Ubah Rumah
Ubah Rumah Residency is an artist studio and research outpost in the Riau Islands. Located on @nikoiisland, a stunning private island off Bintan. Ubah Rumah seeks to be a “Home of Change”, reflecting the evolving hospitality of the islands’ biosphere and maritime history.
Artistic Directors Alecia Neo @alecianeo and Ernest Goh @ayerayerproject will work closely with invited artists, researchers and creatives from Southeast Asia to create artworks and experiences which bring together the region’s rich biodiversity and maritime history.
The residency facilitates engagement with local communities, knowledge and materials unique to Bintan. The residency recognises the importance of conservation and seeks to reflect upon the environmental challenges that Bintan faces, against a backdrop of rapid economic and social changes in the region.
Pinjam Ferry
Pinjam means ‘to borrow’ or ‘to loan’ in the Malay language.
Pinjam Ferry is a digital art project and archive that presents text, photography and video, and other audio-visual material focused on notions of hospitality and ecology primarily in the Singapore-Malaysia-Riau islands region. Conceived as a travelling vessel moving between our shared worlds, reflecting the nomadic culture of the Orang Laut and the maritime history of the region, the artists collectively trace an imagined travel journey through images of traditional rituals and practices of hospitality. This digital project aims to be a generative visual resource that offers diverse artistic expressions and viewpoints from different artists and cultural practitioners from the region, transporting audiences across the seas that connect us.
Launching off from the artist studios sited in these three regions, the digital project begins with a selection of artworks, text, photographs and videos by the three artists, Gilles Massot, Alecia Neo and Ernest Goh.
Collectively, they explore the meaning of playing host in an ever-changing environment. How do we host? What are the necessary tools we need to grow and live in this new world? In times of unprecedented change, can acts of hospitality (e.g exchanging gifts, sharing space, place, shelter, nourishment, knowledge and even pain or grief) lead to new artistic forms and develop critical engagement with the culture of our time? You are welcome to extract knowledge and inspiration from this portal of visual stories to plot your own creative journeys, or offer gifts to the project and fellow audiences by depositing your stories of our region in our Collective Archive.
This project is part of Ubah Rumah Residency in partnership with Nikoi Island.