performing-arts-centre.com

Dali asked:


“Art is a lie that makes us realize truth.”- Pablo Picasso

What kind of lie does contemporary art support today?

What kind of truth are we realizing through the contemporary art?

Contemporary scene of visual art resembles the space filled with broken mirrors, where images reflect each other in the multidimensional sphere of media circus. The technique of cataloguing and classification, creation of categories, could serve as the key to the mapping and understanding of complexity of the multitude of approaches and streams that exists in today’s global art scene. Criteria for both, the creation and the selection are borrowed from random structures, and theoretically are questioning relevance of the evolution of art.

The initial categories for the whole system are those of matter and consciousness. They provide the trunk from which all the various branches of the other categories stem. All elements are so interconnected that, each can only be understood as an element of the whole. -Dialectical Materialism (A. Spirkin)

Determination of the significance of styles or tendencies, of the main art stream, groups or any other structures, will become irrelevant in near future. “Anything goes” was replaced by “And What?” With all the information and tools available today, everybody could become an artist. People of all professions are playing with new media. Does Garage Band make a musician, or graphic software a designer, or using digital camera a photographer? New technologies create a game where in competitive manner consequently everybody wants to win. Winning in art, means also experience “15 minutes of world-fame” and becoming a “superhero.” Consumer society deals with superficial substitution for happiness. Who is going to watch the game if everybody plays. Fortunately we can not play at the same time. Audience varies from small groups (family members and friends) to large social groups. In larger social communities, like national structures, demand for “heroes-artists” diminishes and culture is broken into small pieces of individualized performances of regional character. Researching tendencies of art scene behavior in context of contemporary philosophy of art we tend to accept a concept, that everybody is or could be an artist. The meaning, importance and consequences of such mind stream are very profound and have a great impact on cultural and social live. Why? It requires dropping the concept of conceptual thinking.

My artistic approach is created on such foundations. Not that I would be able to perform non-dualistic processes, but I am trying to pronounce a little speculative futuristic prognoses of the era after the end of art. Sooner or later this trend will be labeled as some kind of Unthinkable Art. Historically, realization of such path becomes a paradox to common sense (especially on collective level); however, similar trends are reflected in the air of the post-postmodern rain, and will soon appear on the sky as a rainbow.

Today’s curators are looking for unique and interesting angles to make their point across when using selective techniques for art shows. The usage of traditional approaches secures the system of art cycle, from creation to the distribution, and protects the capital of cultural bureau. Even the most alternative scenes (Technologies vs. Art, or other forums of so called “new media”) are not resolving the issue of foundation of the role of art on the contemporary global cultural platform, because they are based on the traditional curatorial, selective and preconceived mechanisms. What do I mean by that? I refer to the study of the designation processes of mind in relationship to the definition of what we labeled: The Art. As a reference to dialectic philosophies is an example of demonstration the potential of the idea pronounced by A.Danto, about art becoming philosophy. Such Ideas would need to be adopted, not only by artist themselves, but especially reformulated by structures that officially support the larger cultural platforms.

What are results of the conference that took place in Teheran in 2001? Art is still presented to the public in the manner of presentation from early 20 century. Structures that support such static views certainly do not elevate the public consciousness and awareness of issues of modern art world. The Artist Mark Kostabi makes allusion to the idea, of the art being a servant of market. Some curators are trilled by this statements. In the global picture of westernization, M. Kostabi’s phenomenon is becoming a guide – a hero, who is ideal combination of qualities, that contemporary artist should posses. It is also the best demonstration of lie that helps us to realize the truth about art of today.

Like a flashes of neon sign, art is reflected, from the pieces of mirrors everywhere.

Looks like a new quality of question have arisen since Arthur Danto published his ideas in book called “After the end of art, 1998. “Over a decade ago, Arthur Danto announced that art ended in the sixties. Ever since this declaration, he has been at the forefront of a radical critique of the nature of art in our time.” Art is becoming a philosophy.

I always believed in finding the answers in the space between, looking for the middle course. Neither postmodernism nor new media approaches are answers to the understanding of the positioning of the art of tomorrow. Postmodern world is a world of entertainment. It’s like an amusement park, where possibilities are endless and we feel overwhelmed for a while, but we have a need to relax from excess information and go back home.

Kostabi is one of those, who understood the art market, and because of his intelligence he penetrated the system, took advantage of it, so he can do whatever he wants. We pay for expensive tickets out of our pocket. I admire him because he realized the dream of every artist. Or is it not a dream of every artist to get recognized and sell art work all over the world?

If not, what is?

Is it still relevant to ask question, such as, what is Art? How do we deal with it? What is the nature of beauty? I would like to refere to the dialog between Einstein and Tagore from 1930.

EINSTEIN: There are two different conceptions about the nature of the universe - the world as a unity dependent on humanity, and the world as reality independent of the human factor.

TAGORE: When our universe is in harmony with man, the eternal, we know it as truth, we feel it as beauty.”

E: If there were no human beings any more, the Apollo Belvedere no longer would be beautiful?

T: No!

E: I agree with this conception of beauty, but not with regard to truth.

T: Why not? Truth is realized through men.

E: I cannot prove my conception is right, but that is my religion.

T: Beauty is in the ideal of perfect harmony, which is in the universal being; truth is the perfect comprehension of the universal mind. We individuals approach it through our own mistakes and blunders, through our accumulated experience, through our illumined consciousness. How otherwise can we know truth?

- by Dmitri Marianoff, published in NewYork Times, August 10, 1930

“Contemporary artists would never approach new horizons. One of the reasons of this failure seems to be the separation of artistic activity from speculative thinking.“

2001 Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, International Conference on the Philosophy of Art.

What happened since the time of the conference? How to overcome speculative thinking, if it arises as a cultural result of values supported by society we live in?

How to identify or place individual art work into the world of already so complicated and diverse art scene, without compromising originality, respecting evolution in art? How do we deal with the fast passing, minute to minute changing tendencies of art? How the individual artist contributes to the art of its lifetime, and not just contributes to the 15 minutes type of history? What are the values, reasons of art of tomorrow? Is there analogy in art history to the situation of our era? What are the future forms of the visual exploration? What will the production of art going to be in near future, 10 years from now? What is the role of new media? Does artist have to be involved in the philosophy of art? Could individually created piece of art be created in isolation? If so, how are art processes structured on individual level and on the global level?

It is intriguing to think about becoming a pioneer of the new Era of Art. My motivation is to explore the field of possibilities. In have no interest in inherent aspect of art rather I am interested in the evolution of possibilities of artistic thinking. In 1999 I have graduated in Academy of Fine Arts in Bratislava, with installation inspired by I. Kabakov, where I exhibited my workspace with drawings and prints on floor and the white canvases, with intention to question the meaning of the art itself. White canvas was there to raise the question of reason for continuation of mark making and the End of art narratives. I have seen closed circle of possibilities. If anything was possible, and everything was an art; than nothing was an art anymore, so Art was Death. But as I realize today, that was just the beginning of my long journey to the realization of truth about art.

The Incredibles (2004) refreshed feelings about the End of Art.

“When everybody is a superhero than nobody is superhero”.

In order to continue in activities leading to product that is labeled as an art, I had to formulate and reconsider following facts:

1. Analysis of situation.

2. Underlying misconception of self and wrong motivations.

3. Formulating the solutions and strategies.

4. Continual fabrication and visual symbioses with reality.

1. ANALYSIS OF SITUATION

From the Teheran’s conference: Post-Modernism & Contemporary Art,

27 April - 1 May 2002

The Problems of Contemporary Art:

- Aesthetics in Contemporary Art

- The Fine Line between Artistic & Non-Artistic Work

- The Language & Expression of Contemporary Art

- Contemporary Literature & Art

- Contemporary Art & Technology

- Globalization & Contemporary Art

- Post-Modern Art: Features & Characteristics

- The End of Art

Post-Modernism & Trends of Contemporary Art:

- Minimalism

- Conceptual Art

- Land Art

- Video Art

- Body Art

- Anti-Art

- Local Art

- Feminism

- Post-Modern Architecture

Theoretical Origins of Post-Modern Art

Theoretical Principles of Modernism from the viewpoint of Modern Philosophers:

- Humanism

- Rationalism

- Subjectivism

- Nihilism

- Aesthetics

- Enlightenment

2. UNDERLYING MISCONCEPTION OF SELF AND MOTIVATION

I have slightly touched topics of traditional dilemmas of dualistic mind. The acceptation of dual aspect of things, leads to judgmental thinking, not only in art. Creation of categories is beginning of the tragedy of the era after the end of art. This is why Beauty and any other category could be defined, which leads to the continual labeling.

Definition of other reasons of misconception is based on juxtaposing Nietzche’s and Malraux’s models of art and processes of creation.

Nietzche

a. One seeks for oneself a less artistic public. The superstitious belief in the “genius”

b.One harangues the obscure instincts of the dissatisfied, ambitious, self-disguised spirits in a democratic age: importance of poses.

c. One transfers the procedures of one art to the other arts, confounds the objectives of art with those of knowledge or the church or racial interests (nationalism), or philosophy.

d.One flatters women, sufferers, the indignant, etc. False “intensification”.

Malraux Andre

Art is a display of universal creativity of individual. Through art work man was, and is, opposing and transcending limitations of his physique, his personal and social (historical) destiny. Malraux refuted to explain art works in relation to the biography of their creators, and was against this method in explaining motives and contents of art.

3. FORMULATING THE SOLUTION AND STRATEGY/ VISION-UTOPIA

a. Revival of Iconic Quality.

Because of the degenerated Era of Spiritual Values and the End of time of Old Gods; which migration and multicultural blend is responsible for, I am looking for Possibility of New Sacral Form. This is not a creation of transcendental art. It is a search for artistic form that allows the content to respect dialectic evolution of social wisdom, where an essence of sacral secrecy is highly respected. It is a new level of the sphere of new colors, shapes and structures. Renewal of art forms is based on reevaluation of sacral attributes from history and than elevating the forces of modern era which define motives and perspectives of redefined sacral forms. It is revival of existing symbols, on global level. It is not a creation of a new religion, but it is a new level of social consciousness. Form remains the same, mind is different. Technology, art and philosophy are integrated into continuous symbioses.

b. Role of the Artists, Galleries and Cultural Industry. Combination of Two Worlds. New Cultural Wisdom. Utopia.

This would be the end of “…marketing game governed by art dealers, Gallerists and publishers, who have to run the business of Cultural Industry.”

The society on global level would be governed by New Cultural Wisdom. Creation of art is not considered anymore as the act of creation. “The art will be spontaneous as breathing.” Artist is producing form, that is instantly and naturally blending into the environment, so the sub-consciousness is directed by wisdom that eliminates the dilemma of hierarchic model. Gallery space is no more required and the whole space is becoming a showcase. The whole space does not require the poses. It is an art of conscious depiction of picture plan, from retinal experience, or selection of the picture frame in consciousness and placing the required aesthetics upon it. Artists are fabricating art that is already blended into environment as natural portion of space and serves as perceptive potential for public depiction. Cultural Wisdom is defined by human consciousness that provides unlimited potential for defining the pictorial framing of reality, and its limits are limits of understanding the phenomenon of reality.

c. Clash of Civilizations. Global Culture. Meta-code, and New Artistic Religion.

We experience on global level formation of new cultural qualities that are based on cultural clashes. (Example: Global cultural experience is formed in LA house, with my Persian and Mexican friends listening to the Japanese techno music, eating Bulgarian cheese with Arabic bread, Russian pickles and drinking French wine while discussing Slovak culture, or latest fashion trends in London.) East meets west or south meets north processes are not completed yet and it is hard to predict the results from the cultural clashes. But we need to look at the presence as the formation of the universal space, where cultural identities will be redefined. This will result in temporary crisis of individual identities but eventually will lead to the identity of global consciousness.

Americanization of world can serve as model of globalization of globe with its positive and negative aspects. Migration to caves is limited. S.J.Lewy

4. CONTINUAL FABRICATION AND VISUAL SYMBIOSES

I would like to scratch the surface beyond the point of A. Danto’s philosophical questions about the end of art. Not that I would have “the guts” to elaborate on his ideas from philosophical perspective, but I just want to reflect on some fragments and articulate them strictly as an artistic vision.

“A philosophical question arises whenever we have two objects which seem in every relevant particular to be alike, but which belong to importantly different philosophical categories.

…and this is no less the case when seeking to account for the differences between works of art and mere real things which happen exactly to resemble them.

…for example, regards paintings as very complex perceptual objects. So they are, but since objects can be imagined perfectly congruent with those which are not art works, these must have equivalent complexity at the level of perception. After all, the problem arose in the first place because no perceptual difference could be imagined finally relevant. But neither can possession of so-called “aesthetic qualities’ serve, since it would be strange if a work of art were beautiful but something exactly like it though not a work of art were not. In fact it has been a major effort of the philosophy of art to de-aestheticize the concept of art. It was Marcel Duchamp, a far deeper artist than Warhol, who presented as “readymades” objects chosen for their lack of aesthetic qualities - grooming combs, hat racks, and, notoriously, pieces of lavatory plumbing. “Aesthetic delectation is the danger to be avoided,” Duchamp wrote of his most controversial work, Fountain, of 1917. It was precisely Duchamp’s great effort to make it clear that art is an intellectual activity, a conceptual enterprise and not merely something to which the senses and the feelings come into play. And this must be true of all art, even that most bent upon gratifying the eye or ear, and not just for those works which are regarded as especially “philosophical,” like Raphael’s School of Athens or Mann’s The Magic Mountain. Were someone to choreograph Plato’s Republic, that would not, simply because of its exalted content, be more philosophical than Coppelia or Petrouchka. In fact these might be more philosophical, employing as they do real dancers imitating dancing dolls imitating real dancers!

Where are the components for a theory of art to be found? I think a first step may be made in recognizing that works of art are representations, not necessarily in the old sense of resembling their subjects, but in the more extended sense that it is always legitimate to ask what they are about.

Now of course not all representational things are works of art, so the definition has only begun. I shall not take the next steps here. All I have wished to show is the way that the philosophy of art has deep questions to consider, questions of representation and reality, of structure, truth, and meaning. In considering these things, it moves from the periphery to the center of philosophy, and in so doing it curiously incorporates the two things that give rise to it. For when art attains the level of self-consciousness it has come to attain in our era, the distinction between art and philosophy becomes as problematic as the distinction between reality and art. And the degree to which the appreciation of art becomes a matter of applied philosophy can hardly be overestimated.” - A. DANTO

I believe that art should reach the level, where its own representation would be representation of the pure existence. What do I mean by pure existence? Ii is purification on the level of non creation. All creation is pregnant by its causes. Consequently purifying the causes of creation will purify the act of creation itself.

Global consciousness on the level of cultural wisdom will create the platform, where all representational things will become work of art. It would be consciousness and its possibility to frame the fragment of reality and apply the aesthetic quality upon it. The reality in cultural wisdom level is ultimately de-aestheticized. Marcel Duchamp’s idea of the danger of aesthetic delectation would be eliminated and his vision completed.

Every aspect of reality could become art, but Wisdom Culture does not allow the reality in dualistic (judgmental) sense to become the art neither on collective level, nor on any regional level. It would only exist as a potential view, on the level of one’s consciousness. However in later stages of development of wisdom culture, in the stage of ultimate equanimity, the nonjudgmental aesthetic experience of reality as ultimate art could be realized simultaneously in more than one person. Evolution of collective experience could follow. The result of such parallel experience manifests the evolution of human kind toward the subtle spiritual qualities and realization of inseparable quality of beauty from the existence itself. It is experience of highest aesthetics. This will lead to the formation of new social structure, where “shamans” will protect the global Sanctum.

The essence of the Sanctum is present in every aspect of reality, which holds the door to the potential creation, where the seed of the nature of beauty could be found.



Olivia

Saatchi Gallery asked:


Saatchi Gallery represents the one of the world’s most modern museums of art and is a refreshing addition as one that was made specifically for those who enjoy art in all its styles and types. It caters to the desires and needs of a wide range of art lovers, from students needing to be exposed to the different genres represented in art to young artists needing a place to exhibit their work. It aids in the development of young talent and deepens (formal and informal) students’ appreciation of the contemporary aesthetic depicted in the work and ideologies of contemporary artists. Yet, the museum also extends its influence and aid into the realm of non-traditional art, such as fashion designing and the performing arts. In fact, these artists are supported not just in procuring them an audience for their work, but also in facilitating the purchase of art pieces via the Saatchi interface, which eliminates the middle-man and renders the compensation over to the appropriate artist commission free. The resources available on the Saatchi website are many, as it houses the Stuart Museum that is specifically designated for student artists or recent graduates as a place where they are free to upload their work for public viewing, critiquing, and feedback.

Saatchi Gallery’s gift to the artistic public is valuable in that it offers a new generation of artists and art lovers access to the cutting edge of creativity. However, it allows for the personal and professional growth of the young artist too, by giving them the opportunity to interact with the public in colloquy, conference, as well as business settings. Therefore, through the resources provided by this gallery, students become more cultured in their exposure to contemporary art, and young creative people gain valuable, professional skills that will last them a lifetime.



Matilda

Patricia Hawke asked:


The Philadelphia Schools and the Philadelphia Arts in Education Partnership (PAEP) established a good working history in 2006 with the successful “Artist in Residence Program.” Through this initiative the Philadelphia Schools’ Office of Creative and Performing Arts teamed with PAEP to place working artists in ten-day residencies in schools without art or music specialists. Artists and teachers worked together to integrate literacy and arts instruction for over 14,000 students in selected Philadelphia Schools. While the project participants claim success, a full report of the model will be available at the end of 2007.

Apparently, the Department of Education has confidence in program. Philadelphia Schools will continue this successful model with a grant from the Department of Education to fund Art Bridges over the next four years. Art Bridges will provide 5 schools with onsite artists who will instruct students and collaborate with classroom teachers towards the goal of achieving state and local literacy goals.

The goal of the initiative is for Philadelphia Schools to: improve academic performance in reading; improve students’ attitudes of self and school; help classroom teachers integrate arts and literacy; improve teacher capacity; and improve teacher understanding of core curriculum. Philadelphia Schools will provide on-going professional development to both the artists and teachers involved in the project. Artists will represent organizations like the Philadelphia Theatre Company and the Clay Studio. Poets, playwrights, and artists are among those involved.

The proposed bridge will work by targeting 4th, 5th and 6th graders from underachieving Philadelphia Schools over the four-year life of the grant. “Hard to reach” students will be motivated by creative activities that are tied to specific works of literature, and driven by literacy standards. Philadelphia Schools were selected for participation based on the following criteria: a neighborhood elementary housing at least two grades of 4, 5, and 6 grade classrooms; the school must employ an art and music specialists; and it must be defined as low achieving by Adequate Yearly Progress markers. Qualified Philadelphia Schools that applied were then chosen by a random lottery.

Since President Bush enforced the “No Child Left Behind Act” in 2002 large, urban, schools districts, like Philadelphia Schools, have been challenged to find ways to meet the new standards. Instituting an art-based curriculum at a time when most schools are getting math and reading intensive to ramp up state test scores is a markedly different approach. Yet it is one that most educators in Philadelphia Schools approve of.

The issue of how to reach and connect with students from the city’s low socio-economic and minority base has puzzled administrators since public education began. Philadelphia Schools continue to deal with issues of truancy, high dropout rates, teacher turnover and low academic achievement. If Philadelphia Schools can show success with this approach, the impact on arts education and the education of at-risk students could be huge.



Ellie

Eric Hines asked:


The subject of talent and creativity has been mired in a healthy amount of confusion over the last century. Plaguing the art student, the instructor, and even the accomplished artist.

Until recently, like the majority of contemporary society, I too believed that to be a fine artist one had to be born with an abundance of artistic talent - you either had it or you didn’t.

I would imagine that this would be the reason behind my working as an art dealer and owning an art gallery in Los Angeles, instead of being an artist and selling my own works of art.

Today I am quite relieved to find that, even though I was not born with a large currency of innate visual artistic talent, such talent can be acquired and developed.

I can imagine that quite a large number of this article’s readership disagrees - perhaps some vehemently - with that statement.

This is why I am bringing in someone exponentially more qualified to address the confusion on the subject of talent which has permiated societies around the art world for 100’s of years.

I didn’t just find any art instructor to help sort this out, Larry Gluck has been teaching others how to draw and paint since 1975. His 20 Mission: Renaissance fine art studios are currently teaching more than 3,000 students every week. His unique method of instruction, known as The Gluck Method, is also taught in various colleges in America.

So without further ado here is Mr. Gluck to help dispel this “talent myth…”

“I’m not very creative, I have no talent.If you had a dime for each time I heard a student tell me this before I got their agreement to enroll for drawing or painting lessons you would be quite wealthy.

Perhaps you too believe you lack the “artistic gene” or “special gift” called talent. Let’s get real about this thing called talent, shall we?

Talent implies a degree of skill or ability. Ability in any field can be acquired. Were you born with all the talent and skill required of you to perform in your current career?

Of course not, you acquired the skills you needed in order to perform. Would you be able to acquire the skill to play any music instrument you wanted too, or would you need to be born with this skill?

Like anything else, you can learn to draw and paint beautifully. The only requirements then is a desire to procure the technical skills and a teacher to provide you with workable instruction.

Moreover, people often confuse talent with creativity. Each is extremely important, it takes both combined to create art, but they are not one in the same.

The dictionary defines ‘create’ as; to cause to come into being, as something unique that would not naturally evolve by ordinary processes. Create is what evolves from one’s own thought or imagination, to bring about, as by intention or design. Creativity could easily be described as what one imagines and then produces using one’s skills.

People use their skills to bring their creative concepts into the real world for others to see. The painter observes a spectacular view. He imagines painting it in vibrant colors. Thus, using his talent and skill, transforms his original idea onto canvas, it becomes a ‘real’ painting.

Not all of us are born with an affluence of talent, however all of us are born with a goldmine of potential artistic creativity. It is imprisoned within all of us. We have only to free it.

Natural artistic talent alone is not enough. Those who possess natural talent, an instinct for color, the ability to draw an excellent likeness, are frequently thought of as gifted. However in life, innate ability often turns out to be more of a liability than an asset.

It is often found that the Natural doesn’t know how he does what he does. Natural talent, devoid of understanding, can be unreliable. One small failure can shatter it.

The Natural may eventually invent “reasons” as to why he can perform only some of the time. Examples are the author who must drink to write a good story, or the painter who “knows” for a fact that he can only paint when Saturn is transiting Orion.

Unfortunately artistic talent and creativity are not properly married in the majority of fine art instruction curriculums. Studying under the Italian portrait master Giuseppe Trotta ‘ a classmate of Picasso himself, graduating from The Pratt Institute in New York, and founding the world’s largest fine art program for drawing and painting instruction, have provided me much insight into art education.

I have seen both sides of the talent and creativity coin hobby-horsed in colleges and private art instruction programs. Rarely have I seen both sides given proper merit simultaneously. On the talent side of the coin you have the art teacher who will ignore any form of the students creativity. The music teacher, believing all great music was originated hundreds of years ago, who disallows any original work from students.

On the other hand, focusing on creativity alone, you find the art teacher who applauds the unrecognizable blob of paint smeared across the canvas. No fundamentals are taught, thus there is no improvement in the student’s artistic ability to reproduce what he or she envision in their mind.

In developing talent one should begin with the fundamentals of drawing and sketching; the proper technique for holding a charcoal pencil, how to create depth and realism, the ability to capture light and shadow…

Once the ground work for these fundamentals is thoroughly laid the precise principles that underlie all drawing and painting skills can be taught.

This does not stifle originality, but instead provides the best possible environment for it to grow.

When the fine art student has both a solid technical foundation and strong nurturing of creativity, they are then capable of producing what they conceive in their mind.

And that is exactly where any artist wants to be.”



Harry

Ethan Ong asked:


Shakespeare and all the greats have been reborn in the remarkable silhouette that is the Esplanade Singapore. Built for the specific purpose for art and culture, the Esplanade is a hub for everything and everything to do with plays, performances and the artistic pulse. The calendar in the esplanade is choked full of local and international performances all year round, so your literary tastes will be fulfilled.

No square inch of the esplanade is wasted. First we move into the concert halls, which has been home and will be home to many magnificent performances. Seating close to 2, 000 people at any one time and designed with the best acoustics - the concert hall has seen many diverse range of music performances from budding local performers to international concerto’s and full orchestra performances.

There is also a theatre and a theatre studio within the premises, also with a seating capacity of about 2, 000 people. Boasting the largest and most expansive performing stage in Singapore, the theatre is also a chameleon - able to adapt to any performance of any size, shape, form and orientation. With excellent lighting, state of the art staging equipment and acoustics that ensure you hear every shudder and whisper of the performer, the Esplanade theatre is a locale for live entertainment like you have never seen. A recital studio is also available within its durian like enclosure, for those intimate performances by speakers, poets and even cosy jazz recitals for crowds below 200.

The fun doesn’t stop there. With more than 20 other locations indoors and outdoors against fantastic views of the bay, the Esplanade is just a promise of fun and entertainment for anyone - however innovative, creative or experimental.

A quick visit to the webpage and clicking the ‘Whats on’ icon will show you a whole list of current attractions, events, performances as well as upcoming slots in the future. Anything from visual arts, theatre, concerts as well as multi arts performances will be displayed with a short blurb describing the event and what you can expect from it. The website is highly detailed and they can narrow down your search by time, place, and type of event/performance - you don’t have to run through the entire detailed list to find the sort of thing you would like to do. If you are in the mood for a Shakespearean sonnet or even a modern take on Jeffrey Chaucer, then all you have to do is key in the appropriate words and voila!, you will be taken to a page with your desires displayed in colourful icons.

Signing up for their weekly electronic newsletter is also highly recommended, as you get to be in the know of the latest happenings in esplanade and event highlights. You also get preferential treatment in some cases and access to special events and performances. The esplanade is the vindication of Singapore and the Arts Council efforts to raise the arts scene to another level and 20 years later after its initial planning is an epicentre of performance, a place where art thrives and flourish - all for the benefit for anyone who chooses to pass through its unique walls and grand performances.



Daniel

Saatchi Gallery asked:


The Saatchi Gallery is a contemporary museum and oasis specifically created for modern visual and performing arts aficionados as well as students who desire a place to satisfy their appetite for creativity, visual culture, and expression. It is a gallery/museum that shows the work of these young artists and was designed to foster the development of these persons who are unfamiliar with the processes involved in making it in the art business. It provides a wealth of support to the many students of art or the humanities who seek to broaden and deepen their awareness of the aesthetic culture that is represented in the artistic creations of contemporary painters and sculptors. The resource is also available to students and recent graduates of the performing arts and fashion designing discipline. More than just displaying, it facilitates the work of the artist through the frequent competitions and other opportunities for compensation advertised on the site. The resources provided by this vast and rich web community includes the Stuart Museum, in which students and recent graduates have the opportunity to upload their work and make it available for viewing to a worldwide internet audience.

The Saatchi Gallery features the work of the artists, but it will also offer a much more personal service to the students. It allows them personal and professional growth by offering opportunities for the student artist to communicate live and directly with members of the viewing public. Therefore, the student gains experience in presenting him/herself to the public, marketing and even selling his/her work online free of commission. Such experience is inestimable, as it includes exposure to sales, marketing, and promotion and improves their communication and people skills.

As a student, placing work on this site will usher you toward attaining the business and communication skills necessary to become successful in the fine arts industry.



Taylor

Shaun Parker asked:


The term creative arts is an umbrella description for a wide ranging and extremely diverse topic. If you consider yourself as a creative person with an idea of what skills you possess, then transforming these ideas into jobs can be difficult. Mostly due to the disparate industries that define themselves as being in the creative arts sector.

Probably the most far reaching of employment sectors, it contains art design, drama, film, publishing and music. All these subjects can be viewed as sectors in their own right and have an assortment of jobs related to them. Here I will try to clarify some of the career opportunities in each sector of the creative arts discipline.

Starting with art design as a sub category, a number of job roles are prevalent, in media and advertising graphic designers are in constant need to design advertising campaigns and often images for magazines and newspapers.

Also in this sector the role of cartoonists and animators is present, for those with a talent for drawing fun vibrant characters this is a very real option. This industry however functions on an extremely laborious medium so meticulousness is a necessity.

Drama and performing arts can also be viewed as fundamentally creative. Although some may dispel budding young actors from pursuing it as a career, there is more to the business than Hollywood. A number of smaller roles are constantly available in soap opera and television dramas. This is not to discount the stage as a valid career pursuit for those with the acting bug.

Also under the curtain of performing arts are the disciplines of dance, magic and comedy. Generally these are seen as gifts that require talent as well as expertise, although the dancing industry can be lucrative and breaking out can simply mean dancing in clubs as professional dancers.

Magicians are often requested at social events such as weddings and can make a fair wage purely undertaking private functions, whereas comedy has truly got to be a passion, its one thing being funny with your friends, but standing on stage in front of hundreds of people and making them laugh, could not be further removed from banter down the pub.

If blessed with the talents of writing the options are in many ways infinite. Granted it is a very small number of authors who become published and actually make a living from their writing, but that should turn people away from the medium. The press and media require creative writers in large numbers whilst the world of advertising has many uses for those skilled with a pen in their hand.

The music industry can also be brought under the creative arts umbrella, apart from the big band stars and vocalists on Top of the Pops the industry has a wide variety of jobs open to those who are interested.

Music production is often overlooked by the general public but in many cases it is producers who put the majority of work into records and not the stars. Also there are the more technical aspects such as dubbing mixers that give records their professional sound. Jobs in the music industry are advisable to anyone who lives and breathes melodies day and night.

Overall jobs in the creative arts incorporate so many different roles and skills that it is hard to make any generalizations about the industry. Apparently if you consider yourself as a creative person and have a real passion for what you do, be it sing, write, draw or act, finding jobs within your chosen sector will not be difficult.

Unfortunately it must be remembered that you will never be the only one who considers themselves creative enough for a job. Jobs within the creative arts sector are fiercely fought over, competition for positions is high and often low level positions are not so well paid.

Clearly employers in this industry look at your passion for a subject and willingness to achieve your goals in that field. Unless you truly desire jobs in this sector it is hard to break into the any of the industries mentioned above.



Henry