The word ‘fashion’ is changing: the way we know fashion today, in terms of runway trends, is expanding. Fashion is now a discipline that deals with physical and virtual bodies. It’s no longer just about tangible clothes, but about experiences: the way our bodies interact with spaces; creating avatars and alternate realities through the screen. Fashion educators in 2021 and beyond will continue to expand these perspectives and dialogues between students and ourselves. We want our students to become not just globally engaged creative thinkers, but also creative makers.

Mr Peter Seah, who is Chairman of LASALLE College of the Arts, as well as DBS, National Wages Council and Singapore Airlines, has been awarded the Order of Nila Utama (With Distinction) for taking Singapore's healthcare, finance, aviation, tripartism and education to greater heights.

To Kill the Birds and the Bees, an animation by BA(Hons) Animation Art graduand Calleen Koh, won ‘Best Art Direction’, ‘Best Screenplay’ and ‘Best Original Music’ at the National Youth Film Awards 2021. The animation follows four Singaporeans who each encounter a sexual situation with less than desirable outcomes, ultimately critiquing the highly sanitised way in which Singapore approaches sex education.

BA(Hons) Music graduand Ridz Razali used to struggle with his studies due to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The diagnosis even led to him being ostracised by his relatives. While saddened by this early childhood experience, his parents did not give up and instead sought ways to help him. They soon discovered his interest in music and encouraged him to pursue it. "Music became therapy for Ridz as he tried to overcome ADHD. It was a positive way for him to channel his energies," they shared.

Lee Tianying was halfway through her Bachelor’s degree in business when she decided to drop out of school and switch her education path to the arts instead. She shared how self-studying art through online classes gave her the confidence and conviction to pursue her dreams, and she is currently a BA(Hons) Fashion Design and Textiles student at LASALLE.

Five BA(Hons) Fashion Media and Industries graduates had the opportunity of a lifetime to co-curate an exhibition at the Asian Civilisation Museum. Titled #SGFASHIONNOW, it showcases how locally-made garments fuse traditional tailoring, handicraft skills and modern elements. The graduates discuss their choice in featuring pieces designed by Baëlf Studio, Stylemart, Studio HHFZ and Time Taken to Make a Dress.

The “light touch” creation of Singapore’s first university of the arts signifies a “tipping point” for the island’s cultural self-recognition, according to the head of one of its constituent colleges.

Steve Dixon said that the explosion of Singapore’s art scene over the past two decades had been overshadowed in a city known more as a finance centre and international transport hub. “Amazing” concert halls, galleries and theatres and a plethora of cultural, music, dance and film festivals struggled for global visibility in “one of the great success stories of the world”.