Art Apart Fair is Singapore's first hotel-based boutique art fair. Initially called Worlds Apart Fair in January 2013, the success of the fair encouraged a second edition, later renamed as Art Apart Fair as part of a series of "Apart Fairs".
Art Apart coincides with Singapore Art Week, an initiative launched by the National Arts Council, along with the Singapore Tourism Board and Singapore Economic Development Board.
The fairs take place twice biannually – during January and June or July – in Singapore. Art Apart made its international debut in London in October 2014 at the Town Hall Hotel. It will be held in New York in October 2026.
Art Apart Fair serves as a platform to provide support towards emerging artists with the potential to become established. The fair gives artists the opportunity to showcase their works and gain recognition among art lovers and collectors. In January 2014, some 33 galleries and 1,500 artists' work from countries such as Taiwan, China, Australia, Kazakhstan, Croatia, Japan, Vietnam, Austria, Cambodia, South Korea, Russia, Spain and Germany, were featured.
Some of the galleries that have exhibited with Art Apart are South Korea's Seoul Arts Centre, Shanghai's Nancy Gallery, Madrid's Jorge & Fernando Alcolea Gallery and Russia's Gallery 11.12.
In comparison to other art fairs, Art Apart focuses on selecting galleries with emerging artists with a possibility of becoming established in their national or international market.
To support the advancement of emerging artists, internationally renowned artworks by established artists were carefully selected and featured alongside emerging artists' works. This complimentary inclusion aimed to enhance and showcase the artistic abilities of the emerging talents, providing them with inspiration and encouragement to progress to the next level. Established artists artworks such as Yayoi Kusama, Thierry Noir, Ernest Zacharevic, Christiaan Nagel and many more were exhibited alongside emerging artists. Art Apart will continue to feature complimentary established artists works to augment the quality of each art show.
Due to the high costs of exhibiting at art fairs and the presence of many artists struggling to succeed financially, there is an "Adopt An Artist" initiative, where a Patron of the Arts and sponsors help to fund these artists. Galleries that are invited to showcase new works at Art Apart also help support the emerging artists by paying for the exhibiting fee. Works have to be new and not shown at other art fairs before.
Besides providing support for emerging artists, part of the revenue generated from the sales of art works and tickets goes towards helping the young and elderly in Singapore. One of the beneficiaries includes Halogen Foundation, an educational charity that helps to develop young leaders and entrepreneurs. Another beneficiary is the Lions Befrienders Service Association, Singapore's largest direct service voluntary welfare organisation, that assists the elderly and helps them engage with the community.
Art Apart, in partnership with the charity arm of the Ireland Funds Singapore, hosted a charity art show from March 3 to May 30, 2021. The show was curated by Rosalind Lim, the founder of Art Apart, and Dr Stanley Swee Han Quek, a renowned property developer. This fund raising art show was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, a time when limited people were allowed to visit the show. To overcome this challenge, an online auction was organised in conjunction with an art exhibition, and successfully raised funds for The Ireland Funds Singapore Chapter
History The idea of holding an art fair in a hotel first originated in 1994 as the Gramercy International Art Fair in the rooms of Gramercy Park Hotel in New York City. The fair was highly successful, and it is now renamed "The Armory Show".
The concept of a hotel-based art fair breaks the conventional presentation of art in a whitewashed gallery space. Visitors are provided with a good idea of how these works would look like in a home setting, as they are being displayed in a more informal setting, such as on beds, table tops, chairs and even bathrooms.
Inspired by this layout, Art Apart founder and director Rosalind Lim decided to bring the idea over to Singapore. With over 38 years of experience in diverse fields, such as Public Relations, Branding, Marketing and Event Management, she built the foundation for the first successful hotel art fair – the Worlds Apart Fair in January 2013 at Conrad Centennial Singapore. The fair was later renamed Art Apart Fair and moved to Parkroyal on Pickering, where the entire 14th floor – rooms, lobbies and corridors – is converted into art galleries.
Singapore editions
Worlds Apart Fair @ Conrad Hotel (First Edition January 2013) The inaugural edition of Worlds Apart Fair was held from 25 to 27 January 2013 in 40 rooms at Conrad Centennial Singapore, and saw more than 3,000 visitors and buyers. The fair showcased some 3,400 art works, ranging from paintings and photography to video art, sculptures and installations.
Worlds Apart Fair featured emerging contemporary artists from Asia, Africa, Lebanon, Europe, the Americas and Australia, with a greater focus on rising artists from Singapore. Some of the galleries that exhibited include Vertical Submarine (Singapore), Villa Del Arte Galleries (Spain) and Art Bridge Contemporary (Korea).
Two Chinese talents, Singaporean actor Qi Yuwu and renowned Chinese artist Feng Zhengjie collaborated for the first time specially for this fair and presented their work 'Showcase on Print'.
Art Apart Fair @ Park Royal on Pickering (Second Edition July 2013) Worlds Apart was renamed as Art Apart as part of a series of "Apart Fairs".
The second edition of Art Apart was held from 5 to 7 July 2013 at Parkroyal Collection Pickering and featured over 120 Asian artists and galleries. The art works were focused on Korea and revolved around themes such as "Korean Wave", "Asian Spirit" and "Butterfly Effect".
In addition to the display of artworks, the fair included talks by prominent artists and industry experts from around Asia.
About 3,000 visitors attended Art Apart Fair 2nd Edition.
Art Apart Fair @ Park Royal on Pickering (Third Edition January 2014) The third edition of Art Apart took place from 17 to 19 January 2014, showcased more than 1,500 art pieces from 12 countries, including Germany, South Korea, Russia and the Philippines.
Besides housing exhibitions such as "The Destruction of the Readymade Everyday", the main theme for Art Apart 3rd Edition was "The Artists' Garden" – a selection of 100 artists from the 33 participating galleries.
Over 4,000 people visited the art fair, an increase from the 2nd Edition.
Art Apart Fair @ Park Royal on Pickering (Fourth Edition July 2014) The fourth edition of Art Apart was held from 18 to 20 July 2014, where more than 2,000 art pieces were exhibited, with a focus on works by Russian artists. The aim of the event was to introduce Eastern European Art, such as works from Moscow, Kazakhstan, Croatia and Slovenia.
Apart from the display of art pieces, there were live paintings of portraits, talks by Russian art experts and Russian Art Performance.
Similar to the previous edition, over 4,000 visitors visited Art Apart 4th Edition.
Art Apart Fair @ Park Royal on Pickering (Fifth Edition January 2015) The fifth edition of Art Apart was held from 23 to 25 January 2015 at Parkroyal Collection Pickering . Unlike past editions where the curations were focused on specific countries, such as Singapore, Korea and Russia, this edition showcased contemporary art, highlighted conceptual art works and urban art works by street artists from all around the world. Some of the featured artists include emerging Russian artists Rinat Voligamsi and Maxim Bashev, German artist Kaja el Attar and French artist Bruno Tanquerel.
Eight galleries from the previous editions of Art Apart made a return, such as Utterly Art, Gaze Gallery and Seoul Arts Centre.
Over 4,000 visitors attended the fifth edition of the art fair.
Art Apart Fair @ Park Royal on Pickering (Sixth Edition July 2015) The sixth edition of Art Apart was held from 17 to 19 July 2015. Art Apart Fair featured artworks from the Philippines. The finest Filipino galleries including Big and Small, Gallery Qube, Art Quartel and more showcased the best of contemporary Filipino artworks. Leading the pack of Filipino artists was glass artist Ramon Orlina, who showcased pieces from his stellar three decades in the industry. The art works of Ronald Ventura, the auctions record-holder for Southeast Asian paintings, as well as Geraldine Javier, Marina Cruz, Randy Salon and more were present at the sixth edition.
Art Apart Fair @ Park Royal on Pickering (Seventh Edition January 2016) The seventh edition of Art Apart was held from 22 to 24 January 2016. Art Apart Fair featured the participation of more than 40 Singaporean artists as well as artists from Malaysia, Thailand, Korea, Iceland, America, Philippines, Russia and France. The Fair is possibly the largest ensemble of fresh, emerging Singaporean artists in an art fair and signals a shift in focus from previous editions that focused on a matrix of foreign artists and art genre. The Presidential Suite will be themed "Mosaic" and feature never-before-seen works of Benny Ong, Daniela Beltrani's curated selection of 12 Singapore-based artworks and Rosalind Lim's selection of designers-turned-artists, Hayden Ng and luxury shoe designer Mashizan Masjum. Author Bryan Koh will also be presenting his books at the Fair.
Art Apart Fair @ Wisma Atria (Eighth Edition July 2016) The 71/2 Edition happened from 27 May to 5 July 2016
The eighth edition of Art Apart Fair was held from 11 July 2016 to 29 August 2016 at Wisma Atria on Orchard Road. 6,000 sq feet space in a shopping mall on Orchard Road . It focused on artists from North Asia and South East Asia. The fair showcased the works of 97 artists from countries such as Japan, Indonesia, Philippines and Singapore as well as lithographs of pieces by great artists such as Henri Matisse and Egon Schiele.
Artists from Japan participating at Art Apart eighth edition were : Sakiko Asaoka, Masako Asaba, Naohiro Itoh, Yukari Ohhira, Ryotaro Okabe, Rie Osonoi, Hiroshi Kobayashi, Ayako Goshima, Koh Shimizu, Kazuyoshi Teramoto, Chihiro Fukumuro, Makoto Fujii, Nana Monda, Shinichi Wakasa,
Art Apart Fair @ Pan Pacific Orchard (Ninth Edition January 2017) The Ninth Edition of Art Apart Fair was held at the Pan Pacific Orchard from 7 to 11 January 2017. The art show featured 100 artists from Europe and Asia, represented art galleries and contained a section for private art collectors to showcase their art collections.
Highlight of the show are video artist Filip Sterckx "The Perit Chef", Erica Hestu Wahyuni from Indonesia, Cezar Arro from the Philippines and architect Fong Hoo Cheong who created a huge sculpture with plastic chairs that is 3 storey high at the main entrance of the hotel.
The art fair occupied space spanning 3 floors of the hotel rooms and the lobby and bar area.
Art Apart Boutique Fair @ Goodwood Grand (Tenth Edition January 2018) Held at Goodwood Grand on Balmoral Road, where four large units newly built five storey bungalows were transformed into an art enclave from 25 to 28 January 2018.
In celebration of Art Apart 10th edition, Art Apart featured artworks from both established and emerging artists. Mosaic wall artworks were designed by curator Rosalind Lim and artisans from China were flown to Singapore to create wall art that is four storeys high. All the artworks were sold together with the bungalows and it was the most successful art show in 2018 in terms of art sales revenue. The four bungalows were also sold for around $8 to $10 million each.
Art Apart @ Isetan Wisma Atria (Eleventh Edition January 2018)