SIF's Fifth Arts for Good (A4G) Fellowship Closes with Convention in Singapore

27 February 2023

SIF's Fifth Arts for Good (A4G) Fellowship Closes with Convention in Singapore

Thirty local and international Fellows visit arts and social service organisations and share insights and creative solutions to address social challenges.

Fellows working in a group on an art project

Photo Gallery

From 9 to 13 January, 30 arts practitioners and social sector professionals from 12 countries, including Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Singapore and the United Kingdom, convened in Singapore for the Singapore International Foundation’s (SIF) A4G Fellowship 2022.

The Fellowship started virtually in October with a series of online discussions and a virtual arts performance. Then, for the first time after two years of being conducted online, the programme had an in-person component.

The Fellows met in Singapore to gain a better understanding of the country’s arts scene and to bond with each other through various activities. These included cultural exchange sessions at which Fellows engaged with key players in the Singapore arts and social service sectors. They visited social service organisations such as:

Enabling Village by SG Enable, an inclusive community space for people with disabilities
Club Rainbow, a non-profit organisation that supports and empowers children with chronic illnesses, and their families by providing relevant compassionate services
The Rice Company Limited (TRCL), a non-profit organisation that seeks to harness the potential of the arts to benefit under-served children and youths in the community

The Fellows then brainstormed arts-based solutions for the challenges and problem statements given by these organisations. For instance, Club Rainbow hopes to make its arts programme more accessible to the different beneficiary profiles. Some Fellows proposed to create customised art kits and regular activities that use these kits, to allow both parents and children to participate.

At the Enabling Village, the Fellows came up with suggestions for how SG Enable can engage visitors through art programming. They suggested putting together a disability-led Arts Festival to raise awareness about social inclusion and integration of differently abled individuals.

Mr Mark Beau De Silva, Malaysian Fellow and Programme Director at Taylor’s University in Selangor, said that he was inspired by the great work and positive impact produced by these Singapore organisations and the Fellows he met.

He added: “All the organisations and people I met during the A4G Fellowship have inspired me to not just work better for the community but understand the need to build stronger networks.”

“For example, the top-notch facilities within the Enabling Village ecosystem (by SG Enable) have motivated me to dream and design more holistic working spaces. It has illustrated the possibility to cater and care for differently abled individuals, even to introduce and assimilate them into the workforce.”

Indonesian Fellow Dani is a Consultant at the UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development. He said: “The Fellowship provided valuable insights and case studies to show how dulce et utile can be applied in the real world to address social challenges. For example, the playback theatre sessions reminded me of the Theatre of the Oppressed used for communal reconciliation in conflict-torn areas."

Fellows also visited several art exhibitions and programmes as part of the Singapore Art Week (SAW) 2023 held in the city centre and heartlands. One of the SAW activities that the Fellows experienced was Insect Inventorium, an art-meets-science interdisciplinary project that discovers and studies insects in Singapore’s Bukit Gombak neighbourhood.

Mr Nghia Nguyen Hoang is a Vietnamese Fellow and a hip-hop dance teacher at the Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation, a charity that helps street kids and rescues victims from slavery and human trafficking in Vietnam. He said that the Fellowship provided a valuable platform for him to connect and exchange ideas with artists around the world.

He added: “We will apply the ideas and knowledge that we have learnt through the programme to serve our community.”

The SIF’s A4G Fellowship aims to bring together a diverse community of professionals committed to creating positive social change through the arts. Upon completion of the programme, Fellows join a 260-strong global alumni network in which they continue to connect, support, and collaborate with one another.

A4G Fellows from 12 countries at the welcome dinner of the 2022 cohort in Singapore. Guests-of-Honour, SIF A4G Special Advisor Ms Rebecca Ng (second row from front, fourth from left), SIF Executive Director Ms Jean Tan and SIF Governor Ms Han Yong Hong also joined the occasion.
The Fellows visited the Enabling Village, an inclusive community space for people with disabilities. They learnt about its approach to social inclusivity, universal design, employment and employability.
The Fellows having fun during a workshop led by the SEED Collective, an organisation that focuses on applied drama and visual arts practices. The workshop was part of the programme’s community-building series comprising applied drama exercises and artmaking to envision the future.
A visit to The Rice Company Limited (TRCL). The Fellows learnt how it seeks to build a sustainable arts ecosystem to benefit under-served children and youths. They also worked together to creatively present their ideas on how to better involve parents in TRCL’s programmes.
A visit to Singapore Art Week exhibition, "Altered States: Painting Myanmar in a Time of Transition". This exhibition, held at the Singapore Management University’s de Suantio Gallery brought together art, technology, and culture through paintings from Myanmar.
Fellows met Ms Low Yen Ling (standing), Singapore’s Minister of State, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth & Ministry of Trade and Industry during their visit to the Insect Inventorium exhibition in Bukit Gombak Park. In her welcome remarks, she said that the A4G Fellowship is a critical vehicle that fosters a community of practice across the region and harnesses the power of arts and culture for social impact.
A4G 2021 Fellows joined the programme on the final day and engaged with the 2022 Fellows at a networking session. They are all now part of a 260-strong international alumni network, in which they will continue to connect, support, and collaborate with one another.