Young Artist Award
Winner
Melissa Tan
BA (Hons) Fine Arts, Class of 2011
Image: National Arts Council
The Cultural Medallion was instituted in 1979 to recognise individuals whose artistic excellence, as well as contribution and commitment to the arts, have enriched and distinguished Singapore’s arts and cultural landscape. The Cultural Medallion is presented by the President of Singapore and administered by the National Arts Council.
The Young Artist Award was introduced in 1992 to encourage the development of young artistic talents in Singapore. The award is accorded to young artists below the age of 35 who have shown promise of artistic excellence in the fields of literary arts, performing arts, visual arts and film. It encourages young practitioners to continue pursuing excellence in the arts, and to look towards inspiring others.
See entries belowMelissa Tan
BA (Hons) Fine Arts, Class of 2011
Image: National Arts Council
He Shuming
BA(Hons) Film, Class of 2012
Photo courtesy of the National Arts Council.
He Shuming is a screenwriter-director. Following his graduation from LASALLE, he moved to Los Angeles in 2012, where he received his MFA in Directing at the American Film Institute Conservatory.
His short documentary ‘Letters From The Motherland’, was part of the omnibus 667, which premiered internationally at the 22nd Busan International Film Festival in 2017. He is currently working on his debut feature film, Ajoomma, which recently won the top prize at the Southeast Asian Fiction Film Lab (SEAFIC) and the Best Co-Production Prize at IFFM Macau in 2018.
Weixin Quek Chong
BA(Hons) Fine Arts, Class of 2011
Photo courtesy of the National Arts Council.
Weixin Quek Chong is a visual artist whose practice explores the materiality of human experience and existence, and the relationships between the digital, organic and aesthetic. She is the recipient of the 2018 President’s Young Talents Grand Prize.
She has shown her work in Brussels, Istanbul, London, Seoul, Taipei, Vienna and Yogyakarta.
In Singapore, Weixin has been an art educator at institutions such as LASALLE College of the Arts and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, where she works with and mentors young artists as well as other art educators. Weixin is also a co-founder of soft/WALL/studs, an artist-run space which has showcased local and international creatives and events since 2016.
Sufri Juwahir
BA(Hons) Dance, Class of 2013
Mohamad Sufri Juwahir is a dancer-choreographer who began his roots on the streets as a hip-hop performer. His passion for the art form saw him expanding his range into the contemporary genre, ballet, and subsequently Indian classical bharatanatyam dance when he served as principal dancer with Maya Dance Theatre.
Following his graduation from LASALLE, he co-founded Soul Signature with partner Sheridan Newman to create evocative and enriching performances. Together, the duo has choreographed and performed award-winning works such as Decipher, which won three prizes at the 31st International Competition for Choreography in Germany, and conducts regular classes to train contemporary dance enthusiasts.
Hilmi Johandi
MA Fine Arts, Class of 2018
Hilmi Johandi's artistic practice explores interventions that are associated within the domain of framing, fragmentation (deconstruction) and compression (reconstruction). In peeling away at archival images and footages of Singapore from yesteryears, his paintings and mixed-media outcomes are self-referential and critical in their take on the long-term social effects of rapid modernisation.
Beyond exhibiting his works at the Singapore Art Museum, Affordable Art Fair, and Art Stage Singapore, Hilmi has also shown at Saatchi Gallery's Start Art Fair in London, Fred Torres Gallery in New York and Galerie Frederic Lacroix in Paris. When not working on research for his next project, or partaking in international residencies, Hilmi serves as a part-time lecturer at LASALLE.
Zulkifli Mohamed Amin
Diploma in Music, Class of 2004
Zulkifli Mohamed Amin is widely acknowledged as a proponent of Malay music and traditional instruments, having served as music director of the youth section of Orkestra Melayu Singapura since its inception in 2005 till present.
In 2015, he embarked on a new project, co-founding Nusantara Arts as a platform for young musicians to hone their musical sound and voice, and collaborate with artists from other disciplines. The company draws influences from the Malay Archipelago and mould them into something that is uniquely Singaporean.
Kray Chen
MA Fine Arts, Class of 2014
Kray is a multi-disciplinary artist and part-time lecturer at LASALLE. After completing his MA Fine Arts at LASALLE in 2014, he has been active in his practice both locally and internationally. His participation includes solo exhibitions 1st Prize in 2013 (SG) and It's A Set Situation in 2016 (SG), group shows such as Art Stage Singapore 2014, Prudential Eye Awards Exhibition (SG), The Pleasure of Improbable Placements (Spain), Paradis Sans Promesse (France) and so on. He has also resided in Hangar (Spain), FRAC Des Pay De La Loire (France) and NTU-CCA Singapore.
Kray's practice largely deals with lived experience and corporeality. Bringing to attention movements, gestures and behaviours of him and around him, Kray taps on their peculiar characteristic to discuss the value of progress in Singapore, reflecting on the psyche of a place caught between traditions and modernisation.
Yarra Ileto
BA(Hons) Dance, Class of 2008
Born in Australia, Yarra Ileto has been dancing since she was four years old. Upon graduating from LASALLE with a BA First Class Honours Degree in Performing Arts (Dance), Ileto joined T.H.E Dance Company as one of the full-time pioneer members. She has performed in all the company’s works from 2008 to January 2015 touring extensively in Asia and Europe and has worked with noted choreographers such as Cheuk Yin Mui, Xing Liang, Zhang Xiaoxiong, Boi Sakti, Dimo Kirilov and Kwik Swee Boon to name a few. She has also choreographed works for T.H.E Main Company, T.H.E Second Company and several local Universities and Colleges. Yarra is currently a professional freelance dance artist, choreographer and part-time lecturer at LASALLE teaching ballet and contemporary dance.
Ezzam Rahman
MA Fine Arts, Class of 2017
Diploma in Fine Arts, Class of 2003
Image courtesy of Singapore Art Museum
Ezzam is a multi-disciplinary installation and performance artist. He was involved in The Artists Village, being the Vice President and President in various years. Ezzam was awarded the President’s Young Talent award in 2015 and also won the Singapore Art Museum (SAM) People’s Choice Award. Ezzam is also a dedicated mentor and educator. Besides teaching part-time at LASALLE, he also facilitates community engagement projects. Ezzam has exhibited and curated numerous exhibitions in Singapore and overseas. He has also been commissioned by major institutions. For example, SAM commissioned him to create the work Ouch!, which was a series of miniature sculptures made out of dead skin from his feet.
Zaki Razak
MA Fine Arts, Class of 2011
Zaki, who graduated in 2011 with a MA Fine Arts, is known for his rich artistic practice spanning the fields of street art, graphic design, performance art, writing, installation art and education. For his critical performance-installation Revisiting Art: The Ten Year Series at the Singapore Art Museum, Zaki received the President’s Young Talents Award in 2013. Outside of Singapore, Zaki’s works have been featured in Australia, Hong Kong, Spain, Thailand and France. Presently, he is a lecturer at LASALLE’s School of Creative Industries, dedicated to developing critical thinking, observation, research enquiry and fundamental art/design skills in today's young creatives.
Zul Othman, ZERO
BA(Hons) Fine Arts, Class of 2008
Zul holds a BA(Hons) Fine Arts in Painting from LASALLE. Better known by his artist moniker ZERO, he is recognised as one of the leading catalysts of modern street art in Singapore.
Genevieve Chua
Diploma in Fine Arts, Class of 2004
Genevieve’s works span a variety of mediums including drawing, photography, and installation. She has exhibited extensively, with solo exhibitions at the Singapore Biennale 2011 and Objectifs; and has developed works at residencies in Singapore Tyler Print Institute, The Banff Centre, Gyeonggi Creation Center and C-C-C Shizuoka. She was also a recipient of the NAC Georgette Chen Scholarship in 2003/4.
Tan Wee Lit
BA(Hons) Fine Arts, Class of 2003
Wee Lit graduated with a BA(Hons) Fine Arts (with Distinction) from LASALLE. Awarded an Overseas Scholarship Grant by the Media Development Authority Singapore, he went on to obtain a Masters of Fine Art from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He is currently the Head of Visual Arts at School Of The Arts.
Zhuo Zihao
Diploma in Dance, Class of 2002
Zihao is well-known as the lead dancer of T.H.E Dance Company. He has been invited to perform in numerous overseas festivals including Guangdong Modern Dance Festival, as well as residencies in Hong Kong and Australia.
He co-choreographed Within.Without for the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival in 2009. In 2010, he ventured into experimental dance and 3D technology in his innovative work Contemplation. During the Singapore Arts Festival in 2011, Zihao co-choreographed one of the acts In the Middle. Zihao also trains students under ITE’s co-curricular programme. In 2007, he was awarded an arts bursary by the National Arts Council to pursue a Dance degree at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.