Beyond The Collection

After years of collecting the works of emerging artists, Angeline Chan felt it was time to do more to support these young talents. The art patron and gallery owner shares with Grace Ma how she is dedicated to giving promising artists a leg-up early on in their careers

- Grace Ma

WHEN ANGELINE CHAN returned to Singapore in 2007 with her husband Nick Davies—after 20 years holding senior executive positions in global energy companies overseas—the art collector and patron wanted to do more for Singapore’s art scene than buying art solely for their appreciation alone. “For me, collecting art was an appreciation of people and cultures seen through the lens of artists,” says Angeline. “Investing in the arts was a way of giving back to society and enjoying a special reintroduction to Singapore after coming back home.”

The couple established the annual Chan-Davies Art Prize in 2015 with their own funds—later matched dollar-for-dollar by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth’s Cultural Matching Fund—to help talented fine arts students from Lasalle College of the Arts kick-start their careers in the first year after graduation. The award is open to all final-year students of Lasalle’s bachelor’s degree (honours) in fine arts programme and the graduating cohort of its master’s degree programme.

Each of the category winners receives a $15,000 cash prize and a chance to hold a solo exhibition supported by Chan + Hori Contemporary (formerly known as Chan Hampe Galleries), which Angeline co-founded. Students can submit up to three original artworks in either 2D or 3D media and the winner is announced each May at the opening of The Lasalle Show Exhibition, the school’s annual graduation showcase.