One of Singapores most established artists, Cultural Medallion recipient Amanda Heng (b.

1951) is best known for her practice which examines themes of self-representation, community identity and historical memory. To Heng, art is more than the pictorial tradition. Rather, art is the direct encounter that is created when people participate in the art-making process. Another critical aspect of her practice is the investigation of how memories dene ones identity. Hengs work thus asks us to reect on, recall and reconstruct the ways in which unrecorded personal and social histories, are being remembered and represented. Amanda Heng: Speak To Me, Walk With Me is the artists rst solo exhibition that charts her fascinating multi-disciplinary practice over two decades. Featuring more than 50 works of installation, photography and video, the exhibition draws upon the SAM collection, reconstructions of Hengs previous ephemeral works, as well as rare 1990s performance documentation from her vast repertoire.

Singapore Contemporary Artists Series: Amanda Heng: Speak To Me, Walk With Me oers a comprehensive view of Hengs diverse practice. The publication features essays which study her work from various domains of inquiry by curators, scholars and art commentators. The writers have collaborated closely with Heng in her previous projects, or are experts in their respective elds of research that correspond with themes in her practice, and oer both personal accounts and diverse entry points into Hengs art. With more than 50 full-coloured artwork plates and documentation images from her vast oeuvre, the publication explores topics such as the reception of performance art, national identity, participation in art-making, feminist art and collaborative practices in Hengs works. The Singapore Contemporary Artists Series focusses on documenting and providing critical commentary on the practices of signicant contemporary artists from Singapore. Dedicated to enlarging discourse and scholarship on contemporary art, the series also serves as an accessible introduction to the vibrant contemporary art scene in Singapore. Singapore Contemporary Artists Series: Amanda Heng: Speak To Me, Walk With Me retails at $49.90 and is available at SAM.
Front cover & left image: Another Woman (detail), 1996, C-print, 101.6 x 127 cm, Singapore Art Museum collection

Singirl Revisits - Carnival Beauty Salon (6 Ceylon Road), 2011, photo, 114 x 76 cm, artist collection

Singirl Revisits continue from Hengs Singirl series of works, which began in 2000. Hengs Singirl can be seen as an artistic agent that provokes us to think of what is truly representative of the nations cultural identity. To the artist, it is not manufactured places of tourist interest, but those that we interact in as part of our everyday lives that greatly contribute meaning to our cultural identity. Singirl Revisits is the artists latest work commissioned by SAM for the occasion of this exhibition. The artist revisits traditional shops, as well as Kampong Lorong Buangkok (the last surviving village community in Singapore) as her tribute to common but signicant sites that symbolise her childhood memories of a dierent Singapore. This is Hengs way of reecting on, and endorsing neglected places of cultural signicance. It is her protest against urbanisation in the name of progress, but at the expense of cultural identity and values.

Yours Truly, My Body, 1999, performance documentation, artist collection

One of Hengs important works that was never performed in Singapore, Yours Truly, My Body is the artists commentary on the public perception of beauty as well as womens self-imprisonment through social conditioning. The performance begins with projections of women, as portrayed in fashion magazines, on the artist; a deliberate strategy by the artist to question the authenticity of such idealised depictions of beauty. Pig meat is employed as a metaphor for the body, revealing in a symbolic manner, the duress of women who succumb to beautifying measures such as cosmetic surgery. To Heng, such compromised acts of self-armation are invariably acts of violence on ones body. Amidst the ongoing repetitive sounds of an audience participant chopping meat, tension is further escalated with the introduction of a ringing alarm clock that prolongs the sense of discomture within the performance space. Advisory: The artwork contains nudity and strong imagery and might not be suitable for visitors aged 16 and below.

Missing, 1994, baby girls' dresses, shing lines, hooks, black cloths, black sofa, table, doorframe, variable dimensions, Singapore Art Museum collection

One of Hengs earliest installations that deal with gender issues, Missing is a commemoration of nameless female babies who are victims of infanticide in cultures that pride male ospring over female for a range of reasons, ranging from the economic and the cultural. To Heng, the installation was a response and an attempt to look critically at gender issues in the Asian context, where baby girls are frowned upon, and wives are pressured to produce a male heir for the family. In other traditions, daughters have been seen as a liability, because of their dowry obligations, and the fact that they will not be able to support the family after marriage. The work includes an interactive component where the audience is invited to take a piece of the artists thoughts written on notes attached to red strings.

Lets Walk, 1999, video documentation from Ambulations, Institute of Contemporary Art, Singapore, Singapore Art Museum collection

Lets Walk is an important series of work from Hengs practice which started in the late 1990s, a period of suppression of performance art in Singapore. During this time, performance artists like Heng began to nd new strategies of negotiating with the restriction of this art form. The attempt to challenge the denitions of permissible art began through experimental modes of outdoor art activities; Heng embarked on Lets Walk, which can be deemed as performance in the form of a public walk. Seen in this light, the performance stage, made of the external environment of everyday reality, is an ever-evolving space that raises new possibilities of public engagement. The rst Lets Walk took place in 1999 as part of Ambulations, an exhibition by the Institute of Contemporary Art at LASALLE College of the Arts. The artist, together with participants, walked in the vicinity of the schools former campus in Mountbatten. Walking barefoot and backwards, with a mirror in hand and her voice silenced by a high-heel shoe in her mouth, Heng was concurrently making her statement on the progress of women in contemporary society. Lets Walk has been performed in Indonesia, Japan, Paris, Poland, Spain and Sweden.

Artists Tour
Wed, 12 Oct | 7:30pm 8:45pm Join Amanda Heng as she takes visitors through her rst solo exhibition, Amanda Heng: Speak To Me, Walk With Me, and shares the processes and motivations behind her diverse body of work created in the past two decades. $12 (includes admission to the exhibition) Tickets available at SAM and SISTIC.

Curators Tour
Wed, 7 Dec | 7:30pm 8:30pm What is the relationship between art, society and the public? Join SAM curator, Michelle Ho, to nd out how Amanda Heng, one of Singapores most compelling women artists in contemporary art, addresses these issues. $12 (includes admission to the exhibition) Tickets available at SAM and SISTIC.

Women in Film
7:30pm I Moving Image Gallery, Level 2, SAM at 8Q In conjunction with the exhibition Amanda Heng: Speak to Me, Walk With Me, SAM presents a series of lms directed by or featuring non-conformist women. Touching on diverse communities and histories, these documentaries and feature lms tell stories of women from all over the world. Some of them are pioneers in their eld, and others are getting through their everyday life, but all of them are made singular by societal circumstances and human relationships. $10. $8 concession for students with valid ID, senior citizens and NSFs. Limited seating. Tickets available at SAM and SISTIC. For ticket purchase at the door, please call SISTIC hotline 6348 5555 ahead for ticket availability. Visit www.singaporeartmuseum.sg for synopses and ratings. Fri, 25 Nov !Women Art Revolution Lynn Hershmann-Leeson 2010, USA, 83 minutes, English Sat, 26 Nov Seven Easy Pieces by Marina Abramovi Babette Mangolte 2007, USA, 93 minutes, English Fri, 2 Dec Feet Unbound Ng Khee Jin 2007, Singapore, 86 minutes, Mandarin with English subtitles, PG Featuring a post-screening discussion with director Ng Khee Jin.

Left: Film still from Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles, 1975, directed by Chantel Akerman

Sat, 3 Dec Koundi and the National Thursday Ariane Astrid Atodji 2010, Cameroon, 86 minutes, Maka and French with English subtitles

Sat, 10 Dec Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles Chantal Akerman 1975, Belgium, 201 minutes, French with English subtitles Fri, 16 Dec The Beaches of Agns Agns Varda 2008, France, 110 minutes, French with English subtitles

Fri, 9 Dec You and Me Ma Liwen 2005, China, 83 minutes, Mandarin with English subtitles

Open House at SAM: Explore Singapore with Amanda Heng

Sun, 4 Dec I 1pm 5pm I SAM & SAM at 8Q Free Reminisce about old Singapore with all things retro! Come enjoy music performances, art and craft activities and lm screenings while savouring snacks and playing games of yesteryear. Have fun with traditional art and crafts, and explore Singapores forgotten histories through the contemporary art of Cultural Medallion winner, artist Amanda Heng.
In conjunction with

General Information
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