ABOUT THE AWARD
A firm supporter of the arts, CDL has been contributing significantly to the Singapore arts scene for more than a decade. The CDL Singapore Sculpture Award is an extension of our patronage of the development of arts and youth in Singapore. Initiated by CDL in 2002, the biennial Award is now into its 10th year.
The call for entries has now closed. Please check back for updates on the finalists and final commissioning of the sculpture. Thank you.
OBJECTIVES
- Nurture artistic talent and encourage creativity amongst youths and local artists
- Promote greater interest in the sculptural art form
- Encapsulate Singapore’s diverse and rich culture through Art
- Enrich Singapore’s sculpture landscape through the commission and installation of the winning creation for public display
HISTORY & DEVELOPMENT
The CDL Singapore Sculpture Award remains the only sculpture contest at a national level, and has secured a strong following from both schools and the arts community over the years.
Since 2007, a partnership between CDL, the award organiser, and the National Parks Board has made possible for the installation of the winning works at public parks, with the aim of engaging the community and adding vibrancy to Singapore’s cultural and physical landscape.
Reed Sculpture
The winning work from the 1st CDL Singapore Sculpture Award in 2003, it signifies boldness and strength in the face of harsh environmental conditions. The design was inspired by resilient reed plants often found standing tall in water or dry places.
The Wind, Her Rain And A Cloud Meet A Tree In The Monsoon Season
The winning piece from the 2nd award in 2007 illustrates the interaction between the tree, wind, rain and cloud, which symbolises the dynamic and natural cycle of a tropical rainforest. It uses the coherence of various organic shapes to connote nature’s transferability and its tenuous relationship between Nature and Man. It is located at City Green, the Urban Park adjoining to Singapore’s first Eco-mall – City Square Mall.
All the Essentially Essential
The winning piece from the 3rd Award in 2007, currently sited at Raffles Place Park, is a humorous tongue-in-cheek take on the packed-to-the-brim lifestyle of the average ever-efficient Singaporean.
The sculpture was completed in 2013.
An Enclosure for a Swing
Inspired by the psychological privacy one enjoys within a swing, this iconic sculpture lends a shape to this intimate space. The spatial expansion and contraction formed by the undulating steel ribbons trace out this movement to create a spatial cavity and a space that only Nature can enter. Seated within the sculpture, one can share a rare intimacy with Nature.
The winning work from the 4th Award in 2009 was designed as a landmark for Bishan – Ang Mo Kio Park.
A Hundred Lines
The winning entry from the 5th Award in 2013 celebrates CDL’s role in shaping Singapore’s skyline, and its 50 Years of Greening Singapore.
Above, a gleaming cityscape of crystalline form is suspended in the air, rendered by 50 vertical lines of metal. Below, a landscape of paths, waterways and landforms weave around the city, formed by 50 meandering lines of tropical wood; each engraved with text lines describing 50 local plant species.
Delicately merging, together they are emblematic of the dramatic transformation of Singapore’s skyline and greenery, a vision accumulated stroke by stroke over the years.
The piece was completed in 2018 and is located at Marine Cove.
Growth Within
The design concept for the winning entry for the 6th Award is inspired by elements of nature.
It is made entirely out of recycled timber from the construction of the Singapore Sustainability Academy and decommissioned signposts from NParks.
The shape of the sculpture mimics a water urn commonly used in India. The interior comprises more than a thousand wood pieces, hand cut and stacked together, to look like a school of fish swimming together. Under the nourishment of sunlight, the leaves of the sprout, spin along to the rhythm of the wind.
The sculpture was completed in 2017 and is located at the Singapore Sustainability Academy, Level 6, City Square Mall.
STRUCTURE OF THE AWARD
The CDL Singapore Sculpture Award is a site-specific sculpture competition. Participants are invited to conceptualise an iconic sculpture for the designated site. The competition is divided into two categories:
Open Category
All Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents residing in Singapore and abroad as well as work permit, professional and student pass holders.
Student Category
All Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents residing in Singapore and abroad as well as work permit, professional and student pass holders.
JUDGING
All entries will be judged by a panel which includes renowned local and overseas artist/art critics appointed by the Organiser.
CDL SINGAPORE SCULPTURE AWARD EXHIBITION
All prize-winning and selected qualifying entries will be displayed in a public exhibition. The CDL Singapore Sculpture Award Exhibition aims to foster a higher level of consciousness among the public towards the sculptural art form.
