more celebrity SingArt lions for Singapore
Raffles Hotel, Singapore Tourism Board and Caltex have unleashed another variation on the Chicago "Cows on Parade" project on Singapore. (See recent story.) This time 41 fibreglass lions are to be set up on Orchard Rd, in addition to 18 on the grounds of the Raffles Hotel, each of them decorated by an artist or prominent 'personality'. The project is titled "SingArt - A Brush with Lions", and is described on its website as "a world-class exhibition of artworks by high-profile local and international figures, organised in aid of charity. ".
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The lions look a little constipated, no matter how they're painted...)
The charity element comes in when punters bid to 'adopt' a lion, with a starting price of S$ 8,888. Successful bidders get their name on a plaque next to the lion in public, and then get to 'take it home' after the public display period ends in September.
The website is comprehensive. Each lion is photographed, and its location marked on a map. In addition each 'artist or personality' has their bio, and a short write-up or 'rational' [sic] for the decoration of their particular lion. Here's one example, by Sumiko Tan, describing her piece "Silver" (the middle one illustrated above).
"Silver is a magnificent yet subtle colour, which describes Singapore well. Over the past four decades, the nation has quietly but steadily gone from Third World to First World. The Lion City now glimmers like a silver star in the waters of Southeast Asia."
Roar. Or should I say meow? Labelism is alive and well in the SingArt project!
posted: May 19, 2004