Zai Kuning

ZAI KUNING was born in 1964 in Singapore, and he lives and works in Singapore. Having worked with an array of sculpture, installation, painting and drawing, experimental sound and music, video, film, performance art, dance and theatre for more than two decades, Kuning resists convenient categorical claims to his art-making. Multi-disciplinary and improvisational art practice has always been important to him. Today he is considered one of the most versatile artists working in the region, and is at the forefront of avant-garde practice in Singapore.
Zai is perhaps most well known for his research and work relating to the Orang Laut - "sea gypsies" or nomadic indigenous fishermen living in the Riau Archipelago – many of whom have lost their homes due to societal developments beyond their control. He has produced a large body of works narrating the cultures and circumstances of the Orang Laut, culminating in the presentation of a large-scale installation for the Singapore Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2017.

Biography
Born in 1964 in Singapore
Based in Singapore

Selected Solo Exhibitions
2021 “SeptFest 2021: Projek Orang Asli,” The Substation, Singapore
2018 “Dapunta Hyang: Transmission of Knowledge,” 72-13, Singapore
2018 “Zai Kuning,” Ota Fine Arts, Singapore
2017 “Dapunta Hyang: Transmission of Knowledge,” Singapore Pavilion, 57th Venice Biennale, Italy
2016 “Ombak Hitam,” Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo, Japan
2014 “We are home and everywhere,” Ota Fine Arts, Singapore

Selected Group Exhibitions
2023 “Munakata Miare Art Festival,” Munakata City, Fukuoka, Japan
2019 “Reborn-Art Festival 2019,” Ishinomaki, Japan
2018 “Collection Asian Landscapes / Awazu Kiyoshi: Makurihirogeru 5,” 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Japan
2018 “Two Houses: Politics and Histories in the Contemporary Art Collections of John Chia and Yeap Lam Yang,” Institute of Contemporary Arts, Singapore
2018 “In Search of Southeast Asia through the M+ Collections,” M+, Hong Kong
2017 “Mode of Liaisons,” Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, Bangkok, Thailand
2015 “Secret Archipelago,” Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France
2013 “Welcome to the Jungle: Contemporary Art in Southeast Asia from the Collection of Singapore Art Museum,” Yokohama Museum of Art, Yokohama, Japan

Selected Collections
Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Japan
Singapore Art Museum, Singapore
M+, Hong Kong
Kadist Art Foundation, France / USA