Saturday, October 28, 2006
Singapore Biennale 2006
BELIEF - If today's world has painfully called into question many certainties governing society, history and humankind, can it also be described as an era of uncertainty in which the very subject of belief is in question? In the context of this so-called crisis of values, what do we individually and collectively believe in? Do we act on our beliefs or is belief simply a mindless act? Are the religious beliefs communicated by the great faiths more relevant than the secular beliefs in science, progress, democracy and politics that succeeded them? Or has the conflict between the two spawned such states of violent and ethical extremism in the service of religious and economic power that belief in anything appears incomprehensible? Are we beyond belief or at the threshold of its revival?

Visited various biennale venues today including Sculpture Square where Liu Jianhua's Dream was exhibited. This, along with Bigert and Bergström's The Last Supper at the National Museum and YKON’s M8 at City Hall are my personal favorites.

DREAM: Mixed media installation in which an assemblage of smashed ceramic pop objects (a reference to China’s growing consumerism) in the shape of a space shuttle is complemented by a screening of a video on the Space Shuttle Challenger accident. This work is very much a grand, solemn and cathartic examination of human folly and ambition.
THE LAST SUPPER: Video installation of 58 minutes whereby the macabre and still enduring tradition of giving condemned death row inmates a final meal of their choosing the night before execution is investigated. Turning real life into the surreal, Bigert and Bergström’s work poignantly and potently used banally imparted fact to force the weighing of one of the most fundamental philosophical and ethical questions of our time, the state’s right to murder.
M8 – Summit of Micronations, Singapore: The Exhibition Short Guild politely describes this mixed media installation as exploring 'Singapore as a conference, a forum, a meeting place where utopias are generated.' In my opinion, even a casual perusal of this work surely confirms that it depicts Singapore as a bit of a joke. The work consists of a video screening of the Summit of Micronations proceedings (eight people seated around an octagonal table laughing uproariously for the entire duration), the set of the above-mentioned video which groups Singapore with entities of questionable sovereignty like the
Principality of Sealand and the Kingdoms of Elgaland & Vargaland and a little red M8 booklet.

In the M8 booklet, the Singapore representative is described as:

Lim Kong Soon (76)

Retired Politician, Republic of Singapore

Lim Kong Soon (LKS) is the founding father of post-war Singapore. Although retired from day-to-day politics, he is still driven by his great aspiration: to foster the stability and prosperity of "his child" - the city-state of Singapore. LKS has set up the Mini Summit of Micronations - M8 - to push forward the futuristic makeover of the small island state. Micronations might, after all, offer a shift of perspective - an evolutionary leap - or if nothing else, the possibility to grasp the present as history - something that can only be achieved when the present is transformed into a distant past by a future perspective. Lim Kong Soon strongly believes in progressivism (constant human progress - there are always things to improve), elitism (the world is a social pyramid in which members of an elite rule by virtue of their superior talent), geneticism (talent and intelligence are inherited and can be improved by eugenics) and cultural evolutionism (culture is a transient and ephemeral entity - a tool to be wielded from above by a progressive elite). While these four beliefs are so embedded in his thinking that one could call them faith, LKS is ready to abandon any other idea or system in exchange for new ideas as long as they promise improvement towards his Confucian ideal. He praises air-conditioning as the ultimate invention which brought control, comfort, and prosperity to South-East Asia. The air-conditioner provides a suitable metaphor for LKS's vision of society.






Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Lohengrin

Lohengrin, in medieval German story, a knight of the Holy
Grail, son of Parzival. He is sent to rescue Princess Elsa of Brabant from an unwanted suitor. Led to Antwerp by a swan, Lohengrin saves Elsa and marries her. She is forbidden to ask his identity, but, overcome by curiosity, she asks. As a result, Lohengrin must return to the castle of the Grail. The swan reappears and is revealed to be Elsa’s brother. In its fullest form the story is treated in a German epic poem composed c.1285–1290 and ascribed to Wolfram von Eschenbach by its unknown author. Wagner based his libretto for the opera Lohengrin (1850) on this source. The swan’s metamorphosis is also a theme in classical, Celtic, and other mythologies.

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright © 2001-05 Columbia University Press




Qui est-ce?
Il est Lohengrin.




The Letter (Raw Cut)

This film by Justin was based on a true story. Watched it with him and a group of friends at Johnson's birthday party last year.




Saturday, October 14, 2006
Parking at VivoCity
I know that I am a PROBATION PLATE driver. I know that you drive a vehicle larger than mine. I know that you drive a lorry. And I know that you have got MISS AH LIAN beside you. But does that give you the right to drive right into the parking lot that I have been waiting for? That despite me already signalling my intention for the whole world to see? Perhaps you were in your own little world with MISS AH LIAN. Forget it. Never mind.
VIVOCITY OPENS!
Singapore's largest multi-experimental retail and lifestyle destination.
VivoCity is a vibrant, multi-experiential retail and leisure destination. It flows with energy. It immerses you in its blend of activities , new retail concepts, multi-anchor tenants and an evolving retail environment. And it stimulates your senses, allowing you to craft your own "Vivo" experiences. Visit www.vivocity.com.sg.

Well, I did not really like my "Vivo" experience today.





Monday, October 02, 2006
My Wikipedia Contributions

Archdiocese of Singapore

Cathedral of the Good Shepherd

Saint Joseph's Church

Church of Saints Peter and Paul

Saint Laurent-Marie-Joseph Imbert

Father Jean-Marie Beurel‎

Archbishop Emeritus Gregory Yong‎

Archbishop Nicholas Chia‎

Charles Alexander Dyce

Denis Lesley McSwiney

Queen Street





My First French Essay

La Cathédrale du Bon Pasteur

Je vais à l’église tous les dimanches. Le nom de mon église est la Cathédrale du Bon Pasteur, qui se trouve en centre-ville en face du Chijmes. L'église a été construite par un prêtre français de la Missions Étrangères de Paris. Il s'appelle Jean-Marie Beurel. L'église existe depuis 159 ans.

Bien que pas autant majestueuse que Notre-Dame de Paris ou la Cathédrale Westminster de Londres, elle est néanmoins charmante. L'église est en forme de croix orientée vers l'est. Elle est construite en style renaissance avec des porches palladien. L'église est peinte en marron et a de très grandes fenêtres et portes, favorisant une bonne ventilation car l'air est chaud et humide à singapour.

À l'intérieur de l'église vous pouvez voir deux orgues dont l'un d'eux, construit en 1912, fort impressionnant, a été le premier à Singapour. Le nouveau est le fruit du travail de Monsieur Robert. Il a été construit en 1994.

L'église possède trois cloches en provenance de la fonderie Auguste Hildebrand à Paris, fondeur de sa majesté l'empereur Napoléon III. Vous pouvez entendre les cloches carilloner avant et après la messe et aussi lors d'importantes occasions.

On peut voir quelques plaques commémoratives sur les murs et le sol de l'église, l'une d'entre elles, gravée en français, rend hommage à un couple de français qui furent des membres actifs de celle-ci. Vous trouverez également les reliques de Saint Laurent-Marie-Joseph Imbert dans une niche de l'un des murs. Il fut prêtre de la Missions Étrangères de Paris, le premier à venir a Singapour et mourut martyr en Corée.

Cette église est la cathédrale de Singapour, dans laquelle se trouve le trône de l'archevêque. Celui-ci réside près de celle-ci. Il célèbre la messe du matin ainsi que lors d'important occasion comme Noël or Pâques.

Je suis l'un des enfants de choeur et revêt la soutane pour servir la messe. Je suis trés heureux d'être un membre actif de cette église. Actuellement, je m'occupe des archives de l'église afin que les futures générations puissent en apprécier la riche histoire. Comme elle est fréquemment visitée par les touristes, je prépare une brochure à leur intention qu'ils garderont comme souvenir.




Sunday, October 01, 2006
After a HIATUS of 1 Year and 13 Days..
Click on the monkey!
It's time to inject some life into this otherwise dull blog.




on top of the world