project: SHOWCASE [creative writing]

Creative [SIN]ergy presents
project: SHOWCASE
{creative writing}

project: SHOWCASE is a series of presentations showcasing Singapore’s creative talents in the UK. Each showcase will feature a specific creative sector, thus giving it a focused exposure. These events will be presented not only to the Singaporean community in the UK but also the general public in the UK, thus creating awareness and fulfilling the outreach aspect of project: SHOWCASE.

project: SHOWCASE {creative writing} is the first of the project: SHOWCASE series. This event will showcase creative writers: Josephine Chia, Kampong Girl turned published author. She will be reading from her non-fiction book, ‘Frog Under A Coconut Shell’. Award-winning playwright and full time writer, Rosaline Ting will be reading extracts from her play ‘Journeys’ and Johann S Lee, Author of Singapore’s first gay novel, ‘Peculiar Chris’, will read the prologue from ‘Quiet Time’.

project: SHOWCASE {creative writing} is scheduled on Saturday 14th March 2009, 3.00 – 5.00pm at The Poetry café in Covent Garden, 22 Betterton Street, London WC2H 9BX.
This event is free to attend, however spaces are limited. Please RSVP brian.tan@creativesinergy.com to reserve a spot.

Join us for an afternoon of literary fare!

project: SHOWCASE {creative writing} features

Josephine Chia is a Peranakan Straits Chinese, born and raised in Kampong Potong Pasir Singapore. She came to England in October 1985. She is a published author who gives talks on Creative Writing, yoga for health and cookery. She has an M.A. in Creative Writing and has published books on Singaporean Cookery, a novel, a collection of short stories and memoirs.

She is also a yoga teacher trained by the British Wheel Of Yoga and mainly work on a one-to-one basis with clients using yoga as a therapy for common ailments and disorders, particularly backache and asthma. She has worked with both abled and disabled clients. Her yoga book, Body And Mind Sculpture/Shape Up For Self-Discovery was published in May 2003. Full details of her books can be found on her website: www.josephinechia.com


Josephine just had her manuscript, Your Body: Gateway To The Divine accepted by O Publishers, UK. This book is based on the spiritual aspect of yoga and is due to be released in July 2009. Josephine has written for spiritual magazines like Kindred Spirit and New Vision. She recently won Third Prize in a Society Of Women Writers & Journalists short story competition in May 2007 with her story, A Question Of Choice. Her article, A Sense of Place won its Highly Commended Prize in December 2006. She also had a short story A Satisfactory Solution published in an anthology in August 2006. Her last novel, Shadows Across The Sun was released in August 2005 and was published in USA by Publish America.

A UK publisher, Parapress Ltd brought out her book on yoga/ fitness, Body And Mind Sculpture in May 2003 and Times International of Singapore brought out a Singapore edition. Times International of Singapore also published a non-fiction book, Frog Under A Coconut Shell in August 2002. A chapter of the same book was published in a UK magazine Mslexia, a writing magazine for women, under the heading A Slice Of Life. A short story, Kosong, was published in the January 2001 issue of Silverkris, the inflight magazine of Singapore Airlines under the Singapore Writes column. Another short story Watercolour Dream was published by Worldwide Writers in an anthology in 1999. Rasa Singapura/ Taste of Singapore, a cookery book was self-published in March 1998. Josephine was one of the winners of the 1992 Ian St. James Awards for short stories. Her story, Tropical Fever was published by Harper Collins in an anthology called Blood, Sweat And Tears. The publicity from this award resulted in two Singapore publishers approaching Josephine and ending in them publishing her first novel called My Mother-In-Law’s Son and a collection of short stories called Isn’t Singapore Somewhere In China, Luv? Josephine has other short stories and articles published in various publications.


Rosaline Ting was born in Singapore and migrated to England in 1980. While practising as a Chartered Surveyor, she wrote short stories and articles for hobby. Many were published in Her World and Female magazines; and one short story ‘Mrs. Tang’s Rat Race’ was published in SINGA: Literature & The Arts in Singapore, and also in an UK Literary magazine, Jennings. ‘The Tide Turns’ was short-listed by FISH Publishing and ‘Love in May’ won a third prize in short story writing competitions in the UK. Then for fifteen years she stopped creative writing, picking it up again in 2003 by attending adult education courses at Citylit.

In November 2005 she joined Yellow Ink Writers’ Group and started playwriting. (Unfortunately, this East Asian writers’ group was dissolved in 2007.) At a workshop she wrote the first six lines of dialogue for ‘Journeys’ and completed the play for a work-in-progress performance in February 2007 at Wimbledon Studio, South London. A year later, she received funding from Arts Council England to further develop the script and a staged reading was presented at Tara Studio, South London, in July 2008.

In ‘Journeys’ Rosaline writes passionately about Chinese people, celebrating the spirit of survival in women and the friendship between them, and how in their twilight years, like fallen leaves, they return to their ancestral roots.

Rosaline won the prestigious 2006/7 Playgrounding competition by Polka Theatre (Children) for their Playgrounding Festival in April 2007. Her play ‘A Girl Named Shining Brightly’ for 9 years-old upwards was performed with script-in-hand. Later that year, she was selected for an educational project at Stranmillis University College, Belfast. After script development, her professional creative team read the play in the College theatre. Furthermore, she was selected by EAST (funded by Arts Council of England) for a showcase at Soho Theatre, Central London on 11 June 2008.

On the strength of her idea for ‘The Sun is Setting’ she was short-listed in August 2007 by The Script Factory and BBC Radio 4 for a drama masterclass. In November 2007 her idea for ‘Yellow Boat to China’ was short-listed for Yellow Voices Writers’ Scheme. Rosaline was awarded bursaries to attend a week’s residential course at the Arvon Foundation on ‘Naturalism and the Theatre’ in July 2008 and on ‘Playwriting for Radio & Stage’ at the Ty Newydd Centre in Wales in August 2008.

Also, in the summer of 2008, she was chosen by The Literary Consultancy (funded by the Arts Council) for a free mentoring place to write her first novel (with a working title: A Disappearing Woman). She has just finished the first draft of her manuscript.


Johann S Lee is the author of Singapore's first gay novel, Peculiar Chris (1992) - a seminal work which has since been translated into Italian, and successfully adapted into a play (Happy Endings – Asian Boys Volume 3) by Alfian Sa'at. His second novel, To Know Where I'm Coming (2007), was rated 5 out of 6 stars by Time Out. The concluding part of his queer triptych, Quiet Time (2008), has been described as "a remarkable book" (The Sunday Times), "a must-read" (Trevvy.com) and "Singapore's best gay novel ever" (Fridae.com).

About Quiet Time: In 2007, as he tumbles rapidly into his late thirties, Kuang Ming is starting to feel his diminishing relevance in Singapore's youth-obsessed gay circles, even as his conservative country faces the possibility of a historic change in the rules of queer existence. A long-term relationship in jeopardy... A family in conflict... And a nation in transition? Kuang Ming cannot have foreseen how his life will change forever.


"Passionate and unflinching in his portrayal of the self-contradictions and inexorable conflicts which remain part and parcel of being gay in Singapore, Johann S Lee has created a wonderfully realistic, prescient and moving book that threatens to bat his previous works (and many past Singaporean novels) off the shelf of living memory. " - Cyril Wong, poet and recipient of the 2006 Singapore Literature Prize

"Johann S Lee, who daringly became the forbearer of Singapore gay literature in the uncertain early 90s with his searching themes, now reassuringly takes on the mantle of its godfather in an equally unquiet time when his characters discover that paternalism could be a source of not just conflict and contagion, but penetrating commonality." - Daren Shiau, author and recipient of the 2002 National Arts Council's Young Artist Award

SHOWCASE: Grace Lee

Violinist Grace Lee was the 2002 recipient of Singapore's Shell-NAC Arts Scholarship. She has won major prizes at music competitions, including 2nd Prize at the David Oistrakh International Violin Competition in 2004, the Len Lickorish Memorial Prize at the 2007 Royal Over-Seas League Competition in London, and 1st Prize at the Singapore National Violin Competition in 2001.

Grace made her concerto debut at the age of 12 with the Braddell Heights Symphony Orchestra in Singapore. She has since appeared as a soloist with orchestras such as the Odessa National Philharmonic, the Hankook Symphony Orchestra in Seoul, the Eastman School Symphony Orchestra in New York, the Philharmonic Orchestra of Singapore, and on many occasions with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. Her performances have taken her across the world and to some of the most prestigious concert halls, including Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall in New York and the Wigmore Hall in London.

Grace received her Bachelor of Music degree with Highest Distinction and the Performer's Certificate from the Eastman School of Music in New York, USA, in 2006, where she was a student of Oleh Krysa. She then went on to pursue her Master of Music degree as an International Scholar of the Associated Boards of the Royal Schools of Music at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where she studied the violin with György Pauk and the viola with Yuko Inoue. At the Academy, she was awarded the Roth Violin Prize for the most outstanding final recital, the Vice-Principal's Award for Special Achievement, and was also the winner of the 2008 RAM Club Prize. She is also a recipient of awards from the Musicians’ Benevolent Fund, the Countess of Munster Musical Trust and the Martin Musical Scholarship Fund.

In the 2008/2009 academic year Grace held the Leverhulme Chamber Music Fellowship at the Royal Academy of Music in London. She plays regularly with the Philharmonia Orchestra of London as a recipient of the orchestra's Vincent Meyers Orchestral Awards.

Name: Grace Lee
Location: London, UK
Website: NA
Contact: click here

London's Premire of Beauty World

King's College London Malaysian-Singaporean Society is proud to present Beautyworld London 2009, originally written by Michael Chiang and songs penned by Dick Lee.

After 2 years in the making, blood,sweat and tears poured in; it's finally here:London's Premiere of Beautyworld. You know U want to be a part of history, so come along and watch it.

THE STORY
Beauty world – a world of loud colours and garish lights. Equal parts mystery and intrigue, where surprises lurk in every corner and not everything is always as it seems...enter this noisy, bustling world of leering towkays with ulterior motives, imposing mamasans and delicately powdered girls through the eyes of innocent Ivy Chan, seeking to unravel the mystery that is her life. Along the way, she meets Ah Hock, a hardened gangster who begins to realise that there may perhaps be a larger world than Beautyworld, deals with Lulu, the dominant and seemingly harsh number one cabaret girl, and learns to grow up, very, very, quickly.

Dates and Time: Monday, 2nd March and Tuesday, 3rd March, 19.00-23.00

Venue: Albany Theatre, Douglas Way, Deptford, London SE8 4AG
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=Douglas+Way%2C+City+of+London%2C+United+Kingdom for a map

Cost per ticket: £7

Contact details for tickets: ticketing@beautyworldmusical.com

For more information, please visit: http://www.beautyworldmusical.com

The new writing scheme run by YELLOW EARTH is back

YELLOW INK 2009

If you are British East Asian or East Asian* living in Britain and interested in writing for the stage this might be for you.

Yellow Earth is running a short introduction to playwriting that starts in March. The aim of this scheme is to help writers to look at the nuts and bolts of playwriting. Over five intensive sessions we will discuss structure, characterisation, language and theatricality through writing exercises as well as reading and analysing several short plays. Philippe Cherbonnier, Yellow Earth’s Co-Artistic Director will be running this first scheme of the year.

YELLOW INK is free. There will, however, be a limit to the number of participants. To ensure the scheme is practical and useful the selected writers have to commit to attending all five sessions which will take place at Yellow Earth’s office in London on the following dates:

Wednesdays: 11th, 18th, 25th March and 8thApril and Tuesday 14th April 2009.

Time: 6.15pm till 8.30pm

To apply: Please send a brief outline, one page ONLY, on why you want to join the scheme and how it might help you as a writer. If you are currently writing or are planning to write a piece please include a short synopsis.

Send your application by email to philippe@yellowearth.org

Deadline: 4th March 2009. Successful candidates will be informed within a week.

* writers of East Asian descent including: Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, China, East Timor, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, North Korea, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam and their diasporas.

www.yellowearth.org

PROJECT: slingSHORT joins creative [SIN]ergy

Creative [SIN]ergy will present PROJECT: slingSHORT09 with Eva Tang curating this year's film selection. After two successful sold out screenings in the last two years with SCNUK, PROJECT: slingSHORT will now join creative [SIN]ergy, which will undoubtedly deliver it to new heights. creative [SIN]ergy is currently also in talks with Sinema Old School to screen PROJECT: slingSHORT08.2 in Singapore, which was recently presented at the sold out screening in london in November 2008.

SUKA logo design competition

The Singapore UK Association (SUKA) Executive Committee invites you to be part of their evolutionary history. We are looking for creative talents to Re-design, Re-brand or Re-interpret the SUKA logo and brand identity. The new look and feel should reflect both SUKA values and philosophy; which are to promote social interaction and communal relationships within the Singaporean community and to celebrate Singapore's utterly unique multi-cultural identity in the UK. This competition is open to all members of Singaporean Societies in the UK.

This re-branding will help to reposition SUKA as the foremost non-political and not-for-profit association for Singaporeans living in the United Kingdom and also as a launch-pad for SUKA into a new age, making it more relevant to all our members.

All participants will be invited to the launch party of the new SUKA logo and brand identity on the 24th of April 2009. The new brand identity will be officially unveiled to approximately 11,000 people at Singapore Day on April 25th 2009.

Participate in the Competition Now!
The closing date for entries is 15 March 2009.


The Competition brief
Re-design, Re-brand, Re-interpret the Singapore UK Association (SUKA) logo/ brand identity.


Creative Guidelines
The proposed logo/ brand identity should best represent and express the SUKA values and philosophy. Please take into consideration how the new logo/ brand identity will be applied across the SUKA brand collateral (i.e. SUKA web site, SUKA membership card, SUKA letterhead, SUKA envelop, etc).

The winner will collaborate with SUKA Executive Committee to further develop the brand identity and aid as brand guardian.


Entry Requirements
Competition is open to all members of Singaporean Societies in the UK, except members of the SUKA Executive Committee.

Entries must be submitted by an individual or a group of not more than 2 persons (not via any agency or similar) and, unless otherwise stated, are limited to one per household.


Artwork Submission Guidelines
72dpi JPEG low-res format logo/ brand identity artwork.

Collateral mock up logo/ brand identity usage as specified above. 72 dpi JPEG low-res format.

A hi-res artwork will be requested for all shortlisted entries so please retain all original files.

Email your entries to vicepresident@suka.org with the subject line "SUKA logo competition"
Please include your full name and contact details, in the body of the email.

The closing date for entries is 15 March 2009.


Judging Criteria
The proposed logo/ brand identity must best represent and express the SUKA values and philosophy with the ability to be applied across the SUKA brand collateral in a cohesive look and feel.

Decisions of SUKA Executive Committee are final in all matters relating to the Competition. SUKA Executive Committee reserves the right to disqualify any entrant and/or winner in its absolute discretion for any reason and without notice in accordance with the Competition rules.


Prize
The winner will receive £100.00 in cash, a 1 year SUKA membership and sponsored prizes.


For further information or enquires about the competition please contact:
vicepresident@suka.org


Rules and regulations:
By taking part in the Competition, you agree to be bound by the Competition Rules and by the decisions of Singapore UK Association (SUKA) which are final in all matters relating to the Competition. SUKA reserves the right to disqualify any entrant and/or winner in its absolute discretion for any reason and without notice in accordance with the Competition rules.

1. Competition is open to all SUKA members, except members of the SUKA Executive Committee.

2. All entries must be received by no later then 15th March 2009. Late or incomplete entries will be disqualified. No responsibility can be accepted for entries which are lost, delayed, misdirected or corrupted during delivery to or from for any reason whatsoever.

3. Entries must be submitted by an individual or a group of not more the 2 persons (not via any agency or similar) and, unless otherwise stated, are limited to one per household.

4. The winning entry will be that which has met the entry criteria and which most closely meets the Competition criteria specified.

6. By entering the Competition you:
(a) grant SUKA, any third parties appointed by SUKA for the purpose of organising and/or managing the Competition and the Competition sponsor(s) permission to use your name and likeness for the purpose of organising and/or managing the Competition, for announcing the winner of the Competition and for related promotional purposes; and

(c) accept that all entries will become the property of SUKA upon receipt and will not be returned. You will retain all rights you have in the copyright and other intellectual property rights comprising the Competition entry but, by entering the Competition, you grant SUKA and its licensees the right free of charge to republish your Competition entry;

(d) waive any moral rights or similar rights you have in your Competition entry whether such rights arise pursuant to the Copyright, Designs and Patent Act 1988 (the “Act”) or equivalent legislation anywhere in the world; and

(e) warrant to SUKA that the Competition entry is wholly original to you and not wholly or substantially copied from any other material and that the Competition entry does not defame, cause injury to or invade the privacy of or otherwise infringe or violate any statutory, common law, regulatory or intellectual property rights of any third party.

Sunday Times review of Quiet Time

Heart of a family man
Quiet Time tackles an aspect of gay life rarely talked about publicly in Singapore - the desire to be a parent

By Stephanie Yap

(Photo caption: Johann S. Lee continues with the topic of homosexuality in his third novel Quiet Time, which ends on a triumphant note that love is stronger than prejudice.)

QUIET TIME By Johann S. Lee Cannon International/ Paperback/338 pages/ $21.61 at Books Kinokuniya/*** 1/2

In his groundbreaking debut novel Peculiar Chris (1992), author Johann S. Lee wrote about a young man coming to terms with his homosexuality in conservative Singapore.

In the unrelated follow-up, To Know Where I'm Coming From (2007), he captured the dilemma of the gay Singaporean emigre, who finds acceptance in the liberal West, yet somehow feels drawn to return home.

As with the previous books, the author's third novel, Quiet Time, is not a book you pick up for its stunning prose. As Lee himself has declared, he is a storyteller, not a writer, and it shows.

The novel is heavy on dialogue, clarified by adjectives: Every few paragraphs require characters to 'say plaintively', 'interrupt beseechingly' or 'ask curtly'. But to dissect the novel's literary style is beside the point.

Quiet Time is a remarkable book because it presents, with compassion and humour, a dimension of gay life rarely talked about here - the desire to settle down and start a family, despite the inability of a gay couple to produce biological children.

The prologue opens in the not-so- distant future of 2018. Kuang Ming has been summoned to meet his son Aidan's principal due to a heated episode of name-calling the boy participated in.

He had verbally defended himself and his parents after a classmate's taunt that he was 'raised by a couple of homos' and 'faggots'.

His retort: His opponent's parents were 'bigoted, Bible-bashing fanatics'.

This is a future Singapore which 'decriminalised homosexuality years ago'. However, when we jump back in time to 2007, the law - and society, it seems - is still very much hostile towards gays.

Kuang Ming is a 37-year-old gay man in a decade-long 'open' relationship with his partner Josh, the high-profile editor of the leading gay website in Asia. As in many other countries, the gay scene in Singapore is hedonistic and youth-obsessed, filled with numerous parties where Kuang Ming is known as Josh's less famous, sometimes even nameless 'sexy boyfriend'.

But time and tide wait for no man and Kuang Ming has begun to tire of Josh's wild ways and promiscuity.

His angst is intensified when he meets Ethan, a doctor 'whose rugged, thirty- something skin is glowingly tanned'. Sexual attraction aside, they soon bond over their shared desire for a calmer and more settled life than is the norm in the gay scene.

The author gives us a peek into a lesser- known but just as vital aspect of the gay community - and the Christian one, for that matter - in a scene set at the Free Community Church, where religious and/or family-oriented gays meet.

Kuang Ming comes to realise that what he yearns for is 'quiet time' - taken from the term a friend, a lesbian mother, uses to indicate that it is time for the children to settle down after a day of play.

But even as he drifts towards the idea of starting a family of his own, the gay community is staging a passionate but unsuccessful attempt to repeal Section 377A of the Penal Code, which criminalises sex between mutually consenting men.

Meanwhile, the family he was born into is torn apart by differing beliefs as his younger brother Shaun, fresh out of national service, announces he is gay too, much to the horror of their elder sister Min Li, a fervent Christian who belongs to a church with vehemently anti-homosexual views.

These extreme opposites allow for a great many sibling confrontations, complete with tears and melodramatic statements such as: 'Because you chose God and I chose to live my life.'

But the anguish rings true in this tender portrayal of a family whose disagreements and reconciliations show that, firstly, you do not have to form a conventional family unit to be a family and, secondly, love is stronger than prejudice.

If you like this, read: Peculiar Chris ($19.90) and To Know Where I'm Coming From ($21.40), both available at Books Kinokuniya. In Lee's previous novels, he depicts the doubts and hopes of gays making their way in Singaporean society.

SHOWCASE: Harwin Chandra

Harwin Chandra left his hometown Medan Indonesia at the age of 16 and headed down under to pursue his study in multimedia. Harwin spent over 9 years in Melbourne and established himself in the digital advertising industry.

Feeling the urge to connect back to his Asian root, Harwin moved to Singapore in 2003, where he lived and worked in Singapore for over 4 years. His dedication and commitment to produce quality work won him several prestigious digital awards on clients like Motorola, Sony and New York City Economic Development Corporation to name a few. Till this day he still refers to Singapore as home.

Harwin continued his adventure in Tokyo, Japan. He spent two years working in the craziness of Tokyo. He is not yet an accomplished geisha, but certainly knows how to hold the Japanese tea ceremony. Harwin also add Japanese to his already spoken Bahasa, Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkian and of course English.

Whenever Harwin gets some free time from his hectic schedule , he loves to invite his mates over for delicious home cooked meals. Harwin is currently based in London as an Art Director, and hopes to continue his creative dreams here.

Name: Harwin Chandra
Location: London, UK
Website: NA
Contact: click here

free workshops to celebrate the unveiling of The Lion

Chinatown Arts Space will run a series of free workshops to celebrate the unveiling of The Lion. Ten public art sculpture workshops will take place in various locations across Westminster for families, the elderly, youth groups and a special Masterclass for artists. The workshops will take place from February to April 2009 and will be led by East Asian artists Hsiao-Chi Tsai (Taiwan), Kimiya Yoshikawa (Japan) and Asaki Kan (Japan). To register, please email info@chinatownartsspace.com. Workshop dates, venues and groups are listed below.

22 Feb 2pm-3:30pm Families: Charing Cross Library
1 March 2pm-3:30pm Families: Charing Cross Library
18 March 2pm-3:30pm Elderly: Chinese Community Centre
22 March 2pm-3:30pm Youth: Charing Cross Library
28 March 2pm-3:30pm Artists’ Masterclass: Charing Cross Library
1 April 2pm-3:30pm Elderly: Chinese Community Centre
5 April 2pm-3:30pm Families: Charing Cross Library
8 April 2pm-3:30pm Youth: Chinese Community Centre
9 April 2pm-3:30pm Elderly: Chinese National Healthy Living Centre
12 April 2pm-3:30pm Youth: Chinese Community Centre

Chinatown Arts Space and Shaftesbury PLC are delighted to announce Hsiao-Chi Tsai from Taiwan and Kimiya Yoshikawa from Japan as the winners of the £20,000 Wardour Street Sculpture commission with their collaborative proposal The Lion. Selected from global entries this exciting new commission encapsulates the vibrancy and diversity of Chinatown and its community.

The Lion is a striking contemporary interpretation of a traditional Chinese symbol of greeting and guardianship made of jesmonite, brightly coloured Perspex and treated steel, the colour and pattern of The Lion are used to represent the diversity of East Asians living and working in the UK. The sculpture will be approximately three metres in height and will be installed permanently on the corner of Wardour Street and Shaftesbury Avenue at the unveiling on 8th April 2009.

This is the second public art commission of the Five Circles arts festival organised by Chinatown Arts Space which is a series of groundbreaking events including: rap music, film, contemporary dance, visual public arts and education.

The judges were David Tse Ka-shing, Creative Director, CAS, Glynn Williams, Professor of Sculpture, Royal College of Art and Tom Welton, Director, Shaftesbury PLC. David Tse Ka-shing commented: This is a vibrant, playful, modern interpretation of a traditional Chinese temple lion using colourful perspex material, and will be a striking addition to Chinatown's increasing public artwork. The sculpture marks one entrance into Chinatown and will be in situ for 10 years, a welcome cultural icon in the West End amidst the busy landscape of advertising jostling for people's attention.

China and Singapore welcome UK’s cultural talent

Four rising culture professionals from around the UK are leaving for overseas work placements this month as part of the Cultural Leadership Programme, a Government-funded initiative which is promoting leadership excellence and diversity in the cultural and creative sectors.

The four awardees, three women and one man, have beaten stiff competition to be awarded the three-month leadershipplacements in China and Singapore. They will have responsibility for delivering a range of projects on everything from business planning and marketing, dance production and curating at the Beijing Modern Dance Company, the 501 Arts Centre, Chongqing , Theatreworks Singapore and the National Museum of Singapore.

The Powerbrokers international leadership placements are specifically aimed at emerging and mid-career cultural leaders from black, asian and minority ethnic backgrounds. They offer hands-on experience and encourage ‘learning through doing’. The initiative combines two of the Cultural Leadership Programme’s objectives; using international exchange to enrich UK cultural leadership and breaking down the barriers that are stopping professionals from ethnic minority backgrounds reaching the top or senior positions of cultural organisations.

David Kershaw, CEO of M&C Saatchi and Chairman of the Cultural Leadership Programme, said: “A key challenge the cultural sector faces today is ensuring its leaders better reflect the rich diversity and talent of our communities. This scheme offers an invaluable chance to support the development of emerging cultural leaders, allowing them to develop broader skills within an international context to achieve maximum impact for themselves and their organisations. "

Hilary Carty, Director of the Cultural Leadership Programme, said: "These international placements provide a priceless opportunity for talented individuals to deepen their understanding of themselves as leaders outside of a UK context. The challenge of working within an international cultural environment will allow the awardees to focus on developing new skills and knowledge to progress their careers in the cultural sector."


The awardees and their placements:

Harpreet Kaur
Beijing Modern Dance Company, Beijing, China: Associate Producer

Harpreet said: “I am very excited about working with and learning from Mr Zhang Changcheng and Beijing Modern Dance Company. The opportunity to work on international projects in an arts organisation abroad has long been a dream of mine, and to be able to do this in a country in rapid transition and growth is a hugely exciting prospect. I am honoured to have received this award that I’m sure will have an ever lasting impact on my life in terms of my personal growth and career development.”

Harpreet is a freelance arts manager with expertise in marketing and audience development as well as events programming, project conception and delivery in; education, community, events, production, and more recently of dance development. She has worked for organizations in London and Birmingham including Southbank Centre to Sampad South Asian Arts. Harpreet will be working with Beijing Modern Dance Company on development strategies and creative projects within the international performance programme and the 2009 International Modern Dance Festival. Valerie Chang 501 Arts Centre, Chongqing, China: Marketing and Development Associate Valerie said “This is an exciting and challenging once-in-life time opportunity to work in a creative environment with contemporary visual artists and academics from China. My aim will be gain a deeper understanding and knowledge of Chinese contemporary art and culture in China and explore my leadership potential, developing new strategies and cross cultural collaborations with the Director, Yan Yan to increase 501 Arts Centre’s visibility in China and Internationally. My ambition is to become a remarkable leader, leaving ‘footprints’ behind and making a difference where ever I go” Valerie is a freelance consultant, curator and artistic producer specialising in the visual arts, in the public, independent and higher education arts sector. She has over 20 years of experience and gained a successful reputation curating exhibitions in the Visual Arts for public museum and galleries. Entrepreneurial in approach, she developed her consultancy ‘Creative Impact’. Valerie is currently a consultant to the Museum of London. She has developed innovative projects and contemporary exhibitions at South London Gallery, Pitzhanger Manor Museum and Gallery in London, the Mayor of London’s Office, Royal Academy of Arts, Thames Valley University and Horniman Museum (2007-2008) and left a legacy and curated a stunning art installation “The Mirrored Community.


Selina Papa
Theatreworks Singapore: Business Development Associate

Selina said: “This is a fantastic, unprecedented opportunity for me to discover, explore and develop my management and leadership skills within the context of a new work environment. Developing the Theatreworks business strategy will also broaden my understanding of the unique challenges faced by long-established, pioneering arts organisations in an international context.”

Selina has dedicated her work to organisations with diversity, inclusion and access at the heart of their mission. In 1999 she managed the Cambridge University GEEMA programme, which raised the educational aspirations of young people from BME backgrounds via school and college-based teaching programmes. Since 2001 she has been Head of Operations at one of the UK’s leading intercultural arts organisations, Cultural Co-operation, and has played a key role in developing arts and music-based projects and creative networks which foster intercultural dialogue and understanding, including the Music Village Festival and the London: Diaspora Capital network.


Nilesh Mistry
National Museum of Singapore: Associate Curator

Nilesh said: “I am delighted to be awarded a placement at the renowned National Museum of Singapore which has vibrant and diverse programming. This opportunity will enable me to work with world class collections and staff enabling me to broaden my arts knowledge and to gain invaluable leadership skills training to pursue my ambitions. I will be exploring Singaporean cultural exhibitions for the UK market.”

Currently employed by Bradford Museums as the Museum Officer International Arts, Nilesh Mistry’s curatorial role is a key post for the development and engagement of the diverse communities of Bradford and beyond. Central to his work is the close connection between collection objects and the visitor experience for community cohesion and learning. Notable projects include contributions to Connect the major re-visioning and launch of the permanent displays at Cartwright Hall Art Gallery on October 2008, the curation of three exhibitions for Pillars of Light a project which ran alongside and complimented the National Festival of Muslim Culture, 2006/2007 and Moving Minds Project engaging young people with museums.

The four awardees will be sharing their experiences at www.culturalleadership.org.uk

THE ART FUND PAVILION architecture competition

THE ART FUND PAVILION architecture competition is a unique opportunity to design a semi-permanent pavilion to sit alongside a RIBA award-winning building by Marks Barfield Architects.

The pavilion will provide additional exhibition space for Woking’s new gallery and museum, The Lightbox.

The winning design will be built with funding by The Art Fund Prize, The UK’s largest single art prize of £100,000 and launched during the London Design Festival 2009.

This competition is open to all and will be judged by an elite international panel, including Wayne Hemingway and Kieran Long, Editor of The Architects' Journal.

The closing date for entries is 03 March 2009

Invitation: URA(Singapore): Recruitment cum Scholarship Talk

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) of Singapore plays an important role in Singapore's physical transformation into a distinctive global city. Integrating multiple functions, the URA is Singapore's national land use planning authority, the conservation authority, key government land sales agent, champion of architecture and urban design excellence as well as implementer of major urban growth areas.

We will be holding a Recruitment cum Scholarship Talk, the details are as follows:-
Date: 21 Feb 09 (Sat)
Time: 3 to 4pm
Venue: Millennium Gloucester Hotel, London

URA's CEO, Mrs Cheong Koon Hean, will be sharing on some of the upcoming developments and new growth areas in Singapore, how we ensure good quality living through an excellent built and green environment and our approach to environmentally responsible development. There will be a networking session after the talk.

Interested professionals and students are welcomed to register their attendance by 15 Feb 2009 by clicking the link below.
http://spring.ura.gov.sg/cdd/seminar/21Feb2009/registration.cfm