Opened in December 2020, Starch – located in an industrial building in Tagore Lane – can be said to be one of the most empathetic independent art spaces in Singapore. Tan, its founder, had picked its name in the hope that – not unlike the complex carbohydrate – it can be a source of energy for the arts community here.
Already, the light-soaked 2,200 sq ft space has played host to no less than eight exhibitions that have given the talents-in-focus free use of the space. It’s not rare for artists to juggle multiple responsibilities due to a lack of resources and not everyone can afford to engage a curator, says Tan, himself a practising artist who explores notions of queerness and melancholia through multimedia works.
Besides offering a venue, the 35-year-old helps to advise on anything from a show’s concept to set-up and even gets involved in the marketing and logistical side of things when needed. “I consider myself primarily as someone who is an enabler,” he says, when asked to define his role as a curator.
That Starch has a diverse and packed-out calendar for 2022 is telling of his ethos and success. For starters: The Chan-Davies Art Prize show, which spotlights top Fine Arts students from Lasalle College of the Arts, will take place on-site from Jan 13 to Feb 2.
This story is from the January - February 2022 edition of Female Singapore.
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This story is from the January - February 2022 edition of Female Singapore.
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The Party Edit
Club-appropriate hits from the Resort 2025 collections
She Calls The Shots
Since The 2000s, Rihanna Has Been Making Dance Floors Work, Work, Work With Her Infectious Electronic And R&b-inflected Pop Hits. For Another Side To Her "Queen Of The Night" Persona, There's Her Role As The Latest Face Of Dior's J'adore Perfume And Its Accompanying Campaign Film. Shot By Her Long-time Friend Steven Klein, It Features The Barbadian Baddie Striding Through The Gilded Halls Of The Palace Of Versailles Dripping In Gold. Here, She Shares More About How The Famously Feminine Fragrance Embodies Celebration.
GOOD VIBES
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THE VIPS
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THE NIGHTS
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THE SOUNDS
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A Not So Common Scent
For the first time, the singular house of Hermes has launched a chypre perfume fragrance type known for its complexity and dualistic nature a that comes in a first-of-its-kind bottle, no less. Keng Yang Shuen finds out more about Barenia, Hermes's latest scent that hit stores recently, from the brand's in-house perfumer Christine Nagel.
Strange Love
The six names in this story create wildly different works that tend to blur the boundaries among disparate disciplines. All have little in common except one thing: a certain wondrousness and sense of curiosity that inspire audiences to look at familiar things anew. Keng Yang Shuen reports.
The artist
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spirited away
Collaborations with the art world have become a trusted way of injecting novelty into fashion.
