SHARJAH/JAKARTA, 4 February 2022 – The ASEAN Secretariat, in partnership with Sharjah Art Foundation and Maybank Foundation, launched the 2022 ASEAN Artists Residency Programme (AARP) on 10 January, selecting Eunice Sanchez from the Philippines and Saiful Razman from Malaysia as the resident artists in this special edition.
During the month-long residency organised and hosted by Sharjah Art Foundation in the United Arab Emirates, both artists will have the opportunity to undertake cultural exchanges and participate in public-education workshops.
Sanchez, a visual artist and museum worker based in Manila, Philippines, works primarily with photography and alternative photographic processes. Her practice engages with themes relating to preservation and perception. Meanwhile, Razman, from Malaysia, has explored various media from pop-inspired collages, to abstract oil paintings that play with colour and patterns. His current series engages everyday objects and disposable items.
As part of the residency programme, both artists will hold workshops on 5 and 6 February. Adhering to pandemic protocols, the maximum capacity for the workshop will be limited to 10 people. Light, Foliage and Flora: A Cyanotype Printing Workshop, will be conducted by Eunice Sanchez, at the Bait Obaid Al Shamsi, Arts Square.
In this workshop, participants will learn about the history of cyanotype printing and explore methods of cyanotype printing on paper while using foliage and flora as subjects. The cyanotype photographic process is an alternative photographic process that utilises photosensitive iron salts and sunlight/UV light to create white prints on a cyan blue background.
Saiful Razman will hold a collaborative collage-making workshop under the conceptual theme of ‘Imaginary Place’, where participants will explore techniques of making a collage to create an artwork within the specific theme, and discuss the theme and ideas.
The two promising artists were chosen from a pool of over 60 applications of young emerging artists based in ASEAN Member States, by a selection panel which included notable representatives from Sharjah Art Foundation, Maybank Foundation, private sector, ASEAN Secretariat and ASEAN Foundation.
“The launching of this special edition of the AARP shows that in spite of the pandemic, art continues to strive and relations are further forged in adversity. We are thankful for the staunch support of our likeminded partners Maybank Foundation and Sharjah Art Foundation in bringing forward the residency programme to a global stage, such as the World Expo. The aim in the upcoming years is to grow the AARP’s reach and to include more emerging artists from all ASEAN Member States,’’ commented Lee Yoong Yoong, Director for Community Affairs at the ASEAN Secretariat, who is also the Commissioner-General of ASEAN for World Expo 2020 Dubai.
“We are delighted to have worked with ASEAN on this important initiative that builds on the Foundation’s mandate to foster local, regional and international development in contemporary art,’’ noted Hoor Al Qasimi, President and Director of Sharjah Art Foundation. “The residency encourages the awarded artists to experience and develop their practices by engaging with Sharjah’s local community through a range of activities including site visits, workshops and informal opportunities for dialogue,’’ she concluded.
The residency will conclude on 10 February. For further updates on the 2022 AARP programmes and activities: LINK
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About ASEAN:
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is an inter-governmental organisation established on 8 August 1967. It aims to bring about peace, stability and prosperity in the region and beyond. The Member States of the Association are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam. On 31 December 2015, the ASEAN Community was formally established. The ASEAN Secretariat is based in Jakarta, Indonesia.
About Sharjah Art Foundation:
Sharjah Art Foundation is an advocate, catalyst and producer of contemporary art. Established in 2009 to expand programmes beyond the Sharjah Biennial, which launched in 1993, the Foundation encourages a shared understanding of the transformational role of art through the annual March Meeting, year-round exhibitions, film and music programmes, education and community outreach programmes, grants, residencies, commissions and publications. Sharjah Art Foundation is a legally independent public body established by Emiri Decree and supported by government funding, grants from national and international nonprofits and cultural organisations, corporate sponsors and individual patrons.
