And so Biennale fever continues…

On Wednesday, a few of the TOS crew ventured out to Collectors Contemporary for
Confabulation…which was a breath of fresh air. It was liberating being able to enjoy pieces that didn’t look like blobular animals or children.

Note: [I’m not thinking Fernando Botero more like, Qi Yuwu’s ‘Beary Ambitious’ exhibition in June 2008 when he basically made the toy Be@rbrick look Asianised]

Take for instance the naked torso of the ‘man-made-from-yarn’, sticking out in the middle of the room unabashedly. Or the male mannequins wearing their masks and capes (designed by David Gremard Romero and inspired by ancient Roman poet Ovid, made relevant by Wonderwoman, Mexican pro wrestler Mil Máscaras and magician Houdini), looking haute and sexy…and don’t be shy, it’s just 3-D portraits of Queen Elizabeth II, who’s obviously having fun hanging by the wall with her doppelgangers.

Note: [It was if the queen was there herself]

And don’t get me started by the one-off site-specific light installation by artist Chris Levine, an engineer’s wet dream come true.

Note: [While having a cigarette outside, a friend of mine explained to me that the light installation is programmed to work like an optical trick. An ‘object’ appears and reappears when you’re not looking. This programmer does this through trail and error]

Said hello to Eunjong Park again, the petite Korean was her usual jovial self and jovial she should be with the apparent success of the exhibition. Had a chat with creative consultant Steve Lawler (kult.com.sg) and started talking about how Collectors sets itself apart from the other galleries in Singapore with the kind of art on show.

With artists like Levine, Romero, Jim Christensen, Kevin Bourgeois and Derek Boshier, gallery owners and collectors Dr Alvin Koh and Gary Sng feed our need for provocative, and at times, dark pieces.

Note: [I’ve noticed their art collection to be quite ‘homoerotic’, but otherwise beautiful. Sometimes I wonder whether you really are what you swallow]

Checked out The Tim Sullivan Show at Collectors Contemporary and even met the American artist himself. He was dressed in a suit with a red tie, a pair of nerdy black-framed glasses and shiny black shoes. He was as aesthetically pleasing as his works. We chatted about his work and his time spent in Singapore. Tim was very casual in his demeanor and said that he enjoyed the time here, minor gripe; the heat, which he then said, keeps me indoors. I told him that I particularly interested in one piece entitled ‘Uncle Joe’s Story’ (pictured) which reminded me a lot of the work of Richard Prince. But of course I did not mention this to Tim, from experience, try to not compare an artist’s work with another’s, they tend not to like it all that much.

The gallery was spacious and had ample lighting and not the spotlight ones that make you sweat buckets. There was a hidden area with a couch and a lazy chair; a screening of one of Tim’s multi-media presentations was showing. My eyes were transfixed on the projector screen. My concentration was interrupted when I caught a whiff of buttered popcorn and turned to my left. The gallery’s owner Gary was micro-waving cornels! He put them in retro-esque red-and-white stripped boxes like the ones you would get in theatres circa 1960s. He saw me eyeing a box with intent, which resulted in him giving me one whole box of freshly popped buttery goodness.

I spent the remainder of the evening walking around the gallery and even had a cigarette while talking about art with the gallery’s consultant Eunjeong Park. Originally from Korea, Eunjeong has a liking to quirky collections, ignoring the current state of ‘Contemporary South-East Asian’ art attack in Singapore. She also reminisced about how she used to love smoking back in Korea and that it was too hot here to actually enjoy a cigarette. I agreed with her, but then she continued to say that at least it’s helping her addiction and that made me laugh. I asked her how much ‘Uncle Joe’s Story’ costs and she mentioned that it was me about $3000++ to take that baby home. I thought about it and realised that I wanted it because it reminded me so much of Richard Prince. I decided to save the $3000 and wait for the day when I can afford an actual Prince.

Even though I left the gallery empty handed, I took back with me great conversation, a stomache full of salty popcorn and a much needed serving of non South-East Asian art.

Checked out the Andy Warhol exhibit this weekend at Collectors Contemporary, a gallery that’s strategically located near … Ikea. (Hey, you never know when you might need a hot dog, sofa and some Warhol in your life.) Couple pleasant surprises about this show: 1. It’s free. 2. They serve you free champagne…and will continue to do so until the champagne runs out (it’s leftover from their Warhol opening party on 28 March). 3. There are 120 Warhols on display, covering 20 years of his work, everything from a silk-screened Mao series to psychadelic-coloured James Dean canvases. There’s so much to show, some unsigned Marilyn Monroes didn’t even make it to the walls. No joke.

I wouldn’t even consider myself a Warhol fan, let alone a junkie, but I am a curious American who wanted to see my countryman’s iconic work up close. The show does not disappoint, no matter where you’re from. Note of disclosure, though: These are all for sale (ahh, the champagne make a little more sense now). It’s the personal collection of two men, Singaporeans Alvin and Gary, who are selling the pieces off individually or as a series. Not for the weak walleted – one less-prominent Hans Christian Andersen series of four silk-screenings is priced around US$70,000. Eek.

Even if you’re not a collector, go just to have a chat with Gary and Alvin, two of the funniest, most down-to-earth art collectors you’re likely to meet in Singapore. Gary went to art school in San Francisco and knew people in Warhol’s crowd. One such person (a ‘factory kid’) ended up posing for Warhol for the film poster for Querelle — both the print and the photo that served as the inspiration are at Collectors.

And then, of course, there are the 20 Campbell soups — from 1968 and 1969 — it’s the first thing you see when you walk in. But if you ask me, the real stars of the show are the John F Kennedy exhibit (with newsprint from his assassination serving as a silkscreen backdrop), and Alvin and Gary. ‘100 Warhols (Plus Twenty Servings of Soup on the Side)’ runs through 5 June. Collectors Contemporary is open Tue-Sun, 11am-7pm. Laura Dannen