Imaginarium 2018

Imaginarium 2018: Into the Space of Time

Dauntless time travellers!

Singapore Art Museum welcomes you back to our annual family-friendly exhibition with Imaginarium: Into the Space of Time. Through the eyes of 10 contemporary artists around the world, this year’s Imaginarium takes a closer look at the concept of time, and the tales and theories that shape our memories and futures.

Mysterious yet imbued in every living being, time has fascinated humankind for ages. From charting the movements of planets to cataloguing our days, new tools of measure are constantly being created to frame or direct our lives. Join us as we discover what the fourth dimension means to different people and cultures.

Through immersive and interactive artworks, we invite all time travellers who visit Imaginarium: Into the Space of Time to engage your senses and expand your horizons in this journey through time.

#imaginariumSG

View this exhibition on Google Arts & Culture.

 Sam

artists & artworks

Boedi Widjaja
Round and round and back home again (2018)

GedAze Project, The
Passage (2018)

Lee Mei Ling
Connect-the-Dots (2018)

Lee Xin Li
In Our Time (2018)

Maarten Baas
Sweepers’ clock (2009)

Madeleine Flynn & Tim Humphrey
the megaphone project (2007 – 2018)

Matthew Sia
Cosmic Grass (2018)

Mayuko Kanazawa
Utsuroi Iroha (2014)

Ronald Apriyan
Song of Life (2018)

Stéphane Masson
Momentarium (2018)

view online exhibit
virtual exhibition tour

imaginarium short films

Catch a special selection of short films revolving around the concept of time. Screening daily at the Moving Image Gallery, Level 2, SAM at 8Q. Total run-time: 7 short films, 42 minutes on loop. Parental guidance is advised.
the girl and the cat (PG) Sam
the girl and the cat (PG)

directed by Ervin Han and Bernard Toh
2017, Singapore, 13 min, No dialogue

 

A young girl is separated from her mother at a pasar malam (night market) and meets a cat who brings her deep into the underbelly of the bazaar where fantasy meets reality. Her courage and tenacity will be tested as she tries to survive with the help of her feline friends and find a way back to her mother.

 

About Ervin Han and Bernard Toh

Ervin Han has over 14 years’ experience in the media industry. He has created, produced and directed animated TV series, web series, short films and commercials. Ervin is a passionate storyteller with a desire to see more Asia-centric animated stories brought to life.

Bernard Toh started his career in animation almost 15 years ago, working in animation, production design and art directing several international animated TV series where he honed his craft in all aspects of animation design and production.

aurélie's garden (G) Sam
aurélie's garden (G)

directed by Qistina Ruslan 
2015, Malaysia, 5 min, No dialogue [Singapore Premiere]

 

Aurélie, a quiet florist, chances upon a journey that leads to self-discovery, new friends, and a realisation that we all play a part in the world.

 

About Qistina Ruslan

Qistina Ruslan is a Stop-Motion Animator, Filmmaker, and Foundation Lecturer from Subang Jaya, Malaysia. Her films, focusing on high contrast, dreamlike imaginative other worlds filled with weird creatures and odd humour, are heavily influenced by the works of directors such as Guillermo del Toro, Terry Gilliam, Wes Anderson, Tim Burton and books by Dr. Suess.

the little bird and the caterpillar (G) Sam
the little bird and the caterpillar (G)

directed by Lena von Döhren
2017, Switzerland, 4 min, No dialogue [Singapore Premiere]

 

It's summertime. High above in a maple tree, a little bird cherishes and nurtures the green leaves that make up his home. Suddenly, a hungry caterpillar sets out to eat the appetising leaves. An adventurous journey begins when the feathered creature manages to lure the glutton away. 

 

About Lena von Döhren

Born in Berlin, Germany, Lena Von Döhren received her MA in Animation and Illustration at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Switzerland. The Little Bird and the Caterpillar is her third film in the Little Bird series, which includes her graduation film The Little Bird and the Leaf (2012), and The Little Bird and the Squirrel (2014). The short films were screened at the Berlinale and have achieved dozen of awards internationally. Lena plans to finish the series with a fourth and final episode.

mr. night has a day off (G) Sam
mr. night has a day off (G)

directed by Ignas Meilunas
2016, Lithuania, 2 min, No dialogue [Singapore Premiere]

 

Mr Night, a malevolent creature of the sky, gets tired of seeing everything in bright and sunny colours—and, with a wink towards the audience, sets out to change it.

 

About Ignas Meilunas

Ignas Meilunas has worked as a 3D and stop-motion animator for films, games and TV ads from 2010. His debut short animation Woods (2015), a fiction short film has won the Lithuanian Film Academy 2015 award for Best Animation Film. Since then, he freelances as an animation director and animator for films. Mr Night has a Day Off was screened at the Annecy Animation Festival and New York International Children’s Film Festival in 2017.

my world (G) Sam
my world (G)

directed by Miyako Makio
2017, Singapore, 6 min, No dialogue [Singapore Premiere]

 

A world once filled with life starts deteriorating, causing everyone living there to stop functioning completely. Everything changes when a little light bulb girl wakes up and started working again. 

 

About Miyako Makio

Miyako Makio is a Japanese illustrator, comic artist, storyboard artist, and 2D animator. She has a strong passion in storytelling since she was young that led her to Singapore and study animation at the LASALLE College of the Arts. Her involvement as a visual development artist and animator for the short animation student film, The Hunt (2016) was nominated for 6 awards, including The Crowbar Award 2016 and Across Asia Youth Film Festival Awards 2017.

pulang (going home to indonesia) (G) Sam
pulang (going home to indonesia) (G)

directed by Dessy TAB
2016, Indonesia, 5 min, Bahasa Indonesia with English subtitles [Singapore Premiere]

 

What's it like to move to another country? A young girl recalls how her family returned home from France to Indonesia, but memories get entangled with the child's own imagination and fantasies.

 

About Dessy TAB

Dessy TAB is an Indonesian animator born in France. She started her career as an animator by participating in animation competitions during her college days at Bandung Institute of Technology, Indonesia. She has won national awards mostly for her short animations and public social advertisements, and has been working as an independent animator, designer, and illustrator. Dessy was chosen to participate in an animation masterclass held collaboratively by Goethe Institut Indonesien, Institut Français Indonesie, and SAE Institut Jakarta, where Pulang was completed and had premiered at Dok Leipzig 2016 in Germany. In January 2018, Dessy was selected as the residency artist in Rimbun Dahan, Malaysia to work on the pre-production for her next animation.

eclipse (PG) Sam
eclipse (PG)

directed by Jerrold Chong
2016, Singapore, 6 min, No dialogue 

 

A son visits his estranged father on the day of an impending solar eclipse. An event of cosmic significance coincides with an emotional revelation for father and son. 

 

About Jerrold Chong

Director and animator Jerrold Chong graduated in 2016 with a BFA in Animation at the CalArts. An avid lover of cinema, he is fascinated by the power of animated cinema as abstract visual metaphor and is driven by a desire to tell sincere stories that examines the depths of everyday life and the complexities of the human experience. His films have screened at numerous international film festivals, including Animatricks Animation Festival in Helsinski, and Singapore International Film Festival. He hopes to write and direct an animated feature film in the future. Eclipse has won the Animation Award Winner for Berlin Student Film Festival 2017.