Events
PANEL DISCUSSION
ACTIVISM AND ART IN SINGAPORE: MUTED OR REVITALISED?
Featuring Bani Haykal, Dayana Noor, Kirsten Han, Kristian-Marc Paul as panellists, facilitated by Sudhir Vadaketh
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Activism has been in the news a lot in Singapore. We have strict rules around protest and public action. Thus, people who support causes have to work within these limits. Sometimes they cross them. They then face legal action. At the same time, artists in Singapore have been speaking up on many of these same issues. These include:
- Disability,
- Killing a particular group,
- How migrant workers are treated, and
- The loss of nature.
For Fringe 2027, join us for a discussion on art and activism in Singapore today.
Can we draw a clearer line between performance and protest?
When does art get seen as going against a national policy or public body?
Activists in Singapore have faced charges recently. Will artists then start to hold back and censor themselves?
How can artists and activists support each other better? Both want to better connect with the public.
Join us for an afternoon of lively discussion on art and activism in Singapore. The moderator is Sudhir Vadaketh. The speakers are:
- Bani Haykal,
- Dayana Noor,
- Kirsten Han,
- and Kristian-Marc Paul.
If you need speech to text interpretation for the talk, please email us at info@singaporefringe.com by 9 December 2026.
Activism has been in the news recently in Singapore. Given Singapore’s tight restrictions around civil society, those rallying behind certain causes find themselves trying to navigate around these perimeters—and in several cases, infringing them, leading to legal repercussions. At the same time, Singapore artists have been exploring and boldly engaging in discourse on these same topics: from disability to genocide, from the treatment of migrants to biodiversity loss.
For Fringe 2027, we invite you to join us in unpacking the relationship between art and activism in the present Singapore context.
Can the porous boundary between performance and protest be better defined?
At what point does art get flagged for undermining a national policy or institution?
In light of recent charges against activists in Singapore, would artists begin to temper their artivism (activism through art) by policing themselves?
How can artists and activists better support one another, so that we can more positively engage the public?
Join moderator Sudhir Vadaketh and speakers Bani Haykal, Dayana Noor, Kirsten Han, Kristian-Marc Paul for an afternoon of intense conversations and urgent discourse on Art and Activism in Singapore.
Speech to text interpretation is available upon request. Please email your request to info@singaporefringe.com by 9 December 2026.
Venue support by Goethe-Institut Singapore
Date & Duration
16 January 2027, 1pm
90 minutes with no intermission
Venue
136 Goethe Lab
Tickets
Free via registration at bookmyshow.sg
- Speech to text interpretation for post-show dialogue upon request