FARMFARM NEWSLETTER

FEBRUARY 2015

DRIVE • FLEA • EAST COAST PARK • SMOKINGVOLUNTEER WORK • PUPPY EUTHANASIA

STICKER LADY • ‘KIDNAPPER’ MOVIE REVIEW

WRITTEN & EDITED BY: ASYURA, FRENANDEZ, MELISSA AND REGINE

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CONTENTS04 ‘DRIVE’: A Public Art Galore

06 No Longer A Market With Fleas

08 East Coast Park - The Place To Be

10 Oh Smokes! He did it again 08

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12 Kindness Is A Universal Language

14 Pets; A Lifetime Commitment

1616 The Beauty In The Chaos

18 ‘Kidnapper’ Movie Review

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‘DRIVE’ is a four month-long public art project, launched on 28th September 2014, comprising of an outdoor art exhibition and an Open Call Competi-tion. Its main purpose was to make art more acces-sible for people.

‘DRIVE’ also held a late night open house event called ‘Art After Dark’ and it was also part of Sin-gapore’s Art Week 2015. It was a celebration of the visual arts in Singapore held between 17 to 25 January 2015, and hosted a variety of events.

The project began with the installation of ten gallery-sponsored artworks by established Singa-pore-based artists, followed by the installation of the Open Call competition artworks. 19 out of 60 artworks were selected for the event. The organiz-ers also had to select a location within the vicinity that was appropriate for each artwork. For exam-ple, the Singapore related artworks were placed strategically at one area and it was called the ‘Sin-gapore Corner’.

An esteemed panel of judges was selected across a variety of art-related industries to pick the winner for the Open Call Competition. The public also cast-ed votes for their favourite artwork on Facebook. The winner received $5,000 and a curated spread in Art Republik Magazine.

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A PUBLIC ART GALOREIf you were a fan of art, music and good atmosphere, you would’ve been at Gillman Barracks on Friday night, 23rd January 2015 for ‘DRIVE’.

All exhibitions and programmes at ‘DRIVE’ were free. A series of “How To” talks and workshops with artists Ian Woo, Maryanto and Marcin Dudek were also scheduled. On 5 January 2015, Dudek began building HUFF (House Under Four Flags) Studio at Gillman Barracks – a wooden artist studio where audiences were invited to engage with Dudek and learn about his artistic practice.

The European curator explained that the reason behind HUFF Studio was due to the lack of space in Singapore; hence he constructed his own studio from scratch. He also said that he wants to utilize the studio for upcoming artworks and activities, and also invite other artists to work in the space he had constructed.

“Art gives people solitude, rest and protection. Without art, we will have an unspeakable society,” said Dudek as he stressed about the importance of art.

‘DRIVE’ featured a selection of large-scale murals, photographic and illustrated vinyl prints, and installations by a diverse group of Singapore-based artists. It also had interactive art pieces, where visitors could pick up a permanent marker and do whatever they wanted with them.

Majority of the visitors enjoyed the event. “I love how there are a mix of different types of artwork and artists,” explained Emily, who happened to chance upon the event in the paper, “there should be more events like this in the future”

Organizer Audrey Yeo advises aspiring artists to be real and serious if they want to succeed in the arts industry. “They need to learn their crafts really well. If you want to make your artwork about some-thing, don’t be ashamed to do it.”

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NO LONGER A MARKET

WITH FLEASFlea markets originated in Paris and they were an open-air street market selling mainly secondhand merchandise. The type of items sold would normally be infested with fleas, thus the name “flea market”.

In modern day Singapore, flea markets are now the go to place for teenagers. Flea markets are no longer places known to be dirty or infested with fleas but are places where many trendy, young Singaporeans love to shop.

Flea markets are a good place to shop for an assortment of cheap goods, clothing, and all sorts of unusual things.

Fleas are gaining popularity as they are expanding their range of merchandise from clothing, to accessories for electronic gadgets.

Nowadays, many Singaporeans are starting up their own flea stalls, selling all kind of goods. Flea markets have been expanding their range of products, which in return garners a lot of attention from the public.

“I’m glad I was able to get a place to open my stall in SCAPEUnderground. SCAPE really has a lot of youngsters because it is in the central part of town and the people that come here are very suitable for the things I am selling, so business has been quite good.”

- Lydia Wong, shop owner of From The Spectrum

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Lydia Sim, owner of a shop called “Oh So Sticky” enjoys selling in SCAPE as compared to other places. “All my stickers and badges are very unique. You can’t find these sort of things in most parts of Singapore and I have a very large spread of designs to choose from.”

Some shoppers also talked about their love for SCAPE, “I love coming here, especially on weekends because of the ScapeBazaar, it’s like an expansion of the SCAPE Underground and I can find a lot of non-mainstream things here. Shopping so often at fleas make me want to start up my own stall it looks like a great way to make some money.”

Many Singaporeans have set up a flea stall at least once in their lives and now many more are doing so. Need-less to say, the flea culture will defi-nitely continue on in the many years to come.

“There really are a lot of things here that you can’t find in normal retail or departmental stores. Most of the items here are quite reasonably priced. I actually shop here more than retail outlets.”

- Sara Lee, regular shopper at SCAPE_________________________________

“EAST COAST PARK- THE PLACE TO BE”

It’s 5.30pm and the laughter of young children playing by the beach and the endless chat-tering from the families having their picnics could still be heard. The air is filled with the smell of smoke from the barbeque pits that is strong enough to awaken the taste buds of many. On both left and right are tired faces of joggers persevering through their workout. This was the typical scene at the East Coast Park on a Sunday afternoon.

East Coast Park is one of Singapore’s most treasured urban getaways that attracts more than 7.5 million visitors a year. Being the larg-est park in Singapore, East Coast Park has a long list of attractions that caters for every one of all ages such as the Road Safety Park for the young children, the ‘Xtreme SkatePark’ for the teenagers and the Lilliputt Indoor Mini Golf for families. “I come here with my sister and father. I make a lot of friends whenever I come to the road safety park,” said Durrah, a primary four stu-

dent of Haig Girls Primary School who shared why she loves East Coast Park.

East Coast Park is not only packed during the daytime but it gets more ‘happening’ during the night with more families com-ing here for the good food. Eateries such as “Lagoon Food Centre” and the 8 different restaurants at the “Seafood Centre” always leaves families feeling happy, satisfied and full after having their dinner.

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“The food here is really good! It’s my family’s go-to place to eat,” shared Ms Sylvia,

who usually comes here for dinner during the weekends with her family.

With the many variety of food choices such as satay, bbq chicken wings, chicken rice, carrot cake and many more local food, it’s no wonder why families and friends keep coming here because of the endless choices of food to choose from.

Besides the locals coming here, East Coast Park is also well loved by the tourists.

“I think the view of the wa-terfront is beautiful. It’s my first time here and I love it. I definitely would recommend my friends to come here if they were to visit Singapore,” gushed Lorraine, a tourist who was enjoying the view.

It is clearly proven by the many satisfied park commut-ers and even tourists that East Coast park is definitely a must to visit. It is guaranteed to be fun, relaxing and most importantly, ending your day on a good note.

(C) Google Images

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“OH SMOKES! HE DID IT AGAIN”

On the day Muhd Firdaus Salleh, 22, caught his younger sister smoking, he was furious and immediately thought of a plan to make her stop. From monitoring her daily cigarette intake, and hiding her cigarettes, he was deter-mined to make her quit. With all these stren-uous efforts he puts in for his own younger sis-ter’s good, Firdaus could not do the same for himself to stop his own smoking addiction.

“It is more of a concern when it’s your own sibling. She’s an underage smoker. Whenever I catch her, I would immediately throw her cigarette. I would do all that I can to make her stop,” exclaimed Firdaus.

Being once an underage smoker himself, Firdaus wanted his sister to quit immediately before the addiction grows. He did not want his younger sister to face through the struggle of what he is going through right now – the difficulty to quit.

The third year student in the diploma of Mechatronics Engineering had tried countless of times to get himself to quit but it was too tough.

Started at a young age of 12 years old, Firdaus picked up smoking due to peer pressure. Being a popular kid that represented his primary school’s soccer team, he hung out with oth-er soccer friends that were much older than him. He described this group of friends as the ‘wrong people to hang out with’. Firdaus hated smoking when he tried his first puff, but soon

then the addiction kicked in.

Firdaus’ first attempt to quit was when he was 14, his parents caught him smoking in his room. Being scared to the bones, he managed to stop smoking for 3 years. Soon then he resorted back to smoking due to the overwhelming stress he faced during his O levels period.

“I told myself, just one stick, but it got out of control. Only then I realized that smoking actually helps to relieve my stress,” ex-plained Firdaus.

Firdaus shared that there were three fac-tors that he thinks are important to have in order to quit smoking which were perse-verance, family support and commitment. As motivational as it sounds, unfortunate-ly, his attempt to quit smoking fails yet again for the fifth time this year.

“It’s embarrassing, I must admit,” he laughs as he looks towards the ground.

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This year being his final year in Nanyang Polytechnic, the Final Year Project (FYP) just made him resort to smoking more as it is claimed that it helps ease his tension.

Despite the addiction gradually growing again, Firdaus is still determined to quit. He is aware of the negative health impact of smoking and also the money wasted. The advice that he gave to himself were to cut down on the number of cigarette intake on a weekly basis.

“I can choose to immediately stop but I know how that will fail miserably. So I rather not,” said Firdaus as he laughed.

Firdaus, who is also the vice-president of CCA club, Soundcard, is now currently exper-imenting on ways to try distracting himself from the temptations to smoke. He is hop-ing that this year would be his successful year of ending this smoking addiction.

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HOW YOU CAN QUIT SMOKING

1) Identify what sort of smoker you are – habitual/behavioural, psychological, physical. This will help you choose aids like nico-tine patches (if your addiction is physical and if you are a heavy smoker), gum/lozenges, etc.2) If you are a behavioural smoker who likes the hand-to-mouth action, perhaps a nicotine inhaler might be best for you.3) Set a quit date (choose a date that is important to you or easy to remember, e.g. 1st March).4) You could choose the decreasing method or go cold turkey (stop at once).5) Do NOT buy more than one packet of cigarettes to “stand by” at home or at work.6) On your quit date, clear your home of ashtrays and other smoking paraphernalia, like light-ers.7) Start a piggy bank – “fine” yourself $10 (the estimated price of a pack of cigarettes) and put the money in the piggy bank each day, or each time, you smoke. If you have not smoked for a whole month, you can use the money to reward yourself!

Source: HealthXChange Singapore

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Student by day, musician by night. You are most probably think – how does he have any time left for himself? And even more, to volun-teer?

Aaron Seat Mun Hoe is a year two student in Nanyang Polytechnic. Studying Digital & Precision Engineering for the first half of his day, he then goes to the music room to practice pieces after pieces of new music. Not forgetting the fact that he has a GPA of above three point two to keep up with, he has responsibilities as a committee member of the Chinese Orchestra to carry out as well.

In total, Aaron easily spends more than twelve hours a day in school but that does not stop him from showing care towards the elderlies.Aaron is a regular volunteer at Brighthill Evergreen Home.

He first learned of Brighthill Evergreen Home through a General Studies Module he had to take. One task that was needed of him to do, was to volunteer at a home and spend quality time with the elderlies.

At the home, he had to interact with the elderlies and also look after their safety and well-being when bringing them out for a meal etcetera. After visiting the elderly home twice, he felt a sense of connection with a certain old man.

“Kindnessis a ...

He is cute and bubbly and has the same surname as Aaron – one of the reasons why he felt closer to Uncle Seat. Discovering past stories of Uncle Seat and just talking about anything under the sun, Aaron saw sides of his grandparents’ charm in him.The only difference being his grand-parents are much more fortunate to be able to live with their loved ones.While spending time with Uncle Seat, he felt the joy of giving.

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Universal Language”

From the stories told to bringing him out for meals on special occasions that the home allowed, even on grocery shopping trips, seeing Uncle Seat happy made Aaron feel what he did was worth-while.

Seeing Uncle Seat look forward to his visits, smiling like a Cheshire cat, Aaron then found himself wanting to go back again repeatedly. That was how, he became a frequent volunteer that interacted with the elderlies. Seeing an increase in number of elderlies being sent to the old folk’s home, Aaron has voiced his disapproval in their children’s actions.

While he may understand that some of the situations are difficult to justify, he feels that, “as our parents’ children, we must appreciate what our parents have done to bring us up and reciprocating them is just filial piety.”

Upon asking how we can help make the elderlies feel loved and happy, Aaron thinks that we can start with the basics by treating our own parents and grand-parents right. Little things like spending more time with them, watching shows with them, or even just putting dishes on their plates during meal times. This way, they will feel your care and will definitely make their day!If Aaron has the time to juggle between studies, music as well as volunteering, I am sure that everyone can do a little something here and there!

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PETS; A LIFETIME COMMITMENTMany Singaporeans are now buying dogs without much consideration just because they can afford to. Many animal lovers tend to get dogs on impulse and do not actually under-stand what they are committing to.

According to the Straits Times, “Each year, some 6,000 dogs and 12,000 cats have to be put to sleep.”

We feel that pet abandonment is a growing trend amongst affluent Singaporeans and we are all outraged after reading this article. It is unethical to put down a healthy dog, especially if it is just a seven-month-old puppy.

The reason for the owner, Alison McElwee, to put down the dog is also unacceptable. Just because the dog had bitten her children before does not mean that is suitable for euthanasia.

It was only a puppy, which means the children probably did not sustain severe injuries from the bite. The fact that it was a puppy also meant that it was just confused as it was rescued from the streets.

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Besides this case of pet abandonment, there have been many other cases including a Cock-er Spaniel that was found at the ground floor lift lobby of a HDB unit along Bedok North Road. The dog had a bad skin condition and poor overall health and dog had to be hu-manely euthanised.

There was another case involving a Shih-Tzu, was surrendered to SPCA to be humanely eu-thanised as the owner had no financial means to take it to a veterinarian or have it groomed. As a result, the dog’s nails were so overgrown that the dog was unable to stand or walk. The dog also had very flaky skin and a growth on one of its eyes.

Mr Heng Chee How, Minister of State for National Development, said: “The figures that I have convince me that we have to improve in becoming a community of responsible pet owners, and in stopping pet abandonment.”

These cases are the result of Singaporeans buy-ing pets on impulse only to realise they can no longer care for it in the long run. This would cause a lot of harm to their pets.

People who are thinking of getting a dog should do some research about the breed they are looking to get. It is good to look up infor-mation about different dog breeds to see which is the most suitable for your lifestyle.

This would prepare them beforehand, and help them understand better what measures they would have to take to be able to properly care for the dog even in the long run.

Pets are a lifetime commitment and they require a lot of time and care, so it is essential that people know what they are

getting themselves into before they go to their local pet store to buy a dog.

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The Beauty in the Chaos

There is famous saying by Jim Rohn that goes “If you are not willing to risk the unusual, you will have to settle for the ordinary.” Obviously, Saman-tha Lo, or rather the famous ‘Sticker Lady’ abided by this.

If you don’t already know about the Sticker Lady controversy, let me enlighten you. The 25-year-old female street artist was arrested after she was said to have sprayed the words “My Grandfather Road” on Maxwell Road and Robinson Road, and pasted circular stickers at public spaces, including traf-fic-light junctions. She is currently out on bail.

Her arrest sparked outrage amongst many Sin-gaporeans and there were heated debates as to whether it was right to arrest her or not. There were also subsequent online petitions created to support Samantha, which leads me to this question.

Shouldn’t creativity require a little chaos?

Being an art-enthusiast, I’ve always had an appre-ciative eye for creative artworks. I’m also a big fan of street art, especially graffiti as I feel that it takes a lot of skill and talent to do that. So it comes to no surprise that I am one of those netizens who was furious about the whole fiasco.

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The Beauty in the ChaosI strongly believe that yes, creativity requires chaos. It is the only way for an artist to survive. One can-not possibly achieve anything if he or she doesn’t step out of his or her comfort zone. One artist who exemplifies this is a famous street artist who goes by the name of ‘Banksy’. He combines dark humour with grafitti executed in a distinctive stenciling technique in his work and displays them on streets, walls, and bridges of cities throughout the world. Hence, I have to applaud Samantha for taking that risk and doing what she felt was right.

You’d have to admit that if you saw one of her stickers along the street, you’d smile and think to yourself “hey, that’s pretty cool!” Her spray-painted “My Grandfather Road” also made many laugh. Her work was a welcoming distraction from our normal routine. Samantha took a big step to make her work known and it worked, if you forgo the fact that she got arrested for it.

Netizens who saw her stickers, be it online or in the flash, gave her recognition and complimented her work. Some politicians like Janice Koh and Nicole Seah also agreed that Samantha’s arrest was quite uncalled for and asked authorities to lighten her punishment.

Online petitions were also created in support of Saman-tha, which I felt was great thing. People were finally coming together to defend the arts and make a stand. We stood up for what we thought was right. Samantha also helped to prove that art could be art without it

being a crime.

With reference from Asia One.com on 6 June 2012, Member of the National Solidarity Party (NSP) Nicole Seah said, “Singapore will never be able to achieve the state of a truly creative society if we continue to place these boundaries around our-selves.”

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KidnapperAh Huat (Christopher Lee) is an obnoxious taxi driv-er who is struggling financially. His son Wei Siang (Jerald Tan), is all that he have left with after his wife left them.

Years later, his wife is back to take their son with her but Ah Huat refuses. In an attempt to win over their son, Ah Huat’s wife warned him that she will be watching closely for any opportunity to take him with her. Complication arises when Wei Siang is being abducted by mistake and the kidnapper, Ah Hu (Jack

Lim), demands a $1,000,000 ransom. Giving up all he had to save his kid, Ah Hu drives Ah Huat into a corner.

Consumed by grief and madness, Ah Huat then retaliates by kidnapping Ah Hu’s kid. Kelvin Tong brings yet another heart-tugging, relatable local film to the big screens. Captur-ing the essence of local lifestyle, the audience is treated to a thrilling roller coaster ride of emo-tions.

This film is set to keep your eyes glued to the screen. With the fast paced actions and raw emotions portrayed by the cast, the audience will step into the story and empathize with the characters.

Playing the character of Ah Huat is Christopher Lee. Recognized as a brilliant actor, he brought out different sides of Ah Huat to the screen. His grief, helplessness as well as madness were portrayed skill-fully, not to mention his selfless, undying love towards his son.Playing the character of Wei Siang is Jer-ald Tan. Involved in the media industry since a young age, he is able to portray his character Wei Siang comfortably. His quick-witted, mature side will have the audience charmed while

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his helpless cries will leave the audi-ence’s heart breaking.Playing the character of Ah Hu is Jack Lim. Starred in numerous local films, this time he took up a role of the villain. With his sinister smirk and taunting gaze, audience will feel the chill down their spines and goose bumps on their necks. Christopher’s blazing eyes, full of determination to get his son back.Jerald’s helpless cries, desperately wishing to be saved.

Jack’s cold-blooded behavior towards the crying kid.Audiences will be left in an emotional whirlpool of actions and dramas laced with plots twists here and there.

Thriller movies frequently comes in tie with graphic scenes. While this mov-ie may not be rated, visually disturbing images were briefly present. While most people are unfazed by the brief scenes, it is recommended for parents to be around their kids when watching this film. Lest they may feel uncomfortable with some of the scenes.

Every movie has its strength and weak-nesses. However, to know if it is a movie worth watching, one must feel engaged and captivated to watch through the end of the film.

Kidnapper is a film that has a balanced mix of action and drama, good influential tracks as well as a capable cast to bring the story to life. Ultimately, it is a local film worth watch-ing.

Rating: 7.5/10