art Galleries were established in 2004, with Gallery 3 renamed as Lim Hak Tai
Gallery in commemoration of NAFA’s founding principal in 2009. The Ngee Ann Kongsi
Galleries 1& 2 were inaugurated recently, commemorating the donation of $10 million by
The Ngee Ann Kongsi to NAFA on 4 December 2015. The Art Galleries offer a range of
exhibitions and multi-disciplinary programmes that are artistically vibrant and contribute
directly to student and lecturer learning and exposure throughout the year. Through
important exhibitions such as Large Paintings: Khoo Sui Hoe; Seasons: Lim Yew Kuan;
Celebrating NAFA’s Fine Art; and The Cultural Medallion and Visual Arts (1979-2015),
pioneer visual artists, teachers and graduates are depicted as activists and icons of our
cultural landscape with their historical legacy on display.

Leveraging on close ties to industry stakeholders, the Art Galleries also created
exhibitions and publications which unearthed rare works that were previously unseen
to public eye – Land before our time: A Vernacular in Southeast Asian art-making
and UOB Art Collection: Drawing from our past, framing our future. Medium-specific
showcases in printmaking, photography and works from the NAFA Collection were
conceptualised to provoke academic dialogue on historical craft, aesthetic concepts
and contemporary practices which influenced local and regional art. These were further
shared through forums, live demonstrations and exhibitions, as seen in the projects
After Printmaking…, Photomakers of NAFA and The Mood of Spring.

The NAFA Permanent Collection currently stands close to 1,180 artworks and continues
to grow with the recent acquisition of 10 traditional Myanmar marionettes and artwork
donations by alumni Tan Khim Ser, Teo Kim Liong and Ho Xue Ling.

Performances at The Singapore
Future Exhibition

Organised by the Ministry of National Development, The Singapore Future Exhibition:
The Future of Us was a capstone event to round up Singapore’s SG50 celebrations.
NAFA’s School of Music was exclusively invited to put up performances at Gardens
by the Bay as part of the exhibition. Between 20 December 2015 and 6 March 2016,
students from the strings, voice and winds faculties presented a series of performances
at the Marketplace, where futuristic plans for Singapore were showcased in detail
to the public.

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