THEO Arts Professionals

03/06/2024

Thank you Samad and for the great recap of our exhibition Sujak. Sunar. Tzee. After Tradition! Delighted!

05/05/2024

Thank you !

30/04/2024

In the 1990s, Sarkasi Said Tzee moved towards popularising batik as a modern phenomenon in fashion wear and as a banner for Singapore identity. He designed batik to be spirited, flamboyant and fresh so that it would be hung as art and worn by national leaders. Sarkasi re-invented and re-iterated the colours of batik, using the medium to suit his bright and outgoing artistic persona, Tzee. He is well-loved for his paintings formed by energetic movements of colour on textile; as well as his batik iterations of Vanda Miss Joaquim, Singapore’s national flower on a variety of shirts and dresses.

SUJAK. SUNAR. TZEE. AFTER TRADITION is at The Arts House Gallery II till 5 May.

28/04/2024

More pics from the launch. Art and friends go together!

28/04/2024

Our warm thanks to everyone who came to the Launch of "Sujak. Sunar. Tzee. After Tradition" yesterday. Special thanks to Guest-of-Honour Mr Chong Huai Seng, who graciously officiated and his insightful words. Thanks especially to HE Ms Sheela Pillay for the wonderful support by the Singapore High Commission in Dhaka.
Most of all, thanks to the Artists Sujak Rahman, Sunar Sugiyou, and the estate of Sarkasi Said Tzee.
The exhibition runs till Sunday 5 May at the Arts House Gallery II.

27/04/2024

After Tradition. Sujak. Sunar. Tzee.
Opens today at the Arts House Gallery II launched by our Honoured Guest Mr Chong Huai Seng.
The artists will be present!

18/04/2024

We really appreciate the time taken by Shawn Hoo, Straits Times Life, to talk to and Sujak Rahman ! Thanks again!
After Tradition - Sujak. Sunar. Tzee.
Is at The Arts House Gallery II from Saturday 27 April to Sunday 5 May.

18/04/2024

Thank you, Shawn Hoo of The Straits Times! Such a meaningful spread!
"Artists Sujak Rahman and Sunar Sugiyou reinvent batik and Chinese ink traditions"
https://www.straitstimes.com/life/arts/artists-sujak-rahman-and-sunar-sugiyou-reinvent-batik-and-chinese-ink-traditions

The duo will show work alongside the late Cultural Medallion recipient Sarkasi Said. Read more at straitstimes.com.

15/04/2024

Opening soon!
Sujak Rahman, and Sarkasi Said Tzee's AFTER TRADITION runs from 27 April to 5 May at The Arts House Gallery II.
We look forward to see Sujak's and Sunar's new works, using traditional media like batik and Chinese ink to move these age-old techniques into their very own art methodologies.

Artists Talk on Sun 28 April 3pm
https://bit.ly/AfterTraditionTalkRSVP

Artists Workshop on Sat 4 May 1030am
https://bit.ly/AfterTraditionWorkshop

See you there!

03/04/2024

The team at THEO Art Projects is pleased to announce our exhibition with Sujak Rahman Sunar Sugiyou and the quintessential late artist Sarkasi Said Tzee.
Save the date and meet us at The Arts House Gallery II on 27 April.
Exhibition from 27 April to 5 May.
Watch out for details on the Artists Talk too.

25/02/2024

Thanks for visiting Aung Myint. Dots. Lines. Crosses!
Seeing art and seeing friends brings joy.
Last day today, we hope to see you if you have not popped in yet!

22/02/2024

Thank you everyone who came to our exhibition preview yesterday afternoon. It's so good when people who love art get together!
AUNG MYINT. Dots. Lines. Crosses runs till Mon 26 Feb 11am to 7pm, closing at 6pm on Monday.
We look forward tosee you at the Arts House Gallery II.
Come to our talk by Seah Tzi-Yan on Sat 24 Feb 3.30pm.

21/02/2024

We are ready!
AUNG MYINT. Dots.Lines. Crosses opens today at the Arts House Gallery II.

06/02/2024

THEO Art Projects is pleased to announce our upcoming new solo for Saya AUNG MYINT this February 21 - 26 at The Arts House Gallery II in Singapore.

www.theoartsprojects.com/latest

10/01/2023

NAC's The Arts Plan is up at the Reading Room at The Arts House!
Try and spot the works of Sujak Rahman in the interactive art sections! It's amazing how some of the modern batik paintings done in the 1980s and up to 2020 take shape in a digital configuration.
Share your responses!

09/01/2023

Rest in peace, sir! Singapore has lost an icon, a thinker and change maker. Thank you William Lim (1932 - 2023), your visits at The Substation were always a joy.

William S W Lim 1932 - 2023

William S W Lim, architect, thinker, conservationist and some say creative rebel passed away yesterday 6 January 2023. He was 91.

William will be remembered for the buildings that he and his partners gifted us in the form of the Singapore Conference Hall and Trade Union House (1965, top left), People’s Park Complex (1972 bottom left), Golden Mile Complex (1974 middle left), Marine Parade Community Club (2000-2023 middle right) and many others in Malaysia like the Negeri Sembilan State Mosque (1967 top right).

These he accomplished while partner in first the Malayan Architects Co-Partnership (1960-1967), then the Design Partnership (later DP Architects) (1967-1981), and then William Lim Associates (1981-2002).

Today, the Singapore Conference Hall and Trade Union House is a National Monument and Golden Mile Complex was just gazetted as a conservation building in 2021.

Born in Hong Kong to a Singaporean father and a Hong Kong mother in 1932, William received his architectural education from the Architectural Association (AA) in London in 1955. In 1956, William was awarded a Fullbright Scholarship to study with Walter Groupius, José Luis Sert and Jacqueline Tyrwhitt at Harvard University.

A little known fact about William Lim was that he initially wanted to work for the Public Works Department upon his return to Singapore but was rejected because he was overqualified. If William had indeed worked for the PWD, Singapore (and Malaysia) may look somewhat different from what it does today.

Apart from architecture, William Lim was also deeply concerned about the human condition and used his training as an architect to try and make Singapore a better place.

Together with his partners at the Design Partnership - Tay Kheng Soon and Koh Seow Chuan as well as a number of their peers, William cofounded the Singapore Planning and Urban Research Group (S.P.U.R.) in 1965, a think-tank that sought to offer an independent voice with regards to urban planning issues in early independent Singapore. Other founding members of S.P.U.R. included luminaries in the field of architecture like Wee Chwee Heng, Edward Wong and Chan Sau Yan. Among the suggestions offered by S.P.U.R. very early on was an adoption of a mass rapid transit network instead of one completely reliant on buses and also to shift the international airport to Changi instead of keeping it at Paya Lebar. William Lim was S.P.U.R.’s first chairman.

In 1976, William played a large part in helping his wife Lena Lim U Wen start her own bookshop - Select Books. Select Books was Singapore’s very first independent bookshop and later also became a publisher. Many of William Lim’s books would be published by Select Books.

In 1984, Select Books published Pastel Portraits: Singapore's Architectural Heritage, a book by Gretchen Liu that William was a part of, having originated from a conference by the Singapore Coordinating Committee on the adaptive reuse of old buildings. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Pastel Portraits saved whatever shophouses we have left today and turned the public’s view of them from being old, dilapidated and outdated to architectural heritage treasures. Pastel Portraits remains one of the most important books ever published locally in the field of architectural conservation.

In 1986, William Lim became the inaugural President of the newly formed Singapore Heritage Society, which he helped to found. The Singapore Heritage Society remains a vocal advocate of built heritage conservation today.

In 2000, William Lim Associates completed one of the very first integrated hubs for the government in the form of the Marine Parade Community Building. A truly postmodern edifice that polarised both members of the public as well as those in authority, William shrugged off any praises for it by saying in a TODAY interview from 2002 that “I don’t even think the clients like it very much!” Ironically, a last ditch effort by DOCOMOMO.SG to save the icon of Marine Parade was failing just as William’s health was also quickly deteriorating after a few years of illness. In the end, Marine Parade Community Building has outlived William, but only by a few months at most.

I had the honour and privilege of meeting William in 2018 when I published Before It All Goes and presented a copy to him and his family. In that meeting, he showed me original copies of the S.P.U.R. Journal (pictured bottom right) and we talked a little about architecture. Mostly, I was just in awe of being in his presence.

My former supervisor from NUS Professor Chua Beng Huat has perhaps the most succinct statement for Willie as he was fondly known by those close to him - “One discovers William is always open to new ideas, gained through his extensive travelling abroad and incessant reading. Consequently, he is always attuned to ideational and social changes that foretell the next wave of development.”

Rest in Peace William Lim Siew Wai - thank you for making Singapore a better place.

My co-author of EVERYDAY MODERNISM Justin Zhuang has written a concise biography of William Lim here:
https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_2016-04-01_161334.html

Here are two TODAY articles on William Lim you may want to check out:

https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/today20051130-2.2.54.1

https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/today20020927-2.2.40.1

20/12/2022

Two gorgeous new works by Sujak Rahman are being shown at the 19th Asian Art Biennale Bangladesh.
'The Asian Art Biennale has brought together 114 countries and 493 artists under one roof at the heart of Dhaka, with the theme of "Home and Displacement". It is said to be the biggest art exhibition in Asia.' In this plethora of artworks, Sujak Rahman, Sunar Sugiyou and Ramli Nawee works have represented Singapore, under the curation of Francesca Maurizi in the '100 Countries Participation Project'.
Congratulations to the artists!

19/12/2022

At last, pics from Sujak Rahman, Sunar Sugiyou and Ramli from the Asian Art Biennale in Dhaka. More pics from Sujak R soon!

07/12/2022

Cool story on The Artling's Kim Tay. Glad to be working together online!

Plural Art Mag’s series on the behind-the-scenes of arts writers' lives continues with our conversation with Kim Tay. Tay is a long-standing founding member and Gallery Director of The Artling, an online gallery, art consulting firm, and web magazine. These days, we can find Tay managing The Artli...

07/12/2022

Congratulations to Sujak Rahman , Sunar Sugiyou and Ramli Nawee as they represent Singapore at the 19th Asian Art Biennale Bangladesh!
We'll share more posts as the event begins on 8 December!

13/08/2022

We spent a lovely morning at Japan Creative Centre at the opening of Dr lskandar Jalil's solo exhibition 'A Master Potter's Travelogue'. Our Datuk's travel impressions are recorded in these meaningful works. Here are some of our favourites.

31/03/2022

Our 'Batik X Clay Technologies' video featuring Sujak Rahman, Debbie Ng and Loh Lik KIan is up on our Youtube channel.
We had a great time working from October 2021 to March 2022, with Jason Itchi coming in to film intermittently.
So good to see all the artists have been through creating in a batik studio and a ceramics workshop!

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

BATIK x CLAY Technologies is a workshop-based research into the art and craft technology of ceramics and batik.Sujak Rahman, batik painting doyen, and Loh Li...

27/03/2022

A Glimpse of Radiance from Under, at . Finally managed to catch up with artist Lavender Chang. Her work has always been thoughtful, paced, sensitive, the unravelling of a minute moment. Congrats Lavender, a great exhibition!

20/03/2022

Thanks everyone for coming by Art Glass Centre for yesterday's talk. Thanks too to Tan Sock Fong and Valerie Yang for such an engaging afternoon sharing your thoughts and practice. We are watching you both for more!

19/03/2022

Join us at today's talk with Tan Sock Fong and Valerie Yang as they close their project 'Clarity / Opacity - a glass and stone project'.

Art Glass Centre, 11 Upper Wilkie Rd, Mount Emily, Singapore 228120.
Register for seat: https://bit.ly/RegisterClarityO

14/03/2022

Literally it's artists at work.
Valerie Yang and Tan Sock Fong mould test pieces and final work, grind, polish and heave a sigh of relief when the kiln is opened!
At Art Glass Centre and a local stone workshop. Listen to how they worked.

Saturday 19 Mar 3 pm – 4.15 pm
Onsite Talk at Art Glass Centre, 11 Upper Wilkie Rd, Singapore 228120.

Register for a seat: https://bit.ly/RegisterClarityO

We look forward to your attendance.

10/03/2022

A taste of tomorrow's BATIK X CLAY TECHNOLOGIES online talk with Debbie Ng, Loh Lik Kian and Sujak Rahman.
Seats still available!
Friday 11 March 6.30pm: Register https://bit.ly/BATIKxCLAY11mar

Watch our trailer by Jason Teo!

08/03/2022

Batik X Clay is where 3 expert artists start all over again, learning batik textile drawing and clay decoration techniques. It's fun but uphill all the way!
Join us online as we talk about this workshopping trial that's now in its 5th month.
BATIK X CLAY TECHNOLOGIES

Debbie Ng, Loh Lik Kian, Sujak Rahman

Friday 11 Mar 6.30 pm – 7.45 pm
Online Talk
Register for Zoom: https://bit.ly/BATIKxCLAY11mar

04/03/2022

The Batik X Clay Technologies team - Sujak Rahman, Debbie Ng and Loh Lik Kian. Discussions and trials on clay and batik techniques, learning bits about each other's craft, and taking these home to try new things!

BATIK X CLAY TECHNOLOGIES
Debbie Ng, Loh Lik Kian, Sujak Rahman

Friday 11 Mar 6.30 pm – 7.45 pm

Online Talk
Register for Zoom: https://bit.ly/BATIKxCLAY11mar

04/03/2022

Just some things that Tan Sock Fong and Valerie Yang have been up to at ArtGlassCentre.
Seen here with Esther and Jolin assisting on the studio work. Mould-making and casting glass!

More about this project on 19 March 3pm at ArtGlassCentre from the artists themselves!

CLARITY / OPACITY a glass & stone project
Tan Sock Fong & Valerie Yang

Saturday 19 Mar 3 pm – 4.15 pm

Onsite Talk at Art Glass Centre, 11 Upper Wilkie Rd, Mount Emily, SG 288120

Register for seat: https://bit.ly/RegisterClarityO