Penetrations - Vertical Submarine

This exhibition is held from 23rd September 2015 to 18th October 2015 at Chan Hampe Galleries.

Vertical Submarine is a collective that does work in various media. This time they presented multiple prints of old Hokkien sayings, an installation of a piano butchered with scores of arrows and a light box also with a Hokkien saying.

Interesting works. The prints were a mock up of old advertisements/ posters/ billboards with old hokkien sayings which, nowadays are used less often (but doesn't that happen with all langauges). Rather simple in delivery and banking on nostalgia. If you don't speak hokkien or have no hokkien blood, it won't stir anything in you. Unless you are tickled pink by coarse hokkien sayings like Pizza Queen.

But the most interesting was the light box about Superman and Ultraman, a contemporary treatment to an old saying.

Didn't see the point of the piano. But I guess it's a show stopper. I heard i's based on a quote from the book. But then again Vertical Submarine are good at installations.

Points for collectors: Buy rating for the collective, but not sure about the prints unless it resonates with you. Vertical Submarine has been around for a while and are noticed by the Museums. Justin Loke has recently been selected as an artist to watch in the Prudential Singapore Eye Awards 2015. However they got into some trouble for the 'Kill Stray Cats' project and has layed low for a while. So I think this is sort of a come back. So maybe they are trying to keep things simple this time.  I think they have sold the light box too which I think was nice.