044-047_Grafitti
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Samantha Lo is a street artist from Singapore who was arrested in 2012 for vandalism but avoided jail time. She now creates sanctioned murals and installations for restaurants, cafes, and festivals. Her mural for Moosehead Kitchen and Bar depicts the restaurant's logo over a wheat paste background representing surveillance. Street artists have moved from spraying illegally on streets to being commissioned for interior design work in upscale restaurants and hotels in Singapore, though graffiti remains taboo. Artists profiled include Adam Wang, Anthony Chong, and Caratoes, who have added colorful murals to spaces like Spathe Public House, Kinki Restaurant, and Buttero.
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46 WINE & DINE WINE & DINE 47
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Adam Wang, going by the alias
DEM0365, chimes in on the lack of creative
freedom local artists face. [Business
owners] dont trust the artist to create
something they will like or they cant
accept whatever the artist comes up with,
he says. He adds that most clients would
rather get their moneys worth than stick
to the integrity of the aesthetics and the
artwork. Wangs first graffiti project was
for a hip-hop centric segment at the 2003
National Day Parade, together with the
CNC crew (a group of pioneer graffiti
artists in Singapore). Bold and versatile, the
graphic designer has become a favourite
among restaurants and bars looking for
mural painters. He has lent his paint to the
walls of Spathe Public House, two pillars at
Mexican eatery Lower East End, and also
done a four-storey wheat paste mural on
a corrugated metal wall at Pasarbella. Now
part of The Fellas, a branding and design
studio he set up with a partner, Wang
recently joined the RSCLS (pronounced
as rascals) which he believes is the most
influential urban art collective in Singapore.
Anthony Chong also known as ANTZ,
a co-founder of RSCLS, is no stranger to
mural painting for dining establishments. He
is responsible for Kinki Restaurant and Bars
graffiti-inspired wall d辿cor. His colourful
art, along with some done by tattoo artist
Chris Garver of Miami Ink fame, covers the
walls from the restaurant leading out to
the rooftop bar to recreate a back alley bar
scene in Tokyo.
After graduating from a 2D animator
course, Chong wanted to see his work
on canvases larger than a computer
screen and on paper, so he tried his hand
at street art. He says that his working
relationship with Kinki Restaurant and
Bar is continually evolving ever since
they engaged him for the job by word-
of-mouth recommendations four years
ago. We pretty much get free play on
our end as theyve worked with us a few
times before. They know we can create
something right after they provide us with
the measurements, he says. Chong, who
works full-time as a graphic designer, lets on
that its time for the younger generation of
artists who have joined the RSCLS collective
to get their hands dirty. He is currently
contented with trying out new mediums of
art such as toy sculpting.
RSCLS is made up of 10 members who
are based in Singapore, China, Philippines
and New York and include Lo, Wang and
Chong. Set up unofficially in 2006, the
urban art collective is spearheaded by its
founder Mohammed Zulkarnaen Othman,
also known as ZERO.
With RSCLS wide range of artistic
styles to choose from, many clients are
happy to give them the freedom to carry
out their own interpretation based on
simple instructions. They were [not only]
experienced and had a decent portfolio,
[but] listened to what we needed and were
trying to achieve, says Shawn Heng, co-
founder and director of Mad Men Attic Bar,
who got the group to paint on two walls
and a few canvases. For this project, the
team combined three different styles: classic
graffiti-writing for one wall, a caricature of a
moustached man for the other and abstract
graffiti on canvases hung throughout the
bar. The entire process from conceptualising
to completion took three members of RSCLS
four days.
Its not just local artists who get to wield
their paintbrushes in restaurants. Other
restaurants like Buttero also commissioned
foreign street artists to jazz up their interior.
The casual Italian joint on Tras Street
found out about Caratoes, a full-time
urban artist based in Hong Kong, through
her social media platform Instagram. The
Hong Konger, who was raised in Belgium
Left: Caratoes and her mural for
Buttero
Right: Samantha Los quirky
artwork at Moosehead Kitchen
and Bar
and has a degree in game design, has had
various experiences doing 3D animation and
advertising before she took to the streets.
At Buttero, her intricate larger-than-life
portrait of a four-eyed girl greets guests
once they walk in, giving the place what she
calls a bit more edge and soul. She says
the only challenge working in Singapore is
figuring out how to work with the limited
materials available.
At least Caratoes and her street
art peers have found more outlets to
express their passion in legitimate ways
in Singapore. Othman thinks graffiti in
eateries is an opportunity to push our
form of art to different people and into
different environments. Putting their art in
unexpected venues makes art appreciation
more accessible to the masses and that can
only be a good thing. WD](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/99a6edb4-8025-455b-a964-c1596ae1ee45-150520060148-lva1-app6891/85/044-047_Grafitti-2-320.jpg)
044-047_Grafitti
- 1. BURGHEAD BURGHEAD 44 WINE & DINE WINE & DINE 45 angphew Powkaboom wow splashgrr bangphew shooshboom Powkaboom wowbangp splashgrr bin phew Brrpow shooshb pong phe bang wow bangpong s S amantha Lo announced herself to Singapore in a bold way in 2012, spray-painting phrases like My Grandfather Road on roads and pasting stickers with irreverent messages on traffic lights and buildings. She was arrested for vandalisma crime that is punishable by caning and jail in Singaporebut managed to get away (thanks in part to an online debate on street art and its acceptance) with an order to perform community service. Today, Lo has perhaps the last laugh. She has been asked to create multiple installations like tongue-in-cheek signs and an interactive Easter eggs board in Sentosa, sculpted and exhibited her own toys at the Art Toy Culture Festival in Seoul, and drawn murals for restaurants and caf辿s including Moosehead Kitchen and Bar. She has now moved away from doing graffiti and considers herself more of a visual artist, focusing on finding her signature style while experimenting with toy sculpting. Im still a young artist trying to discover what I want to do, she says. Her next installation of a wheat paste mural will be at the George Town Festival 2014 in Malaysia, as part of a curated exhibition by Singaporean actress Tan Kheng Hua. Los work at Moosehead Kitchen and Bar, which depicts the Moosehead logo over a wheat paste mural of Peranakan tiles and surveillance cameras representing the constant scrutiny of authority, came about when the restaurants chef, Manel Valero, saw Lo pasting stickers outside the restaurant. Being an art student, he proposed they both work together on a mural as he felt Los social commentary- From Graffiti To These days, street artists have an expanded repertoire that ranges from painting in public spaces to conceptualising interior d辿cor for eateries. Lu Yawen speaks to a few creative individuals whose artwork has added some funkiness to your dining experience. Restaurant Murals inspired artwork was a good match for the restaurants elevated street food concept. As it wasnt a commissioned piece, Lo was given full creative freedoma boon for her, as street artists have to abide by strict guidelines when commisioned for a mural. TAKING STREET ART INDOORS Originating from the Italian term graffiato, graffiti or street art has come a long way from its anarchy-tinged, revolutionary roots. Formerly a visual expression of rebellion, art on the streets has turned into a universally recognised art form, and the individuals behind them have moved from spraying on public walls and roads to conceptualising upscale restaurants and hotels. In Singapore, however, graffiti, as Los arrest has shown, remains a fairly taboo subject. TOP: Adam Wangs mural at Spathe Public House LEFT: Graffiti at Kinki Restaurant and Bar ABOVE: RSCLS funky painting at Mad Men Attic Bar
- 2. BURGHEAD BURGHEAD 46 WINE & DINE WINE & DINE 47 bangphew wow splashgrr bangphew shooshboom Powkaboom splashgr bing phew Brrpow shooshb pong phe bang wow ban pong s bangphew wow splashgrr bangphew shooshboom Powkaboom wowbangpong splashgr bing phewbingbang Brrpowkongshooshb ng phew ng ow ban pong s Adam Wang, going by the alias DEM0365, chimes in on the lack of creative freedom local artists face. [Business owners] dont trust the artist to create something they will like or they cant accept whatever the artist comes up with, he says. He adds that most clients would rather get their moneys worth than stick to the integrity of the aesthetics and the artwork. Wangs first graffiti project was for a hip-hop centric segment at the 2003 National Day Parade, together with the CNC crew (a group of pioneer graffiti artists in Singapore). Bold and versatile, the graphic designer has become a favourite among restaurants and bars looking for mural painters. He has lent his paint to the walls of Spathe Public House, two pillars at Mexican eatery Lower East End, and also done a four-storey wheat paste mural on a corrugated metal wall at Pasarbella. Now part of The Fellas, a branding and design studio he set up with a partner, Wang recently joined the RSCLS (pronounced as rascals) which he believes is the most influential urban art collective in Singapore. Anthony Chong also known as ANTZ, a co-founder of RSCLS, is no stranger to mural painting for dining establishments. He is responsible for Kinki Restaurant and Bars graffiti-inspired wall d辿cor. His colourful art, along with some done by tattoo artist Chris Garver of Miami Ink fame, covers the walls from the restaurant leading out to the rooftop bar to recreate a back alley bar scene in Tokyo. After graduating from a 2D animator course, Chong wanted to see his work on canvases larger than a computer screen and on paper, so he tried his hand at street art. He says that his working relationship with Kinki Restaurant and Bar is continually evolving ever since they engaged him for the job by word- of-mouth recommendations four years ago. We pretty much get free play on our end as theyve worked with us a few times before. They know we can create something right after they provide us with the measurements, he says. Chong, who works full-time as a graphic designer, lets on that its time for the younger generation of artists who have joined the RSCLS collective to get their hands dirty. He is currently contented with trying out new mediums of art such as toy sculpting. RSCLS is made up of 10 members who are based in Singapore, China, Philippines and New York and include Lo, Wang and Chong. Set up unofficially in 2006, the urban art collective is spearheaded by its founder Mohammed Zulkarnaen Othman, also known as ZERO. With RSCLS wide range of artistic styles to choose from, many clients are happy to give them the freedom to carry out their own interpretation based on simple instructions. They were [not only] experienced and had a decent portfolio, [but] listened to what we needed and were trying to achieve, says Shawn Heng, co- founder and director of Mad Men Attic Bar, who got the group to paint on two walls and a few canvases. For this project, the team combined three different styles: classic graffiti-writing for one wall, a caricature of a moustached man for the other and abstract graffiti on canvases hung throughout the bar. The entire process from conceptualising to completion took three members of RSCLS four days. Its not just local artists who get to wield their paintbrushes in restaurants. Other restaurants like Buttero also commissioned foreign street artists to jazz up their interior. The casual Italian joint on Tras Street found out about Caratoes, a full-time urban artist based in Hong Kong, through her social media platform Instagram. The Hong Konger, who was raised in Belgium Left: Caratoes and her mural for Buttero Right: Samantha Los quirky artwork at Moosehead Kitchen and Bar and has a degree in game design, has had various experiences doing 3D animation and advertising before she took to the streets. At Buttero, her intricate larger-than-life portrait of a four-eyed girl greets guests once they walk in, giving the place what she calls a bit more edge and soul. She says the only challenge working in Singapore is figuring out how to work with the limited materials available. At least Caratoes and her street art peers have found more outlets to express their passion in legitimate ways in Singapore. Othman thinks graffiti in eateries is an opportunity to push our form of art to different people and into different environments. Putting their art in unexpected venues makes art appreciation more accessible to the masses and that can only be a good thing. WD