Re- : A Pavilion for Leonel Moura

Posted by Yanle (Singapore, Singapore) on 17 February 2008 in Art & Design and Portfolio.

Dempsey is an area filled with ironies. The old abandoned church is juxtaposed with the new St. George's Church. The empty field that soldiers used to play cricket at is now occupied by the Overseas Family School for their soccer events.
Meanwhile, commercialisation took place. The old barracks were invaded by shops and restaurants. The new PS Cafe is just a few metres away from the old shophouses. For Dempsey, is this a good or bad thing? A step forward or a step backwards? A REnewal of site or a REjection of history? Is it... a Duality of site?

Sand is an interesting material. It is made up of particles, yet it flows like a fluid. It can smoothen a rough surface, yet it can also roughen a smooth surface. Is this... a Duality of material?

Leonel Moura is an inventor. He created the Robotic Action Painter, a robot who is engineered to think for himself. The robot can start, stop, draw and paint by himself. So is Moura the artist and RAP the artpiece, or RAP the artist and the paintings the masterpiece? Duality in origin?

The concept is not derived upon the commercialisation of space, the artpieces, or the architecture of the church.
It is about the theory of duality. The act of going round and round, asking the same question and not getting an answer because duality exists and there can be no definite answer.

It is about the Mobius Strip.

To design a Pavilion for Leonel Moura, is to design a pavilion whereby the duality in origin is emphasised. Is he the artist, or the robot the artist? There are 2 entrances/exits. The 2 ramps are architectural features that are abstracted from the theory of duality in the Mobius Strip. They seemingly intersect each other, yet they never meet. They descend to an underground gallery which is separated into 2 varying functions: the first space as an art gallery, and the second space as an art studio for the robot.

The duality is emphasised.