Two CalArts alums, Tuan Andrew Nguyen (Art MFA 04) and Gala Porras-Kim (Art MFA 09), who were named MacArthur “Genius” Fellows in October, have featured installations in the 2025 Singapore Biennale (SB2025), which opened on Oct. 31 and runs through March 29, 2026.
The city-wide exhibit, which coincides with Singapore’s 60th anniversary, includes works from more than 80 international artists and collectives across unconventional public spaces, such as shopping centers. This year’s Biennale explores how art reframes daily life, illuminating the evolving social, urban, and historical landscape of Singapore and engaging with pre-colonial and colonial landmarks as well as green spaces and residential neighborhoods.
Vietnamese American artist Nguyen’s Temple is a massive installation made from exploded bombs discovered in central Vietnam’s Quảng Trị province. One of 30 commissions for the Biennale, the piece contrasts Vietnam’s Perfume Pagoda, a Buddhist pilgrimage site where his grandmother once sought shelter, and the devastation of the U.S. bombing during the Vietnam War. It incorporates bells, a chime and a gong which have been tuned to emit a frequency of 432 hertz when struck, a frequency believed to produce healing effects in the body.
Porras-Kim’s outdoor installation, Our Identity Is Determined by Our Productivity, is on display at Peninsula Plaza. The piece features poems by migrant workers printed on custom-designed picnic mats, the same kind of mats used by the Burmese migrant community at Sunday gatherings. The artist encourages audiences to question how people, objects, and time are classified and valued.
“SB2025 provides a unique opportunity for us to reflect on the many ways our city has been shaped by its architecture and systems, as well as the people who move through it. By inviting diverse voices to respond to themes of rapid urban development, historical contradictions and speculative futures with pure intention, this edition unpacks Singapore’s multifaceted realities within global narratives,” said co-curators Duncan Bass, Hsu Fang-Tze, Ong Puay Khim, and Selene Yap in a joint statement shared with Artforum. “In activating spaces that are part of our daily rhythms, we hope to foster greater dialogue across cultures and communities, sparking moments of connection and curiosity towards the cosmopolitan futures we share.”
Singapore Biennale 2025
Oct. 31-March 29, 2026
Temple
Tuan Andrew Nguyen
National Gallery Singapore
1 St. Andrew’s Road, Singapore 178957
Our Identity Is Determined by Our Productivity
Gala Porras-Kim
Peninsula Plaza
111 North Bridge Road, Singapore 179098
