“A Story of The Image” exhibition @ The National Museum of Singapore - Alvinology

“A Story of The Image” exhibition @ The National Museum of Singapore

City of Antwerpen, Belgium
City of Antwerpen, Belgium

This is an interesting exhibition which I visited some weeks back, together with a bunch of omy.sg invited bloggers.

The Story of the Image is an exhibition initiated by the non-profit organization SingAnt (SingaporeAntwerp) and curated by the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA) and the Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp (MuHKA), which have also lent the works of art together with the Museum Plantin-Moretus/Print room Antwerp. The logistic organization was provided by the City of Antwerp, together with the Shanghai Art Museum and the National Museum of Singapore. In short, a multinational ensemble came together to make this exhibition possible. 🙂

The exhibition presents a collection of artworks from the city of Antwerp (Belgium), which is both an historical and contemporary centre for the development of the possibilities of the image. The artworks embody the balancing act between the visible and the invisible.

The exhibition features classical masterpieces by well-known names like Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) and Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641), as well as works by top contemporary artists such as Luc Tuymans, David Claerbout, Francis Alys, Marlene Dumas and Berlinde de Bruyckere. An unique mix.

Selected pieces from the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA):

Curator introducing Anthony Van Dyck ( 1599-1641)s Portrait of a Nobleman on a Horse
Museum curator introducing Anthony Van Dyck ( 1599-1641)s Portrait of a Nobleman on a Horse
David Teniers II (1610-1690): The Temptation of Saint Anthony of Egypt
David Teniers II (1610-1690): The Temptation of Saint Anthony of Egypt
Abel Grimmer (1555/75-1610/30): The Four Seasons, Autumn, 1607
Abel Grimmer (1555/75-1610/30): The Four Seasons, 1607
David Rijckaert III (1612-1661): Soldiers engaged in plundering a Farm and a Church
David Rijckaert III (1612-1661): Soldiers engaged in plundering a Farm and a Church
Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640): Lamentation over the Dead Christ - the most expensive piece on exhibit
Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640): Lamentation over the Dead Christ - the most expensive piece on exhibit

Selected pieces from the Museum Plantin-Moretus/Print room Antwerp:

Joannes I Sadeler (1550-1600), after Judocus Winghe: A House of Ill-Fame, 1588
Joannes I Sadeler (1550-1600), after Judocus Winghe: A House of Ill-Fame, 1588
A piece depicting war
A piece depicting war
Pieter van der Heyden (ca. 1530-1572/92), after Pieter I Brueghel (the elder): The Thin Kitchen, c.1563
Pieter van der Heyden (ca. 1530-1572/92), after Pieter I Brueghel (the elder): The Thin Kitchen, c.1563
Abraham Verhoeven (1575-1652): The Battle at the Blokkersdijk near Antwerp, 1605
Abraham Verhoeven (1575-1652): The Battle at the Blokkersdijk near Antwerp, 1605 - Hand coloured engraving

Selected pieces from the Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp (MuHKA):

Marlene Dumas: Indian Summer, 1996
Marlene Dumas: Indian Summer, 1996
These look like rows of bums to me
These look like rows of bums to me
Interesting piece that plays with optical illusion
Narcisse Tordoir: Personage, 1991 - piece that plays with optical illusion
– a series of fading images on cibachrome that seek to show the transient nature of some images”]Charif Benhelima: Park, 2005 [series Black-out] - a series of fading images on cibachrome that seek to show the transient nature of some images
Literal Hot Cross Buns
Literal "Hot Cross Buns"
Vaast Colson: Helena’s Sculpture, 2007 - A large, rectangular piece of furniture houses several portraits that Vaast Colson painted of Helena, the daughter of the artist Martin Kippenberger.
Vaast Colson: Helena’s Sculpture, 2007 - A large, rectangular piece of furniture houses several portraits that the artist painted of a girl
These are artworks too
These are artworks too
Photograph of a brick wall, made to look like a painting
Photograph of a brick wall, made to look like a painting
A sheet with soiled semen
A sheet with soiled semen
Francis Alÿs: When Faith Moves Mountains, Lima, Peru, April 11, 2002 - 500 volunteers answered an invitation by the artist to pick up a shovel to displace by a few centimetres a large sand dune near the slums surrounding Lima.
Francis Alÿs: When Faith Moves Mountains, Lima, Peru, April 11, 2002 - 500 volunteers pick up a shovel to displace a large sand dune by a few cm
Video showing the dune being displaced
Video showing the dune being displaced
Nude artist frolicking on screen
Nude artist frolicking on screen
An arresting photo portrait
An arresting photo portrait
An interactive video installation that features a rat which will run from one screen to another as a person approaches either side of the work
An interactive video installation that features a rat which will run from one screen to another as a person approaches either side of the work
Berlinde De Bruyckere: In Flanders’ Fields, 2000
Berlinde De Bruyckere: In Flanders’ Fields, 2000
Five life size casts of horses, wholly covered in horse fur and adorned with manes, lie on the ground or balanced on trestles.
Five life size casts of horses, wholly covered in horse fur and adorned with manes, lie on the ground or balanced on trestles.
This installation was inspired by photographs of battlefields during the First World War,
This installation was inspired by photographs of battlefields during WWI
The artist presents an image of beauty and sorrow, security and suffocation that seems to be fighting for attention.
The artist presents an image of beauty and sorrow, security and suffocation that seems to be fighting for attention.
Blogger, Aussie Pete examining one of the horses up-close
Blogger, Aussie Pete examining one of the horses up-close
A black horse
A black horse

If you are interested to visit this exhibition, more details are available at the National Museum of Singapore website:

VENUE: National Museum of SIngapore, Exhibition Galleries 1 & 2
DATE: FRI 14 AUG 2009 – SUN 31 OCT 2009
TIME: 10:00am – 6:00pm

TICKETING INFORMATION:

S$8 Adult
S$4 Senior (above 60 years old) & NSF
Free for all students with a student pass.
Free admission for children 6 years and under.
Free entry to all galleries for seniors (locals and PR’s), everyday.
Free entry to all galleries for seniors (tourists), every Monday.

Technorati Tags: a story of the image, a story of the image singapore, The National Museum of Singapore, singant, singaporeantwerp, singapore antwerp, royal museum of fine arts antwerp, kmska, musem of contemporary art antwerp, muhka, museum plantin-moretus, print room antwerp, city of antwerp, shanghai art museum, peter paul rubens, anthony van dyck, luc tuymans, david claerbout, francis alys, marlene dumas, berlinde de bruyckere, portrait of a nobleman on a horse, david teniers II, the temptation of saint anthony of egypt, abel grimmer, the four seasons, david rijckaert III, soldiers engaged in plundering a farm and a church, lamentation over the dead christ, joannes I Sadeler, after Judocus Winghe: A house of ill-fame, the thin kitchen, pieter van der heyden, after Pieter I brueghel the elder, abraham verhoeven, the battle at the blokkersdijk near antwerp, indian summer, narcisse todoir, personage, charif benhelima, park, vaast colson, helena’s sculpture, when faith moves mountains, in flanders’ fields, aussie pete

5 comments

  1. Great coverage of the exhibition and makes me wish I was there. It is interesting to see how extensive the range of artworks are, and how European art has evolved so significantly from the 17th or 16th century all the way to the present age. Somehow those horses remind me of Damien Hirst and his propensity to use animal carcasses as artworks.

  2. hey alvin – didn’t realised you took THAT much pictures! your own story of the images…. btw – if you wanna check some other stuff going on – this sunday it’s hari raya, and all the NHB museums are having open house/free admissions

  3. Berlinde De Bruyckere uses animal hide to reproduce an image derived from memory in 3D form. Although it may make you think of Damien Hirst’s use of animals, their intentions are diametrically different. Hirst is about shocking the audience through sensational imagery, while De Bruyckere is really trying to bring to life a distant memory. Its more akin to recreating that memory realistically than to use animals to shock or sensationalise. That’s the fundamental difference in their approach in my opinion. Just my 2-cents worth…………

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