10 years: remembering LKY

十年：怀念李光耀

2025 MARCH 21 - APRIL 05 | Wednesday - Friday ,1PM - 7PM. Saturday - Sunday, 1PM - 6PM.

39 Keppel Rd, #03-10 Tanjong Pagar Distripark, Singapore 089065

brief

A decade has passed since the departure of Singapore’s founding father, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew. In 2015, INSTINC commemorated SG50 with remembering LKY, a heartfelt tribute exhibition featuring ten artists reflecting on his enduring legacy. Now, in 2025, as Singapore celebrates SG60, we come together once more to honour his vision, resilience, and the profound impact he left on our nation and beyond.

10 Years: Remembering LKY 十年：怀念李光耀 is a reflection on time, progress, and the lasting relevance of Mr. Lee’s principles. Through the lens of contemporary artists, this exhibition revisits his influence—not just as a historical figure but as a guiding force shaping our present and future.

Among the featured artists is Laudi Abilama, INSTINC’s past artist-in-residence (2011), who has been portraying Lee Kuan Yew since 2012. She shares her deep personal connection to his legacy:

"Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew spent his life carving a nation, transforming Singapore into an extraordinary success story. Coming from the Arab world, his achievement stands in stark contrast to the systemic failures of many leaders in my region. My Lee Kuan Yew series is a reflection on his leadership within a multicultural society—how he embraced Singapore’s diversity and unlocked its full potential. His vision remains a powerful example, not just for Singapore but for the world."

A theme of this exhibition is Mr. Lee’s visionary Garden City concept—his belief that Singapore should not only be a thriving economic hub but also a lush, green sanctuary where nature and urban development coexist in harmony. His dedication to transforming Singapore into a city of parks and greenery shaped the very landscape we live in today. Just as he planted the seeds—both literal and metaphorical—for future generations, this exhibition explores how his vision continues to define Singapore’s identity.

This idea is visually expressed in Shih Yun Yeo’s neon artwork, Thank You for Being the Light (2015), which features the Chinese proverb 前人栽树，后人乘凉 ("One generation plants the trees, the next enjoys the shade"). Inspired by Mr. Lee’s Garden City vision, this glowing piece symbolizes how his leadership laid the foundation for Singapore’s progress, allowing future generations to thrive in the nation he built.

As we celebrate SG60, this exhibition is not just an act of remembrance but a dialogue between past and present, urging us to reflect on how we continue to uphold and reinterpret the values Mr. Lee instilled.

A tribute. A reflection. A call to remember.

Guest of Honour

Matthias Yao Chih (b. 1956) is a former Singaporean politician who played a significant role in the country’s political landscape. A member of the governing People’s Action Party (PAP), Yao served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Marine Parade GRC from 1991 to 1997, and for MacPherson SMC from 1997 to 2011. Throughout his political career, he held key positions including Senior Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office, Mayor of the South East District, and Deputy Speaker of Parliament. Known for his leadership and commitment to public service, Matthias Yao was deeply involved in community development and governance during his tenure.

featuring artists

Boo Sze Yang

Born 1965 in Singapore. Lives and works in Singapore.

Boo Sze Yang’s paintings explore diverse subjects—from everyday objects to crash scenes and construction sites—as metaphors for the human condition. His semi-abstract works are characterised by a tension between abstraction and representation, where the natural world is portrayed as increasingly disrupted by the forces of urbanisation. The geometric planes in the paintings suggest fragmentation and transformation, suggesting the fluid and evolving nature of our memory. The imagery straddles the line between reality and utopia, creating a space where both coexist.

He is a recipient of the Ngee Ann Artist of the Year 2022 awarded by the Ngee Ann Cultural Centre (Singapore), the Distinguished Alumni Medal 2017 awarded by the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Singapore) and the Asian Artist Fellowship Award 2010/2011 sponsored by Freeman Foundation for residency at the Vermont Studio Center in the USA. In 2003, he was awarded the Juror’s Choice for the Philip Morris Singapore-ASEAN Art Award and in 2009, the Platinum Award, UOB Painting of the Year Competition. He is featured in “100 Painters of Tomorrow” published by Thames & Hudson in 2014. 

Website: booszeyang.com | Instagram: @booszeyang

Chang Hui Fang

Chang Hui-Fang (1981, Taiwan) graduated with a MA at Art Museum and Gallery Studies in Newcastle University, UK in 2009. She mainly works in Chinese ink, combining with pencil sketching on paper for her early works made in Taiwan. She is passionate about incorporating realism into the abstraction; her current works often applies charcoal powder and gold leaf, and employs appropriation as a method. “Faithll: Ephemeral” is her latest solo exhibition where the works in this series are abstract Chinese landscape paintings using these medium by way of appropriation. Charcoal powder is manipulated to portray the essence of Chinese paintings. Her works has been exhibited in ION art gallery, Affordable Art Fair, Artspace 222, Objectifs, Young Art Taipei and Hong Kong Visual Art Centre. She currently lives and works in Singapore.

Website: changhuifangart.wordpress.com | Instagram: @changhuifangart

Justin Lee

Justin Lee is a Singaporean visual artist and designer. He has participated in numerous artist-in-residence programmes in Japan (Fukuoka, Studio Kura-2012/14, Itoshima Art Farm-2014, and Tokyo Youkobo-2013). After his graduation with a Diploma in Visual Arts (Fine Arts), he was one of the selected local artists trained at the Tyler Print Institute in New York. Over the years, he has participated in numerous exhibitions held in Singapore and internationally.

As one of Singapore’s foremost pop artists whose design projects reflect a fine sense of contemporary design flavoured with an essence of Singapore traditions, Justin’s work deserves accolades as both designer and artist. His approach to design is executed with current graphic fundamentals yet reflecting traditional techniques such as his on-going series based on paper-cutting and Chinese woodblock printing styles. The themes and imagery with which he interprets his commissioned design work underscore familiar Asian cultures with a delightful pop treatment that celebrates Asian values in an endearing tongue in cheek manner.

Instagram: @newjustinlee

Laudi Abilama

Laudi Abilama (1986, Surrey England) spent most of her life in the United Kingdom where she received her BA in Arts and Media from the University College of Creative Arts (Farnham). At the age of 20 she chose to move back to Lebanon, her home country, to be part of the rise of contemporary art in the region. She chooses to paint predominantly people; representing personalities that have at some point influenced or touched her. She exhibits in Beirut, London and Dubai, and her work is acquired internationally, including through premier auction sales. 

Notable exhibitions she has participated in include 2011’s Al Bab: A Gateway to Arab Contemporary Art at Sotheby’s London and 2014’s AUB: Bodies in Public conference (King’s College London) held in London and Beirut.

Website: laudiabilama.com

Yeo Shih Yun

Yeo Shih Yun (1976, Singapore) is a highly regarded Singaporean artist whose innovative approach to ink painting has garnered international acclaim. After obtaining a Bachelor degree in Business Administration from the National University of Singapore in 1998, Yeo pursued a Diploma in Communication Design at LASALLE-SIA College of the Arts in 2001, followed by the Post Baccalaureate Programme in painting at the San Francisco Art Institute in 2002.

Yeo's experimental fusion of traditional ink painting with contemporary mediums such as new media and performance art has resulted in dynamic and unpredictable works that challenge conventional notions of the medium. Her unique creative process has earned her recognition, including a 2011 commission by the Singapore Art Museum and the People's Choice Award for "Conversations with trees," which was nominated for Sovereign Asian Art Prize Finalists in 2012 and auctioned by Christie's Asia. She has also won the UOB Painting of the Year Competition (Distinction in Abstract category) twice, in 1999 and 2007.

Yeo has held exhibitions in major cities including Singapore, Hong Kong, Taipei, Shanghai, Tokyo, and New York, and has completed numerous commissions, including National Gallery Singapore's "My Ink-credible Adventure" and her solo exhibition at Esplanade, titled "Chance Encounters," in 2021. Her groundbreaking works have been showcased in "Generative Art and the Future," hosted by Poly Auction China, and she participated in the "NFTs + The Ever-Evolving World of Art" Tezos exhibition at Art Basel Hong Kong in May 2022. Yeo was also invited to participate in the "Digital Baroque" exhibition and auction curated by 4ART NFT+ marketplace and minted on Palm network.

Yeo's innovative approach to ink art has made a significant impact on the development of the medium both in Singapore and internationally. Her contributions to the art world have been widely recognized and she continues to push the boundaries of the medium with her unique approach and experimental techniques.

Website: shihyunyeo.com | Instagram: @shihyunpaints_