Civic Life in London .....

Almost one week ago, on 31 January 2011, 'Civic Life' was shown in London at the Curzon Renoir Cinema - where the latest addition to the body of work by Chris and Joe - Tiong Bahru - received its London Premier!

Needless to say, during the Q&A, many, in the almost full house - were impressed by the body of work, and also how Tiong Bahru brought together many of the duo's earlier themes and concerns in a well considered and lyrical manner.... (more reviews in separate posting coming up soon!)



Here are some pictures of the event - kindly sponsored by the Singapore International Foundation, who brought over not just the taste of home - but also, lots of items that gave the UK audience an idea of the architectural and social heritage of Singapore (thanks to White Canvas Gallery for the posters of the sketches that was done last year!!! Big shout to you all there!) ...





and also of the multi-ethnic-lingual-cultural environment that we should be proud of and should cherish and nurture!



Amongst the guests were many ex-expats who spent time in Singapore, film buffs, and also those who were interested in community engagement through art.... and during the reception, many groups of Singaporeans based in London were seen discussing what was the meaning of 'home' in a globalised world...







Your correspondant here with Chris and Joe... who we have to thank for working with us in Tiong Bahru to realise the film...





And here is Ms Tan Shzr Ee, who provided the Mandarin voice-over for part of the film, with the poster of the film!



We were also very pleased that the event was graced by our High Commissioner H.E. Michael Teo... more pictures to follow!

In the meantime, wishing one and all - a GREAT START to the New Year!

Tiong Bahru in Europe....and the British Isles

Hello everyone... while you are all undoubtedly getting busy for the up-coming holidays, just an update on the film that is now beginning to work its way around Europe...

First, It appears in the Rotterdam International Film Festival:





Then this coming Monday, in London, it has a showing in Central London at the Renoir Cinema (known for art films!) where there is a special Q&A session with the film directors, and kindly hosted by the Singapore International Foundation.




So, that's all for now - and we will keep you updated!

Short film, nice prize! just 90 Seconds!

WIN A CANON EOS 7D in just 90 seconds!



Show us WHERE YOU HEART IS and you could win a CANON EOS 7D and a trip to the UK's leading short film festival.

Click here for details.

We are asking you to show us the places in Singapore that matter to you, and already we have had some lovely work submitted.

See: http://civiclife.sg/competition-gallery-new.php

Check out details of the CANON EOS 7D, which has full HD video recording capability, here: http://www.canon-europe.com/cpn_eos7d/ and find out more about Encounters, the UK's leading short film festival, here: http://www.encounters-festival.org.uk/

Closing date is Friday, September 17th, so get filming!

WHERE THE HEART IS is a collaboration between the British Council, the National Museum of Singapore, Encounters Short Film Festival and the Singapore International Foundation.

Happy National Day! I love Tiong Bahru, I love Singapore!

Here's a wish for a Happy National Day to all of us here who live in, or are fans of Tiong Bahru....




Our first ever community banner with the signatures of the residents who came for the tea party. Do add yours in!


(pictures courtesy of Zaihan, of WCS) The Banner will be up on display for the duration of August.

Last weekend, we had our first ever party to mark the 'launch' of our special Community National Day Banner.

Instead of having a typical design that is generic, Seng Poh RC thought to ask if the White Canvas Gallery would consider contributing the outcome of the sketchwalk through the estate, to create a special National Day banner that would have a real local flavour.

WCS and the artists of the walk readily agreed, and it was put together into what you see above. The design of the banner was done by WCS, and we hope you will agree that it is really quite eye-catching!

On the day of the launch party on 1 August, even though it was overcast and drizzled, many residents turned up to see what the banner was all about, and we have to say that all of them were pleasantly surprised to see our home town captured first in an artistic form, and secondly, transformed into a banner!

Young and Old were excited to sign their name on the banner - often looking for that particular sketch that showed their block or their street.






(Pictures courtesy of Barnie Leow)

Even those who did not plan to come to the event, but passed by, were happy to see the banner, and added their name to it, and then joined in to have a cup of tea and a chat with their neighbours.



(Pictures courtesy of Barnie Leow) The little girl at the bottom left of the picture was looking for her sketch.

So, what else is there to say but that, we do love our neighbourhood, and we do appreciate how Art can make us recognize the beauty of our hometown! Seng Poh RC is thankful for the helpful folks at WCS, the 4 artists - Don, Tia, Miel and Paul, and all the other enthusiasts who turned up for the sketch walk and made the banner possible.

Happy National Day everyone - as we so love our hometown, we can then also love our country....



p.s. Seng Poh RC welcomes opportunities for collaborative events between all who are interested in the neighbourhood, especially where the event is an opportunity for residents and friends of the estate to meet. If you have any proposals, do drop us an email here - we will forward it to the RC.

Have you entered the competition yet?

The British Council sponsored Civic Life project is having its 'Where the Heart Is' film competition for all who live on this island of Singapore...




90 seconds is all it takes to get your chance to win a place to the world's most prestigious short film festival later this year...

read more about it on:

WHERE THE HEART IS

All the best!

Next Art Exhbition at White Canvas Gallery... Fernando Escora

If you have enjoyed the pen work of our sketches at the inaugural show at the WCS, here is the next show for you to consider ...




Do check out the show, which is on from 22 July to 7 August 2010.

For more details of the artist - check out the WCS website.

Its good to see more arts and cultural events in our neighbourhood - and if any one of you have similar events, do drop us a line with the details... we will be glad to post it up for you!

Pictures from the sketch walk....

Many thanks to the White Canvas Gallery for organizing the first ever sketch walk in Tiong Bahru - it was very encouraging to see about 100 enthusiasts coming along to look, and to draw our hometown! Here are some pictures of the event....























they drew everything!

And guess what - we will be using the sketches to form our National Day Community Banner - which will be launched jointly by Seng Poh RC and WCG on 1 August at Seng Poh Garden (more details to come)

Some of the participants - who came from both Tiong Bahru as well as beyond (so glad to know that we have friends from all over Singapore!), have asked if it could be done again... well, lets see how it goes?

:)

Thanks to Barnie for the pictures!

Sketchwalk 17 July 2010 at Tiong Bahru

A reminder of the upcoming community event organised by our lovely partners in the 'hood - White Canvas Gallery.

SKETCHWALK WITH TIA BOON SIM, PAUL WANG, DON LOW and MIEL.

Sketches by all participants - we hope you can also contribute your work to the creation of this year's National Day Community Banner for Seng Poh (Tiong Bahru) Estate.

WCG will help to take pictures of all the sketches that are created this coming Saturday, to be compiled, in collaboration with Seng Poh RC, into our very first special Banner that will be on display at the Seng Poh Tea Garden from 1 August 2010 (More details coming soon)

17 July, Saturday, 2 pm
SKETCHWALK by ARTISTS, OPEN TO ALL, MEET AT THE GALLERY.
FREE

BEGINNERS WELCOME!

For more information:
Call Ricky at the White Canvas Gallery: 62208723
or
Email: ricky@whitecanvas-gallery.com

Here is a preview of the sketchers at work.

Civic Life - Tiong Bahru The Movie - Read all about The STARS

Hello!

Some of you were seen at the filming over last weekend... I am sure all of you had fun! For the rest of you... find out more about how it looked - lots of lovely pictures shot by Samantha Tio....and on the Flickr Album here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/48246027@N05/sets/72157624257551435/

The event was also covered substantially by many journalists, including The Online Citizen. Read all about TOC's review of it and their interview with the STARS from our community here, where the 'stars' from the community are featured!



From Left: Joe Lawlor, Christine Malloy, Leo Mak, Mdm Lim, and Veronica Patricia Rio
Picture by Samantha Tio

Sketches of Tiong Bahru - 30 June to 17 July

Last night was the grand opening of the first local art show that is focused on our neighbourhood, at our new local gallery White Canvas Gallery. Run by Colin, Maria and Ricky, their gallery's first show is dedicated to our home town.

Through the eyes of Tia Boon Sim, Don Low, Miel and Paul Wang, the sketches, in the different styles, showcase the sometimes hidden beauty of our estate.





















Do catch the show, the sketches are beautiful!

Most works are for sale, and you may consider getting something for your own flat...

2 other events that you can consider joining in as part of the exhibition:

3 July, Saturday, 2 pm
ARTISTS TALK at THE GALLERY

17 July, Saturday, 2 pm
SKETCHWALK by ARTISTS, OPEN TO ALL, MEET AT THE GALLERY.
FREE

For more information:
Call Ricky at the White Canvas Gallery: 62208723
or
Email: ricky@whitecanvas-gallery.com

One more week to go to the film!

Just to share a message from the Tiong Bahru Civic Life project....

______________

With just one week to go before the shooting of Civic Life: Tiong Bahru, filmmakers Joe and Christine reflect on the consultations with the community of the estate over the past three months, and look ahead to the week to come, in a new post on the Civic Life blog.

Read their thoughts and a preview of the storylines that are emerging at

http://www.civiclife.sg/blog/



We hope you can be part of it!

Best wishes

British Council

The Community Photo Show is up! 16-30 May

The Community Photo Show - Tiong Bahru Through the Years - is up now at the Tiong Bahru CC. It is kindly sponsored by the Tiong Bahru CC.
Mr Goh of Tiong Poh Road and his grandchild, glad that the Pre-War Estate was conserved.

Many thanks to all those friends and neighbours (you know who you are) who shared their pictures of their family, friends and also, personal artistic views of our Tiong Bahru Estate.

Come check out lots of old pictures of friends and neighbours having fun in the 'hood.

Read a unique story by long term resident Peter Lim about a forgotten story of our neigbourhood.

Also look out for 3 sets of work where 3 local photographers - Barnie, Lawrence and Marc explore the estate in terms of Infra-Red, Historic Trades, and the refreshing Mornings around us.

We even have a full feature on our feline friends!

Suitable for all ages, and it would be wonderful if you could bring your family, friends and neighbours along....

Dates: 16-30 May 2010

Venue: Tiong Bahru Community Centre Reading Room, Eu Chin Street

Hours: 10am to 10pm daily

Free.

We are also looking for more pictures old and new - send in yours and your stories to us!

We want the pictures to be part of Civic Life. And perhaps, a bigger show next year!

Lets all fall in love with Tiong Bahru all over again.

Up-coming photo-walks and photo class at Seng Poh RC

For those of you who are into photography, here is a chance to take part in a photo walk that is organised in our neighbourhood... Those of you who live in the estate may have already seen the noticeboards.

More details are on the forum: www.tiongbahru.org

The first two Walks will take us to revisit Dempsey Road, and the Tan Tock Seng Grave site. Both are interesting places to go, the former a lot more gentrified while the latter is more mysterious (especially if you have no idea what there is there!) and if you are not familiar with who Tan Tock Seng is, beyond that he founded a hospital, you can read more about the great man here.

We've posted up the new PhotoWalks on TiongBahru.Org, and you can access them at http://tiongbahru.org/viewtopic.php?t=693 (remember, you need to log in to view the forum).

There is also an up-coming class on the post-processing of photographs. A minimum sign up of participants is needed.


Details here

Please spread the word and do sign up!

:)

Seng Poh RC is at the ground floor of Block 48, Moh Guan Terrace.

A show on Art Deco!

If you wanted to find out more about Art Deco interior finishings, - the style which Tiong Bahru Pre-War estate is built in, don't miss this exhibition that is now on at the Alliance Francaise.

A rare opportunity to see the taste of the era.

And perhaps get some inspiration for your interiors!

Alliance Francaise
Societe Generale Private Banking Gallery
Sarkies Road

Till 11 May 2010. Don't miss it!

Tiong Bahru Market and the Movie - come join in!

The Straits Times
Life!
Apr 29, 2010
By Magdalen Ng

London-based film-makers Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy were shocked during their first visit to Tiong Bahru Market when their order of carrot cake arrived.

Lawlor and Molloy decided on Tiong Bahru for their film project as it was one of the oldest Housing Board (sic) estates. They are now familiar with the popular food stalls at the market. -- ST PHOTO: DESMOND FOO

'It looked nothing like the carrot cake that we were used to. But it's quite good, actually,' says Lawlor in a recent interview with Life! at the Tiong Bahru Market.

Now he and his wife are no longer strangers to the market and even know which hawker stalls are the most popular.

They have been speaking to store owners and visitors to the area as part of their research for the next short film that they are making.

Set in and around the Tiong Bahru estate, the movie is part of Civic Life: Tiong Bahru, a community arts project exploring identity, memory, architecture, a sense of place and civic space that will take place in the second half of this year.

The project is a collaboration between the British Council and the National Museum of Singapore with support from the Singapore International Foundation. There will also be an online film competition for Singaporeans.

'The British Council is a cultural relations agency whose aim is to create meaningful discussions around the ideas of creativity, culture and education. This project involves close collaboration with our Singaporean partners and a rich engagement between Singaporean and British artists,' says Mr Dan Prichard, director of programmes of the British Council in Singapore.

He adds: 'Joe and Christine's films are beautiful, but it is their commitment to the community and their engagement with the community at all levels in the project that make the Civic Life films so special.'

Lawlor and Molloy's movie, as yet untitled, is the third in a series of short films involving communities that they are making.

The first two Civic Life films were set in Dublin, Ireland, the duo's hometown. Moore Street was filmed along the iconic street where many migrant communities settle, while Leisure Centre focused on the leisure centre situated on Main Street Ballymun, which has long been associated with crime and poverty in the media. Both films were praised at various international film festivals.

For their Singapore film, they surveyed other places including Bedok before deciding on Tiong Bahru, because it is one of the oldest estates in Singapore, and is a place rich with history and culture. Also, almost every Singaporean they encountered seemed to have an opinion about Tiong Bahru Market.

'Some of the people we spoke to used to live here and have since moved away. But they still come back week after week to eat their favourite food,' says Lawlor.

Molloy adds: 'But there are others who refuse to come back after the refurbishment of the market, because they feel it's no longer the same place they remember.'

While filming is slated to take place in June, they are still working on the plot and script after three visits to Singapore. They plan to develop the script gleaned from conversations with residents and visitors in the area.

They are also inviting people to contribute their memories of the place to the project at the website, http://www.civiclife.sg./

'There are certain things that we will definitely include, but we don't know exactly what we want to do yet,' says Lawlor.

songyuan@sph.com.sg

Submit your memories of Tiong Bahru for this project at www.civiclife.sg