Singapore - Singapore Art Museum has received a donation of over S$2 million to organise a major regional art competition.
The announcement was made at the opening of an exhibition of large works by ASEAN artists.
Singapore Art Museum‘s tallest painting is on display for the first time since it was acquired in the 1990s.
The 5-metre high painting by Philippine artist Pacita Abad is part of the Big Picture Show.
The exhibition features large works, including Day and Night by Nobel Prize Laureate in Literature, Gao Xingjian.
Low Sze Wee, Ag Deputy Director (Collections & Curation), Singapore Art Museum, said: "For artworks that could not be dismantled into individual pieces and could not fit into our cargo lift, we had to use movers and carry them up physically into our galleries."
The Singapore Art Museum specialises in contemporary Southeast Asian art, and it has now teamed up with Asia Pacific Breweries Foundation to further promote regional art.
The foundation is donating S$2.25 million to the museum over the next 15 years to organise the APB Foundation Signature Art Prize.
It will be held every three years starting from next year.
Minister of Information, Communications and the Arts, Dr Lee Boon Yang, said: "This will become an outstanding mark of distinction and excellence awarded to regional artists whose work represents a significant development in contemporary art.
"We hope that the nomination, selection and award will stimulate and promote lively public discussion, sometimes heated, on new developments in contemporary art in Singapore and internationally."
But the winner will gain more than just prestige.
Sarah Koh, Asia Pacific Breweries Foundation, said: "We have benchmarked the prizes against the other art competitions and we believe that the top prize of S$45,000 is perhaps the largest art prize in the world right now."
Unlike many major art competitions, it is also open to visual arts from all media, including sculpture and drawing.
The winning piece will enter the Singapore Art Museum‘s permanent collection.
Source: www.channelnewsasia.com (1 November 2007)
