Does Singapore hold the key for the art world's future?

There is no shortage of high-profile art fairs in Asia but in only its third outing, Art SG looks determined to put even more daylight between itself and its Southeast Asian rivals. This year’s edition – which coincides with Singapore Art Week 2025 (17-26 January) – brings together 106 blue-chip galleries and exhibitors from 30 countries, among them London’s Waddington Custot, Thaddaeus Ropac, Gagosian, White Cube, Neugerriemschneider and Taipei’s Eslite Gallery, alongside local hotshots Fost Gallery and Gajah Gallery.

The quality of both the participants and the programme is, perhaps, a reflection of the rising cachet of Singapore’s collectors, the Art Basel and UBS Survey of Global Collecting 2024 pointing out that 97 per cent of Singapore’s high-net-worth collectors are not just the most optimistic about the global art market, they also rank among the highest in favouring art fairs to purchase art.

It certainly doesn’t hurt that Le Freeport Singapore, a high-security storage facility and tax-free zone near the airport, allows collectors, art dealers, and financial institutions to store and trade art and other investment-grade collectibles (such as wine, and precious metals) in a tax-exempt, climatically controlled environment.

For Art SG’s co-founder, Magnus Renfrew, the country’s existing collector base has been stimulated by the arrival of overseas collectors who are making Singapore their home. ‘This is the acknowledged hub for Southeast Asia, and it’s developing rapidly into the de facto nexus for the Indo Pacific. Beyond its status as the leading tech hub in Asia and centre for wealth management, the cultural landscape is developing, with new galleries, museums and private foundations opening in the city. All these factors make Singapore a key destination for global art audiences.’

This year’s programme is an energetic mix of art, many debuting at the fair, and talks featuring collectors and museum directors, with Art SG director Shuyin Yang particularly gung-ho about the series of film, video art and moving image artworks curated by Stefano Rabolli Pansera, the founding director of Bangkok Kunsthalle.

Ahead of the fair’s vernissage on 16 January, Wallpaper* takes an exclusive peek behind the hoardings at the Marina Bay Sands venue.

Antony Gormley

The Turner Prize laureate Antony Gormley continues his influential investigation of the human figure through architectural forms. Part of his ongoing Blockworks series, the sculpture breaks down the body into sharp geometric shapes, challenging our understanding of mass and void. Here, flesh is rendered in angles and planes, an altogether unsettling perspective that asks us to reconsider how our bodies relate to the spaces around them.

Tunji Adeniyi-Jones

Tunji Adeniyi-Jones’ Celestial Gathering brings together the Nigerian artist's distinctive figures and patterns on a large canvas of exuberant hues. First shown at the Nigerian Pavilion at the 2024 Venice Biennale, the painting demonstrates his approach to colour and movement, weaving cultural narratives through abstracted forms. The work travels next to Seoul as part of Adeniyi-Jones’ first Korean exhibition at White Cube.

Melissa Tan

Singaporean visual artist, Melissa Tan’s piece stands as the largest work in her metal sculpture series that began in 2018. This 3m sculpture combines mirror-finished stainless steel, epoxy resin and laser-cut elements to explore womanhood through the mythological Greek goddesses. The artwork's intricate patterns incorporate classical art references and astronomical data, with metal folds corresponding to asteroid trajectories, here a stellar metaphor for cyclical destinies.

Kim Yun Shin

Spanning two decades, the Argentina-based, North Korea-born Kim Yun Shin's work explores materiality and natural forms through Quebracho wood sculptures – and fragmented paintings. Her sculptures investigate humanity's relationship with nature and time, while her canvases split into increasingly minute divisions, creating tension between expansion and compression. Following her UK debut at Lehmann Maupin London next month, Kim will present a major show in New York in spring.

Naraphat Sakarthornsap

Best known for his trenchant commentary on queer identities in Asian culture, the Thai video-artist Naraphat Sakarthornsap turns his eye to the hidden inequalities within Asia’s economically divided societies, using as his metaphor the ubiquitous garlands of fresh, perishable flowers. Within the context of immense wealth represented by the Singapore fair, the irony of this video piece is none too subtle.

David Salle

David Salle's New Pastoral 1, 2, 3 represents an intriguing shift in his practice. By running his 2000-2002 Pastoral Paintings through an AI system, Salle creates unexpected collisions of imagery, which he then reworks by hand. The result is a series of paintings of oil, acrylic and charcoal on linen that feel both familiar and strange – Tim Burton-esque compositions that hover between machine logic and human intervention.

Art SG will be showing 17-19 January 2025 at Marina Bay Sands, 10 Bayfront Avenue, Singapore, artsg.com