Debated in Parliament on 12 Nov 2024.
Ms Usha Chandradas asked the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth in light of the recent successful private arrangement between PlayPan and Peace Centre for creative use of space, whether the Ministry can consider providing support to encourage and facilitate similar initiatives that activate strata malls as spaces for creative collaboration and intervention by the arts community.
PlayPan took over Peace Centre from October 2023 to January 2024, just prior to the demolition of the building. This was a private arrangement between PlayPan and the owners of Peace Centre, which took advantage of the circumstances for creative collaboration before demolition works at the location. We encourage such private collaborations, where members of society work together to create a more vibrant and distinctive city in a variety of different ways.
Government agencies have been working with interested private venue owners to activate their spaces and on creative collaborations. Some of these venues are strata malls.
There are some examples. For instance, as part of Singapore Design Week, DesignSingapore Council partnered PLUS Collaboratives for the Nostalgia Play installation at Far East Plaza. Fortune Centre also featured the “Crossroads: Random Access Memory” digital art showcase at this year’s Singapore Art Week. We will continue to support the use of such spaces in the appropriate circumstances, which can bring art into public spaces in order to enhance the accessibility of the arts.
We should add that our efforts to extend the reach of the arts go beyond commercial spaces. For instance, in the last three months, since the launch of ArtsEverywhere@CDC, Government agencies brought the performing arts to 15 community locations across five Community Development Councils and engaged over 20,000 audience members in various locations in the heartlands. This reflects our commitment to expand access to the arts.
PAPERCUTS