Problems with Singapore's Art Scene

In less than a generation, Singapore transformed itself from third to first world and its economy developed at such a rapid pace which many people considered to be a miracle. However, its arts scene does not develop at similar pace and is in fact, developing at a very slow pace and is not as thriving compared to other developed nations. It is a universally acknowledged truth that a country in possession of a First World reputation must also have a thriving arts scene. Here are some of the challenges and problems faced by Singapore’s art scene which explains why it is not as thriving as expected.

First of all, Singaporeans have had the mentality that pursuing studies or careers in arts would not be as lucrative as science. When Singapore was in the process of rapid economic development as driven by the government after its independence, many jobs were created in sectors such as Engineering, Manufacturing and Construction. Obviously, being a developing nation back then, Singapore required many expertise in these sectors related to Science to develop its infrastructure and support the economy. Unfortunately, now that Singapore is already a developed nation, its conservative mentality of the people are still geared towards pursuing Science related studies and careers for a more secure and better future. Due to this reason, science related stream or courses in our secondary schools, junior colleges and tertiary institutions remain to be a more popular choice than arts related stream or courses. As a result, people formed the impression that only academically weaker students should pursue arts as an alternative option. To debunk this perception, the National Arts Council (NAC) has been developing ways to describe the importance of the arts to our society, economy, education, and well-being and actively engaging the public through organising a series of arts events island-wide occasionally. The NAC and National Heritage Board (NHB) have also jointly award the arts and heritage scholarships to nurture outstanding individuals who are able to contribute to Singapore’s arts scene.

There is also a myth that local artists are not as successful as international ones. Some people believe that due to the fact that academically weaker people pursue arts as an alternative option resulted in lower standard of artists in Singapore which attributed to less impressive achievements from our local artists in the international art scene. There are in fact artists such as Linying, our very own singer-songwriter who clinched a spot on Spotify’s US Viral 50 playlist which people who are not really interested in this area are not aware of. Perhaps there should be more publicity for the major achievements of our artists through various means such as television and Social Media where majority of our people spend lots of time in.

On the contrary, there are children who has interest and intend to pursue arts for leisure at a young age. Most of them love music and would like to take up classes in playing musical instruments such as piano, dancing or singing. These private lessons are often costly and usually only rich families can afford. To ensure that these children are not discouraged from pursuing arts for leisure due to cost, the government can award some subsidies to make lesson fees more affordable. This scheme would be something similar to the SkillsFuture credit which is given to Singaporeans aged 25 years and above with the exception that it is intended to expose local individuals to arts at a young age.

In recent years, Singapore hits the top of the table for being one of the most expensive city in the world to live in. Housing and office rental forms one of the main component contributing to this notorious international ranking. Art housing which is becoming more expensive than before hinders the development of arts scene through higher cost in rental and ticketing. Although rental charges are heavily subsidised by NAC, utilities and maintenance costs which are substantial are borne by the tenants. With donations from corporates and individuals fluctuating according to economic performance, NAC faces the difficulty to maintain the amount of funding provided to art practitioners. Only when people realised the importance of arts and the values it brings to us then funding would be more constant and substantial. NAC needs to continue with the uphill tasks of arts advocacy.