As a proud programme partner of the Bras Basah.Bugis (BBB) precinct, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), University of the Arts Singapore (UAS), will present a series of installations, exhibitions and performances at this year’s Singapore Night Festival, which opens 21 August and runs through 5 September across the precinct.
Spanning large-scale multimedia installations, exhibitions, performances and public art, NAFA’s programmes explore Singapore folklore, Maritime Southeast Asian cultural heritage, and the living stories of Bencoolen Street.
What To Catch at Singapore Night Festival 2026:
What Holds
Where: Glass Displays at NAFA Campus 1
When: 21 August – 18 October
Description: Drawing on the legends of Bukit Merah, Kusu Island and Sang Nila Utama, What Holds explores Singapore's folklore, history and contemporary life across three large-scale window panels along Bencoolen Street. Combining illustration, sculpture, light and sound, the installation comes to life at scheduled intervals to reveal hidden imagery and voices that reinterpret familiar stories through themes of pressure and reconstruction. Led by NAFA Distinguished Alumni Award recipient Oliver Chong, the work brings together NAFA students and alumni across disciplines including Fine Art, Fashion, Design, Music and Arts Management, reflecting the breadth of the interdisciplinary collaboration.
Jantung Pisang: Laut & Barat (Heart of the Banana Tree; of the Sea and the West)
Where: Fashion Gallery, NAFA Campus 2
When: 21 August – 5 September
Description: Centred on the banana flower as a shared cultural, mythological and political motif across Maritime Southeast Asia, Jantung Pisang explores the connections among folklore, food cultures, spirituality, colonial histories and collective memory that bind coastal communities across the region. The VR experience traces the shared maritime links between communities separated by vast oceans, translating botanical geography into an enduring record of our lands. The project is curated by Alya Rahmat, who was recently announced as one of the six artists supported by Artery’s Talent Accelerator Programme. Both What Holds and Jantung Pisang are supported by the Lu Foundation Genesis Grant.
Bencoolen Stories 2026
Where: Frangipani Garden, next to Stamford Arts Centre
When: 21 August – 6 September
Description: Description: Bencoolen Stories, a project by the NAFA Cultural Policy Lab, takes a different approach to this year’s Myths & Legends theme by spotlighting the “living legends” of Bencoolen Street. Drawing on first-hand oral histories and archival research, the project shares six visual and textual stories featuring long-standing and newer community anchors including Masjid Bencoolen, Mackenzie Rex, Bettr Coffee, Daylight Coffee, Al Jilani and Print de Creation. NAFA students and alumni contributed to the project as artists and creative collaborators, with award-winning designer and NAFA alumnus Raihan Syahmi leading the fabrication and installation of the works. Audiences are also invited to contribute their own memories of the street, turning the installation into a growing community record of Bencoolen’s changing identity.
Resting Roots
Where: Frangipani Garden, next to Stamford Arts Centre
When: 21 August – 6 September
Description: Resting Roots transforms an underused public space into a place for pause and reflection through 3D printed resting pods. Combining functionality with creative expression, the design of each pod is inspired by the intertwining tree roots and branches, gracefully curving and stretching outward to create natural, flowing silhouettes. Embedded LED lighting illuminates each bench and their contours at night, creating a dynamic visual effect that enhances the natural space. Overall, the combination of organic form and integrated illumination not only provides a resting spot, but also seamlessly connects audiences to the surrounding environment, celebrating the beauty and resilience of the nature in our precinct.
INterSPACE
Where: NAFA Campus 1 Foyer
When: 3 – 4 September
Description: Presented at NAFA’s newly renovated Campus 1 foyer, INterSPACE brings together Performance Making students and alumni in a series of original interdisciplinary works that challenge conventional boundaries between dance and theatre, with production support from School of Arts Management students. Blending movement, spoken narrative and experimental performance, the showcase turns the spaces between traditional forms into opportunities for creative discovery. On 3 September, audiences are also invited to stay on for a post-performance dialogue, extending the experience beyond the performance into conversation and exchange.
NAFA will also host three guided public tours across the programmes on 22 August, 29 August and 5 September at 7pm, starting from NAFA Campus 1. Hi-res assets can be found here.