This is the stuff of a Studio Ghibli movie. Seven months ago in June 2023, Singaporean architect/art fabricator/artist Sean Gwee and his wife Ashley Hong, a freelance TV producer, purchased a three-story house located on the fringes of Okayama in western Japan, an idyllic city most famous for its postcard‑perfect gardens. They could have turned the place – an early Metabolist‑style holiday home that sits on verdant grounds spanning more than 21,000 sq ft built around 1968 – into their pied‑à‑terre (the couple, who have a two‑year‑old daughter, still call Singapore home and shuttle between the two countries). Instead, they had a far more benevolent idea.
Since September last year, people – originally only friends and acquaintances, but now strangers are welcome too – can stay on site for around two weeks or so at no cost. All Gwee and Hong ask for in return? That these guests spend the time there doing something that – get this – feeds into their creative daydreams. It explains the name that they’ve given to this heart‑warming if unusual set‑up: Isle of Dreams. Think of it as an artist residency if you will, except that interested parties need not necessarily be artists and there are no concrete expectations of works that are to be produced.
Says Gwee: “We see Isle of Dreams as a space where people can feel the safety and freedom needed to daydream a little bit. It’s not about building grand visions – the stakes here are lower – but, and I think this is really important, about healing and it just being enjoyable to be able to manifest some of your creative ideas and aspirations. Perhaps this stems from my art fabrication practice in which I work with people to chase their whims and pursue little wins instead of overthinking and trying to over-optimize results.”
This story is from the January - February 2024 edition of Female Singapore.
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This story is from the January - February 2024 edition of Female Singapore.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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GOOD VIBES
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THE PARTY EDIT
Club-appropriate hits from the Resort 2025 collections
THE VIPS
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THE NIGHTS
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THE SOUNDS
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SHE CALLS THE SHOTS
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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.
