Embrace the Wonders of Childhood at the Gallery, Children's Biennale 2019!

The bi-annual Gallery Children’s Biennale exhibition that opened in May this year is slated to run till the end of December, 2019 at the National Gallery, Singapore. The exhibition first launched in the year 2017, features 11 interactive artworks themed “Embracing Wonder.”

The art works allow children to explore, use their creativity and imagination while absorbing the unique inspiration behind each of them. The art installations created by various artists from all over South East Asia, are a window to wonders of nature and space while offering an experiential learning of wonders of art.  These answer a child’s inherent sense of curiosity, spark his imagination & encourages him to explore new possibilities.

Some of the captivating Art Installations are:

BIG HUG

BIG HUG – Embracing the theme of the exhibition wholly is this art installation by husband – wife duo, Milenko & Delia Prvački. The artwork includes more than 30 interactive and educational activities in four main spaces – Discover the World, Friendship Room, Family Room and Self Room that stimulate imagination and allow children to understand the cohesiveness and inclusiveness of the world around us – as if the space with its different dimensions is hugging the earth and the earth is embracing us within its fold. The journey continues with the embrace of family and finally of self in the BIG HUG!

OTHER WALL– in this art installation by Burmese artists Nge Lay and Aung Ko, visitors get a glimpse of typical Burmese childhood. Visitors learn the significance of gold and learn how to create stories using traditional hand-carved woodcuts and stampings. Visitors are also presented with folktales from Burma.

The Other Wall

KENANGAN KUNANG-KUNANG (MEMORIES OF FIREFLIES) – This art installation by Indonesian Artist Eko Nugroho features damar kurung, traditional Javanese lanterns that feature paintings of everyday life in Java. Prepare to be enthralled by an attractive play of light and sound here.

The upcoming September school break offers even more excitement.

Some curated workshops and programs for school break are:  

Embracing Animal Pop by Jecko Siompo- Jecko Siompo is a world renowned choreographer and performance artist and his performance Embracing Animal Pop at the National Gallery, echoes the theme of the exhibition, Embracing Wonder. Embracing Animal Pop is a mobile participatory performance (45 to 75 minutes long) in which up to 15 pairs of adults and children would be performing at the end of a 5 day dance workshop, using the animal pop” dance style. This is a unique dance form- a fusion of pop & hip-hop with animal inspired movements- pioneered and taught by Siompo.

Embracing Animal Pop by Jecko Siompo

When: 7-8 September 2019, 3pm–4.30pm daily (total of 2 sessions)

Where: Padang Atrium (Level 1 and Level B1), Supreme Court Wing, National Gallery Singapore

Free admission. No registration is required.

Recycling with Eric Wong – A free workshop led by Eric Wong, the illustrator of Karung Guni Boy, in which he shares tips on how to upcycle discarded materials and give them a new lease of life, such as making a car out of cardboard.

Recycling with Eric Wong

When: 7-8 September 2019, 11am – 12 noon

Where: City Hall Wing, Level 1, Outside Keppel Centre for Art Education

Free, register at: https://www.nationalgallery.sg/see-do/programme-detail/116640448/the-story-of-karang-guni-boy–recycling-with-eric-wong

Super Sonic Wall– Specially curated for children aged 7 to 9; this fun tour is based on art installation- Chance Operations by Singaporean artist, Song-Ming Ang. It teaches children to explore art through sounds. Children can make their own compositions, guided by an experienced docent.

Multiple sessions are available on 7th, 8th, 14th & 15th September. Each session is for half an hour. The meeting Point for the sound-sensory tour is Coleman Street Information Counter, Level 1 (Next to Gallery & Co.) Registration is required at www.childrensbiennale.com

Family Art Workshop: Recreate a Painting in Diorama– Art workshop for families, Recreate a Painting in Diorama allows participants to discover how artists use perspective through Liu Kang’s painting Life by the River and the installation Play by the River. They are then invited to recreate a diorama of the painting under expert guidance.

When: 14 September 2019, 1.30pm – 3pm

Where: City Hall Wing, Level 1, Keppel Centre for Art Education

Prices: $20: 1 Parent & 1 Child, $30: 2 Parents & 1 Child

Register at: https://www.nationalgallery.sg/see-do/programme-detail/116640968/family-art-workshop-recreate-a-painting-in-diorama

Read more at www.childrensbiennale.com