On Wednesday 14 April, LASALLE College of the Arts hosted the pro-tem committee (PTC) for the new university of the arts, chaired by Professor Chan Heng Chee, on their inaugural visit to LASALLE.
Following a welcome by President Professor Steve Dixon and an introduction to LASALLE, the PTC members were treated to an extensive guided tour of the McNally campus. They got up close and personal with design innovations from the School of Design Communication and School of Spatial & Product Design, spoke with Fashion students about their zero-waste textiles and design solutions, and experienced the diversity, depth and breadth of students’ work from the McNally School of Fine Arts.
International collaborative learning came to life with the Shared Campus project, where students from the Faculty of Performing Arts work in a common virtual space with their peers from Zurich University of the Arts, Switzerland and Escola de Teatro in San Paolo, Brazil. A vIsit to the Ngee Ann Kongsi Library showcased the strength of our research and LASALLE’s range of postgraduate studies.
The PTC members also enjoyed a short music performance as well as a preview of the Dance and Musical Theatre graduation showcases, with Diploma in Dance students rehearsing an excerpt from a piece by Studio Wayne McGregor that emerged from a remote learning workshop in the previous semester, and Musical Theatre students performing the jazz standard ‘Bye Bye Blackbird’ complete with Fosse choreography.
At the end of the visit, several PTC members stayed on through the evening for the premiere of the BA(Hons) Acting graduation show, Vassa.
Distinguished visitors from the PTC included:
- Professor Chan Heng Chee, Ambassador-at-Large
- Ms Melissa Khoo, Deputy Secretary (Policy), Ministry of Education
- Ms Chong Siak Ching, CEO, National Gallery Singapore
- Mr Goh Yew Lin, Managing Director, G.K. Goh Holdings
- Mr Jasdeep Sandhu, Director, Gajah Gallery
- Mr Jeff Cheong, Deputy CEO, DDB Group Singapore
- Mr Lee Suan Hiang, Board Member, LASALLE College of the Arts
- Mr Chng Kai Fong, Managing Director, Economic Development Board
- Mr Peter Lam, CEO and Principal, Temasek Polytechnic
- Prof Kwok Kian Woon, Associate Vice President, Nanyang Technological University
- Mrs Tan-Soh Wai Lan, President, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts
Find out more about the new university in this Straits Times opinion editorial by Deputy President and Provost Dr Venka Purushothaman, where he shares his thoughts on how the university will cater to the needs of the 21st century student, and his visions for its future.
Photos by Isabelle Lim
