Where nature provides canvas

Natalie Koh Business Times 20 May 11;

WITH the year 2011 declared as the International Year of Forests by the United Nations, even artists have jumped in to do their part in stressing the importance of conservation.

For six weeks, 15 artists had bunked in at the Wallace Environmental Learning Laboratory at Dairy Farm Nature Park to create works for their exhibition - Manicured Nature Art Exhibition.

Organised by Artists Caravan, an independent, non-profit, artist collective, along with Raffles Girls' School (RGS), the exhibition aims to create a sense of community ownership and responsibility in people of all generations, particularly urban-dwellers, as the organisers believe that more should be done to preserve the forests and the memories they hold.

To emphasise this, all the works for the exhibition were made from found objects at the Nature Park.

Joey Soh of Artists Caravan says: 'The one rule underpinning all Artists Caravan's projects is that materials for the production of artworks should be objects found on site. The primary intention to use found objects is that the contents are directly drawn from site, adding historical significance to the artworks.'

She adds that the exhibition stands for three different kinds of conservation, namely: 'Preserving memories of people, places and objects at the venue itself; cherishing working relationships made during the project; and reusing and/or returning materials to its original state and location to reduce landfill possibilities.'

Chan Mei Hsien, also a part of the artists' collective, says that the project has made her even more green-conscious, especially in her art-making process. For her exhibited work, Nature Assemblage, she uses tree parts, broken tiles, elephant ear leaves, wood, flower pots, African tulip pods and tree logs to create a circle, as if marking territory.

She explains: 'Collecting, selecting and arranging found materials were a natural reaction to the site... Humans tend to create boundaries to claim the area as their own. It reflected on my own situation as an artist who is always on the move and in search of a personalised working space.

'The desire to establish harmony within the drawn boundaries and how nature can disrupt the establishment presented the vulnerable side of an outdoor installation,' she adds.

Other works to look out for are My time was too much occupied with those branches of natural history, by Sha Njak, which is an installation of a silver-coated branch to symbolise preservation and purity; Catch your dream according to your belief, by Mel Araneta, which features dreamcatchers made of nets and tree branches; and A Little Clay, by Suwong Kunrattanamaneephorn, which encourages viewers to enjoy the small things (look out for the tiny baby figurines hidden in the tree log).

Some of the works were created by students from RGS as well. This is in line with the exhibition's goals of reaching out to people of all ages. Soh says: 'We want to engage the youth, as it conjures feelings of respect and responsibility for the Nature Park, as well as bonds them to the place and each other.'

All objects used must eventually be returned to their original places, and be 'put back to nature'. Soh explains that this is because Artists Caravan does not want to 'leave negative trails from our residency'.

Chan adds: 'Nothing will be wasted in this project, so what is left is only the documentation, the experience and a greater appreciation for Mother Nature.'

Open to the public, the Manicured Nature Art Exhibition is open on Saturdays and Sundays, 10am to 6pm from May 14 to June 29, at the Wallace Environmental Learning Laboratory

Artists and students inspired by nature
Heather Marie Lee Straits Times 22 May 11;

Fifteen artists have had a brush with the wild, after taking part in what is believed to be Singapore's first artists-in-residence programme in a nature park.

The group, from Singapore and other parts of South-east Asia, stayed at the Wallace Environmental Learning Laboratory at Dairy Farm Nature Park in Upper Bukit Timah over six weekends.

They expressed their responses to their natural environment using different artistic media and forms.

Their work will be on display at the Manicured Nature and Illuminating Nature Programme Art Exhibition, which opened on May 14.

The residency was organised by Artists Caravan, founded by artists Joey Soh, 29, and Ong Xiao Yun, 31.

Ms Soh said the group wanted to explore a different environment for its third artist residency programme, and chose a natural instead of an urban one.

The exhibition also features art pieces by students from Raffles Girls' School.

About 50 students took part in the Illuminating Nature Programme, a two-day residential camp organised by the school last month.

They were encouraged to respond to their natural environment through art, writing or scientific studies.

The exhibition will be held until June 29, from 10am to 6pm. Admission is free.

Workshops will be carried out by the artists on alternate Sundays.

They will hold one today, where participants will put together a collective mural, which they have termed an 'earthblanket'.

This workshop is part of the National Parks Board's celebration of the International Day for Biological Diversity.

Also as part of the celebrations, schools in Singapore planted 221 trees yesterday in support of The Green Wave, a global campaign by the Convention on Biological Diversity.

This year, 210 schools took part, more than double the 91 last year.