Ho Tzu Nyen
Time & the Tiger
Singapore Art Museum

Ho Tzu Nyen has maintained a longstanding fascination with the historical migration of tigers across Asia and their presence in the region’s histories and mythologies, particularly as weretigers in Malay cosmology. Traditionally perceived as liminal figures, tigers inhabit the interstitial zone between civilization and wilderness, the living and the ancestor-spirit world, and as symbols of diverse temporal concepts connecting the past, present, and future. The transition of these majestic creatures from apex predators to endangered species due to human activities prompts the artist’s reflection on the complex interplay of various time scales, wherein human desires and destinies fluctuate.

In his first midcareer survey, “Ho Tzu Nyen: Time & the Tiger,” the Singaporean artist and filmmaker beckoned audiences to engage in an immersive exploration of time, history, and identity. The co-organizers, Singapore Art Museum (SAM) and Art Sonje Center (ASJC), enabled excellent technical design and audio engineering carried out by Artfactory in Singapore, the artist’s longtime technical collaborator. Notably, it employed spatialization techniques to craft three-dimensional soundscapes within SAM’s galleries, providing a sensory-rich experience for all eight major installations.