Date｜01.09-01.31.2026
Veune｜Padang, Singapore, National Gallery Singapore
With the theme of “The Power in Us,” the festival returns to celebrate the collective strength that emerges when people and communities come together to reflect, converse and create with the help of art. This edition explores how the power of unity can shape shared experiences and spark new possibilities. Audiences can look forward to interactive art installations, façade projections, performances and programmes that invite them to take part in the festival in unexpected ways.
About Michael Lin's work "Gathering on the Lawn" |
Gathering on the Lawn responds to the Padang’s long history as a civic ground for communal gathering. Featuring artist-designed paper lantern bags bearing batik-inspired motifs from Singapore’s visual and material heritage, the work is activated through performances and participatory experiences across four festival weekends. Visitors are invited to walk, create and gather, thus becoming active participants. By centering collective action and shared experience, the work reflects the festival theme, “The Power in Us,” affirming public space as a site of connection and cultural memory.
Motifs adapted from batik pieces by Little Nyonya Batik.
This artwork unfolds through live activation on Fridays and Saturdays during the festival: 9–10, 16–17, 23–24 and 30–31 Jan 2026 from 7.30 to 10.30pm.
Untitled Gathering transforms the simple act of sitting into a reflection on cultural memory, connection and shared agency. Its hand-painted wooden furniture pieces carry batik-inspired motifs. Visitors are invited to sit, move and rearrange the pieces, becoming co-creators of an ever-shifting composition. The work highlights the quiet power of collective action and the everyday gestures that bring people together.
Motifs adapted from batik pieces by Little Nonya Batik and realised with student collaborators from:
LASALLE College of the Arts
Maisie Auw, Cho Yeonji, Javier Lon Wai Chong, Addicson Chow Jun Kai, Aniq Syah, Wenxin Gao, Nur Melissa Hong, Harith, Nur Ashserina and Zheng Aojia
Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts
Anastasia Karina Cahyadi, Keira Fong In Yi, Guo Jiami, Saminathan Subashni Karunya, Miliati Komaladi, Kong Sook Yee Vivian, Lim Soo Min, Javirea Lo and HsinYi Yeh Angel
(Text/ National Gallery Singapore)
