Theo.do.lites
18 April – 12 May 2013, Institute of Contemporary Arts, Singapore
Theo.do.lites is an exhibition examining the project of modernity through artistic explorations of site-specific urban and rural realities in Asia and Europe, in the context of their conjoined yet deferred histories. Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Raqs Media Collective, Uriel Orlow, Alexander Schellow, Charles Lim, Romain Kronenberg & Benjamin Graindorge, Marylène Negro, Tan Pin Pin, Daniel Hui, Masayo Kajimura, Massimilian & Nina Breeder, Debbie Ding.
If studies in city cultures often exhibit a critical nostalgia for an urban formation from the earlier stages of heroic modernity, we witness today a shift, revealing a sense of loss towards the promise of a vibrant future once offered by these early prototypical modernist cities. Rather than occupying the forefront of global developments, these cities are instead fast becoming a part of history. The works from Europe turn its eyes away from urban spaces towards unoccupied landscapes, reflecting a sense of disillusionment or a quest for a new spirituality. At the same time, works from Asia convey a suspicion towards its rapid urbanization in recent years, skeptical towards an idea of modernity that was never its own.
With an emphasis on moving images without being limited to it, Theo.do.lites reflects on these changes and presents the work of 14 contemporary artists from both continents and will offer a new appreciation of creative documentary aesthetics.
Curators: Kent Chan, Silke Schmickl
Artists: Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Raqs Media Collective, Uriel Orlow, Alexander Schellow, Charles Lim, Romain Kronenberg & Benjamin Graindorge, Marylène Negro, Tan Pin Pin, Daniel Hui, Masayo Kajimura, Massimilian & Nina Breeder, and Debbie Ding
The exhibition is supported by the Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore (ICAS), National Arts Council Singapore, Singapore International Foundation, Institut Français Singapour, Goethe Institut Singapur, Locale, and Lowave.
Lowave Exhibitions
Lowave has curated and produced exhibitions since 2008. Often inspired by our research projects and publications, these projects have been realised in close collaboration with international exhibition spaces. Some, such as Resistance[s] at the 3rd Triennial of Guangzhou, responded to invitations from major art events, others, more intimate, paid tribute to Lowave's unique art identity.
Exhibition overview
- Pop-up Gallery Multiples (2015/16)
The Art Space, Suntec, Singapore - Singapour mon amour: Politics and poetics of space(s) (2015)
Point Ephémère, Paris, France - Going Places (2014)
The Arts House, Singapore - Beirut Art Fair: Video Projects – Body Politics (2014)
Beirut International Exhibition and Leisure Center (BIEL), Beirut, Lebanon - Theo.do.lites (2013)
Institute of Contermporary Arts, Singapore - Rising Images (2012)
Centre Pompidou, Paris, France - Human Frames: Ten psychological states – 77 video artists and filmmakers from Asia and Europe (2011)
KIT – Kunst-im-Tunnel, Düsseldorf, Germany - Reframing Reality — Glimpses into the Lowave video archive (2010/11)
Museet for Samtidskunst, Roskilde, Denmark - Artist 2010 Istanbul: Triny Prada & Ismaïl Bahri (2010)
ARTIST 2010, Istanbul, Turkey - Experimental 3 (2009)
Festival Suito, Osaka, Japan - 3rd Guangzhou Triennial – Middle East Video Channel (2008)
Guangdong Museum of Art, Guangzhou, China