Among all the hubbub of Singapore Art Week and the much-anticipated opening of the Art SG fair, it might have been easy to overlook the opening of a new space. Contemporary art purveyor WOAW Gallery, which is headquartered in Hong Kong, has just opened its fourth outpost – a 1,100 sq ft gallery located on Ann Siang Hill. The Singapore branch represents WOAW’s largest space to date and is its first foray into Southeast Asia.

The opening exhibition at the space is titled As Friends & Partners and it showcases works by 12 emerging artists such as Hong Kong artists Cheung Tsz Hin and Kila Cheung, as well as Japanese ceramic artist En Iwamura, many of whom are showing in Singapore for the first time. One thing you’ll noticed from touring the works are that they tend to exude a fun and youthful vibe (cue En Iwamura’s characteristically playful sculpture pictured in the middle), which is much in line with WOAW Gallery founder Kevin Poon’s own genre-spanning background in fashion, art, coffeemaking and DJ-ing.

“Despite our recent launches in Hong Kong and Beijing, my connection with Singapore and Southeast Asia runs deep. I have always long been fascinated by the region’s art scene and how it relates to and contrasts with that of Hong Kong and Greater China. Our mission is to contribute to the local cultural landscape through our exhibition programs and provide local visitors the opportunity to engage with different aspects of our artists’ practices in a way they couldn’t previously,” says Poon.

The exhibition is on now till March 4 at WOAW Gallery, 4 Ann Siang Hill 

A special new exhibition has just opened at Singapore Art Museum (SAM). Titled Dance in the Destruction Dance, it’s conceptualised by the Singapore artist Joo Choon Lin, who is well-known for transforming post-industrial materials like plastic and steel through technology and other modes of making to question the conventions of human perception and has previously exhibited at large-scale events like the Singapore Biennale 2013.

Dance in the Destruction Dance is commissioned by SAM, as it looks to continually encourage artistic practices in Singapore that explore newer ways of exhibition-making. It will also mark the first critical contextualisation of Joo’s practice, with connections drawn across bodies of work developed over the past fifteen years.

In this exhibition, elements of theatre, sculpture and video will all be present, in an effort to challenge audiences to “reconsider their perceptions of the world, where nothing is as it seems”. During its three-months run, the exhibition will constantly evolve through live theatrical performances and manipulation of installation sculptures – so returning visitors will certainly have new things to see each time they visit the museum.

For more information, head here.

On now till April 16 at Gallery 2 of Singapore Art Museum at Tanjong Pagar Distripark, 39 Keppel Road

Fans of Shawna Wu and her eponymous label: clear your Friday night schedule. The New York-based Taiwanese artist is beloved for her distinctive approach for meshing sensuality with traditional Chinese motifs and she’s back in Singapore (she spent many formative years growing up here) to put on a runway show and rave titled Ooloi tomorrow to celebrate her recent capsule launch with the directional e-commerce retailer Ssense.

Together with lighting collective Wildblur, it aims to create “a space for radical beauty, sensuality and interweaving. The event serves as a celebration for queerness and sensuality in all its hybrid forms, textures and illuminations.” Aside from the runway show, which takes place from 10:30pm t0 11pm, there will also be a series of performances by emerging DJs such as C2AC and Soyfag and pole artists Beforeiko & Kiia.

Get your tickets now.

Jan 20, from 9.30pm till late, at The Glass Hut, 140 Cecil Street, #14-03/04