1 April 2017
Singapore Art Museum to Undergo a Major Facelift
SAM’s museum programming will continue throughout the revamp
Singapore – The regional art scene is set to become more vibrant with the major
revamp of the Singapore Art Museum (SAM). SAM opened to much fanfare in
1996 in a converted museum space that once housed the former Saint Joseph’s
Institution, and has not upgraded its premises since. The upcoming building
works will address the growing needs of contemporary art in Singapore, and
focus on improving the visitor experience at SAM. The project is targeted for
completion in 2021.
The revamp is likely to cost around $90 million. The Singapore government is
prepared to fund up to $80 million, with help from the Cultural Matching Fund.
The remaining sum will be raised through sponsorship and donations.
Visitors can look forward to the creation of a fully contiguous museum, upgraded
facilities and expanded museum-based learning spaces. The SAM revamp also
aims to meet future curatorial needs of the museum. These would include
creating double volume spaces for technologically demanding works or largescale installations such as Suzann Victor’s Rainbow Circle, Cai Guo-Qiang’s
Head On, and Jane Lee’s Raw Canvas.
Active museum programming will continue at SAM at 8Q on Queen Street
throughout 2017, as well as in other museums, institutions and community
spaces from 2018 onwards. The main SAM building will be closed to the public
after the de-installation of the Singapore Biennale artworks, in order to prepare
the gazetted national monument for its next phase of development.
Ms Grace Fu, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth says, “In our art
scene’s next phase of development, we need to enlarge the space for engaging
content to emerge, and provide more opportunities for our artists. So we have
been regularly reviewing our cultural infrastructure to ensure they can support
the needs of our artistic community. With this revamp, SAM will be able to
showcase a wider range of contemporary art works, including multi-media
works. We look forward to our artists creatively maximising the new spaces with
their works, while enhancing the SAM visitor experience for all Singaporeans
and other visitors.”
Ms Jane Ittogi, Chair of the Singapore Art Museum, says, “The complete revamp
of SAM’s two buildings will be a major boost to our efforts to enable
Singaporeans to experience contemporary art, and to showcase our important
Singaporean artists and those from the region. SAM’s role has expanded
significantly since its inception in 1996, and the Singapore Biennale 2016
showed strong and growing interest among Singaporeans in contemporary art,
with
many
finding
the
artworks
both
thought-provoking
and
educational. The building works will allow us to go much further as the leading
contemporary art museum in the region.”
An open tender for architects and consultants to manage this project will be
called by the 2nd quarter of 2017, and the building works are expected to
complete by 2021. Meanwhile, SAM will continue actively programming at the
SAM at 8Q space. 2017 museum programming includes the upcoming
exhibition, Imaginarium: To the Ends of the Earth, which opens on 6 May at SAM
at 8Q, as well as Singapore Night Festival activities, Think! Contemporary
Programme, and Yellow Ribbon Community Art Exhibition.
From 2018 onwards, the public can expect to see exhibitions at SAM at 8Q, as
well as partnered programmes located at other museums, institutions and
community spaces.
Find out more about our exhibitions and programmes online at
www.singaporeartmuseum.sg.
For high-resolution images, please visit http://bit.ly/SAMRevamp. Image use
guidelines apply.
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About the Singapore Art Museum
The Singapore Art Museum (SAM) is a contemporary art museum which focuses
on art-making and art thinking in Singapore, Southeast Asia and Asia,
encompassing a worldwide perspective on contemporary art practice. SAM
advocates and makes accessible interdisciplinary contemporary art through
research-led and evolving curatorial practice. Since it opened in January 1996,
SAM has built up one of the most important collections of contemporary art from
the region. It seeks to seed and nourish a stimulating and creative space in
Singapore through exhibitions and public programmes, and to deepen every
visitor’s experience. These include outreach and education, research and
publications, as well as cross-disciplinary residencies and exchanges.
SAM occupies two buildings: the old St Joseph’s Institution on Bras Basah Road,
built in 1855 and now a National Monument; and SAM at 8Q, a conservation
building across the road on Queen Street that was the old Catholic High.
In 2011, SAM was the venue organiser of the Singapore Biennale, becoming the
main organiser in 2013 and 2016. SAM was incorporated as a Company Limited
by Guarantee on 13 November 2013, operating under the Ministry of Culture,
Community and Youth. To find out more, visit www.singaporeartmuseum.sg
For more information, please contact:
Shirlene Noordin
Phish Communications
DID: +65 6344 2953
Email: [email protected]
Lynn Sim
Singapore Art Museum
DID: +65 6697 9762
Email: [email protected]
Annex A: Singapore Art Museum Milestones
SAM is an art museum dedicated to the presentation, collection and research of Southeast Asian and
Singaporean contemporary art. It has built one of the world's most important public collections of
Southeast Asian contemporary artworks, with a growing component in international contemporary art.
January 1996
Singapore Art Museum officially opens as the first art museum in Singapore. It was
then also the first art museum with international standard museum facilities in
Southeast Asia.
1997
SAM presents works of Singaporean master artists Thomas Yeo, Georgette Chen
and Liu Kang.
October 1999
SAM collaborates with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to coorganise Diobok-Obok: Continuities and Contingencies: Southeast Asian Art Today.
It is the first ASEAN project to showcase Southeast Asian artworks outside of the
region, showing in Singapore, London, Zurich, and Berlin.
April 2001
The inaugural edition of the bi-annual President’s Young Talents, jointly organised
by Singapore Art Museum and the Istana, is established.
2001 - 2005
Singapore Art Museum curates the Singapore Pavilion presented at the Venice
Biennale from 2001 to 2005.
August 2002
SAM organises and presents the first the Istana Art Event on the Istana grounds
during the National Day open house.
September 2006
SAM offices shift off-site to Stamford Court from Queen Street wing at the museum
to create more gallery space for artwork presentations.
August 2008
Official opening of SAM’s extension, SAM at 8Q, which was the former Catholic
High School. The four-storey building, featuring six galleries converted from
classrooms, provide more space for contemporary art exhibitions.
October 2008
The inaugural edition of the triennial Asia Pacific Breweries Foundation Signature
Art Prize is established. The Signature Art Prize recognises the most outstanding
contemporary artworks by emerging and established artists over the last three
years.
May 2009
Art Garden, SAM’s first contemporary art exhibition targeting younger audiences
through interactive exhibits and activities, opens to the public.
August 2009
Singapore Art Museum introduces the Credit Suisse Artist Residency Award and a
commissioning component for the President’s Young Talents exhibition, making it
Singapore’s only mentoring and commissioning exhibition that recognises and
supports young Singaporean contemporary artists.
September 2009
SAM works with the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises and
Singapore Prison Service to present the inaugural Yellow Ribbon Community Art
Exhibition.
January 2012
The Think! Contemporary Programme, a multi-visit, museum-based school
programme that advocates learning through art, is established by SAM.
October 2013
SAM is appointed the organiser of Singapore Biennale 2013 by National Arts
Council, Singapore. Singapore Biennale 2013 is the first and only Biennale
dedicated to the presentation of contemporary art from Southeast Asia.
November 2013
SAM is corporatised as a Company Limited by Guarantee and established as an
Institution of a Public Character (IPC), continuing with a Southeast Asian focus.
July 2014
Sensorium 360˚, SAM’s first fully multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary interactive
art exhibition opens to the public. It features artworks that were accessible for the
visually impaired.
May 2015
Art Garden is rebranded as Imaginarium, and attracts a record number of visitors to
the children’s contemporary art exhibition.
October 2016
Singapore Art Museum is appointed the organiser of Singapore Biennale 2016 by
National Arts Council, Singapore.
This edition saw record museum visitorship and the inaugural partnership with the
Benesse Prize, which selects one artist to present a commissioned work at the
Naoshima Art Site.
Annex B: Preliminary Ideas and Visuals
Artist’s Impression of Singapore Art Museum revamp:
Preliminary idea for proposed link bridge:
Before
After
Examples of Possible Large-Scale Artworks
Suzann Victor, Rainbow Circle: Capturing a Natural Phenomenon (2013)
Image courtesy of the Singapore Art Museum
Jane Lee, Raw Canvas (2008)
Image courtesy of the artist
Cai Guo-Qiang, Head On (2006)
Image courtesy of John Yuen, Fotograffiti