Exhibitions to See in Singapore by ArtReview: Khairullah Rahim and Moses Tan

29 Jan 2022

In its tenth year, the annual Singapore Art Week (SAW) has grown ever more far-reaching, extending its presence to the island’s farthest nooks. Malls, a hawker centre, shophouses and even a holiday chalet have been transformed into art venues, with more than 130 events happening over two weeks. In the myriad of events occurring, Khairullah Rahim and Moses Tan presented a new suite of works at Tanjong Pagar Distripark in both the shows Bad Imitation and a curated showcase at S.E.A Focus organised by STPI.

Curated by Berny Tan and Daniel Chong, Bad Imitation was “the most conceptually assured” writes Adeline Chia of ArtReview. Revolving around the notions of reproduction, presenting imitations that are imprecise, flawed, and intentionally adjacent to the original. A collaboration between Khairullah Rahim and Nghia Phung celebrates eccentric objects abandoned and deliberately left outdoors by residents in working-class neighbourhoods. The recreation of a vibrant makeshift lounge, “implies an idealized gathering point that is still haunted by the spectra of police surveillance”.

Its neighbouring exhibition, S.E.A Focus, a boutique art fair curated by Joyce Toh, Moses Tan presented flesh-coloured phallic sculptures with decorative chains, intersecting between queer bodies and topographical terrains.

Image: installation view of Moses Tan, A whispering of salt, 2021 – 22, polymer sculptures, lightbox prints, lightbox, steel table, dimensions variable