DEALING WITH THE PANDEMIC
Covid-19 needs no introduction – it has overtaken 2020, shut down businesses and brought schools online. The pandemic has left an unprecedented effect on the world, and Singapore’s local arts and culture scene has not been spared from the damage.
The highly-anticipated theatre production event War Horse by The Singapore Repertory Theatre was cancelled due to pandemic concerns. Scheduled to run in late April, the show took a significant loss in the company’s revenue. Similarly, The Singapore International Festival of Arts, a long-running event in its 43rd year, also got cancelled. This has impacted over 200 artists that were prepared to participate.
According to The Straits Times, COVID-19 has cost the local arts scene at least $2.6 million. Having faced significant losses in revenue and financial instability, many arts companies have put on their thinking hats to find new and creative ways to bring their art online for audiences.
PERFORMERS AND ARTISTS
Like most events and performances, Temasek Polytechnic (TP) celebrated Singapore’s 55th birthday and TP’s 30th anniversary with TP’s National Day Virtual Concert. However, with safe distancing measures in place, members of TP’s Music Vox struggled with the given limitations.
Dhruv Rohit Patel, a Year 2 student from the Diploma in Big Data and Analytics, who was also the guitarist for this year’s National Day Parade event, expressed his concerns during filming as he was still living back in his hometown in India during the pandemic.
Said Dhruv: “Recording was a whole new world of pain for us because it was the first big event we were recording for. Hence, the standards were super high. It was a tough process as all of us had different environments and recording equipment, so consistency was a challenge.”
Despite the restrictions, Dhruv and his band still managed to produce a showpiece.
If you haven’t already watched the virtual concert, click here to find out more!
FINDING NEW SOLUTIONS
In spite of the ongoing crisis, many art museums have found creative and innovative ways to continue showcasing their works. One of which includes the hashtag #NEVERBEFORESG, a visual experience delivered through interactive features and expressions, curated by a local artist, Yang Derong. The talented designer expressed the current situation through nine different chapters.
With the first chapter dedicated to migrant workers, Mr Yang explores the current situation involving dormitories by questioning architects and having them share their thoughts and ideas. Following this, the second chapter consists of video essays about the impact of COVID-19 on our well being. Chapter three then describes the emotional state of Singaporeans through drawings from local illustrators, while chapter four showcases a photo album featuring people from all walks of lives during this pandemic. The exhibition then progresses to the next few chapters consisting of lyrical verses, explaining new words and fake news that brewed out of this pandemic. The final chapter touches on covidigital games such as “no no square”, a mobile game programmed by Start Something Studios.
Click here to find out more about the nine chapters.
As most artists and performers have gone digital, museums such as the National Gallery Singapore and Singapore Art Museum have implemented new segments such as online performances and exhibitions for aesthetes and museum goers.
To begin, simply search #GalleryAnywhere on Instagram to view some of the works from The National Gallery.
