The Private Museum

“City life yields choices that change us, weaving an Urban Veil that thickens; we no longer see ourselves as part of the natural world.” The typescript imprinted on a wall of The Private Museum was attributed as a quote to Nandita Mukand, one of two artists behind the museum’s latest exhibition, ‘From Lost Roots to Urban Meadows’. The other mind behind the exhibition – Madhvi Subrahamanian – is similarly an artist that deliberates the interconnectedness of the natural and urban environments through sculptures and installations. It is no coincidence that both artisans in the spotlight are women – the joint…

Enter Optimism is Ridiculous: The Altarpieces, a travelling exhibition by Natee Utarit that finds a new home in the intimate space of The Private Museum from 24 January to 11 March 2018. The exhibition features seven pieces from the series, a part of Utarit’s satirical critique of Western modernism. Paying homage to classical religious paintings with elaborate frames and settings, the works are adorned with multiple panels forming diptychs, triptychs, and polyptychs. Each piece is stunningly grand – both in terms of sheer size and context – and invites viewers to decipher the rich, suggestive undertones held in each painting.…

Takuji Kogo: *CANDY FACTORY PROJECT 2017 is a flavorful exhibition that left a tart, somber taste. The mobile exhibition features independent pieces from internationally acclaimed artists including Takuji Kogo and Charles Lim, and touches on the consequences of geopolitics, with lingering hints of dystopia. Their works focus on the observations and experiences of the subjects living in national borders. Thought-provoking and immersive, each article is economical in providing context, yet giving enough for you to be critical of the situation it renders. The works are left open-ended, leaving you the fill in the blanks. Some of the pieces were especially…