Featuring a line-up of 105 galleries from 30 countries and territories, the third edition of Art SG opened with a VIP Preview and vernissage on January 16 at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre. Presented by founding and lead partner UBS, the leading international art fair for Singapore and Southeast Asia brings together world-renowned galleries with the fresh perspectives of emerging talent across three sectors: Galleries, Focus and Futures.
The diverse programme includes five large-scale, site-specific installations around the fair ground in Platform, as well as a Film programme and a Talk series, presented in collaboration with cultural partners Bangkok Kunsthalle and Delfina Foundation, respectively,
The year 2025 is even more special as Singapore celebrates 60 years of independence. Here are our pick of works by Singapore artists and galleries presenting at the fair.
1. ‘National Identity 4.0 – Conversations’, a solo show by David Chan at Art Seasons
Above From left: ‘Farquhar’s Eden’ (2024), ‘Well Done, Son!’ (2024), and ‘Yusof Ishak – Bapak’ (2024) by David Chan (Photo: Adrian Lee)
With his exploration into the shifting perspectives on nationhood among Singapore’s younger generations—those born in the 2000s—David Chan reflects on our years of nation-building and quest to build a uniquely Singaporean identity with his National Identity 4.0 series. Through realistic layers and compositions of humans, landscapes, animals, and related iconographies, the works offer critical reflections on social issues, blending humour and irony, inviting introspection on themes like popular culture, ethics, and contemporary behaviour.
2. ‘Meet Eva Here’ (2024) by Shavonne Wong, presented by The Columns Gallery
Above ‘Meet Eva Here’ (2024) by Shavonne Wong (Photo: Adrian Lee)
With Meet Eva Here, which is part of the Art SG 2025 Platform programme, Shavonne Wong, a fashion photographer-turned-3D virtual model creator and digital artist, invites audiences to engage with Eva, an AI companion who listens, reflects, and evolves through anonymous conversations. Through the interaction in the physical space, participants build a narrative that explores the boundaries of trust, identity, and connection in the age of artificial intelligence. Both a social experiment and a mirror to society, the work raises questions without offering answers.
3. ‘Blue Champagne’ (2006) by Goh Beng Kwan at STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery
Above ‘Blue Champagne’ (2006) by Goh Beng Kwan © Goh Beng Kwan / STPI (Photo: Courtesy of the artist and STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery, Singapore)
One of Singapore’s most prominent post-war artists, Cultural Medallion recipient Goh Beng Kwan produced evocative paper pulp works and etchings at STPI – Creative Workshop & Gallery. The works, including Blue Champagne (2006), represent the open seas, rich terrains, and moods of elation, exploring his central theme of renewal—both in nature and in giving new life to ordinary materials.
4. ‘Wish We Were More Alike’ (2024), ‘Go On, It’s Your Cheat Day’ (2025), and ‘I Could Never Be a Saint Like You’ (2024) by Samuel Xun at Richard Koh Fine Art
Above Clockwise, from far left: ‘Wish We Were More Alike’ (2024), ‘Go On, It’s Your Cheat Day’ (2025), and ‘I Could Never Be a Saint Like You’ (2024) by Samuel Xun (Photo: Adrian Lee)
For the year 2025, interdisciplinary artist Samuel Xun, whose works are primarily object-centric in the form of sculptures, context-based installations, and textile compositions, seeks to focus on elements of fun “in the way I approach making works—it’s been too long since I’ve allowed myself time to just essentially play”. Taking inspiration from Tim Burton’s seminal film, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), Xun’s gilded confections are wrapped in fabric and forged in the image of buildings and memory.
5. ‘The Lands Below the Winds’ (2024) by Khairulddin Wahab, presented by Cuturi Gallery
Above Installation View of 'The Lands Below the Winds' (2024) by Khairulddin Wahab (Photo: Art SG)
In his works, Singaporean artist Khairulddin Wahab draws upon the narratives of cultural geography, environmental history and post-colonialism in Singapore and Southeast Asia. Comprising three canvases, The Lands Below the Winds is an exploration of geography and maritime history, as well as the deep connection between the Malay Archipelago and its surrounding seas. The installation, which is part of the Art SG 2025 Platform programme, expresses the paradoxical role of water as a deadly yet life-giving force, and reveals the power of the sea as both a barrier and a conduit to the world beyond its shores.
6. ‘Staring into Voids and Blues’ (2024) by Wei Leng Tay at Yeo Workshop
Above ‘Staring into Voids and Blues’ (2024) by Wei Leng Tay (Photo: Courtesy of Yeo Workshop)
With an artistic practice spanning photography, audio, installation, and video, among others, Wei Leng Tay focuses on how representation is used in image-making and how differences can be negotiated through perception and reception, and the materiality of photographs. In this work, a fragmented image of a Kodachrome slide is printed across three rolls of cotton rag. In the absence in the image, a void is created in the history depicted. Who was the person? Where was this? Why were they cut out?
7. 'Postcards from Space', a solo show by Jahan Loh curated by ArtCEO in collaboration with 333Gallery
Above '天山星:: KEPLER-22B' by Jahan Loh, in a sculpture (pictured in the foreground) and mixed media on canvas (background) formats (Photo: Adrian Lee)
With Postcards from Space, multidisciplinary artist Jahan Loh enters the realms of science fiction and environmentalism, exploring the convergence of space exploration and migration. The series explores the concept of “interplanetary diaspora” envisioning a future where mankind migrates from Earth to celestial bodies such as Mars, the Moon, or potentially habitable exoplanets to ensure our species’ survival and progression.
