Electrified

Tell us about your field of study.
I studied fine arts in LASALLE where I got a diploma, but I’m now furthering my studies in the field at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), where I’ve been studying videography and installations for a year.

Who inspires you as an artist?
My lecturer at RMIT. He has helped me and many other students find our voices in certain styles by helping us understand the philosophies in art and how to find visual language.

How do you wish to apply this practice in your career?
My dream is to own an art gallery to provide more representation for up-and-coming ASEAN artists. In particular, I think there is a lack of Burmese artists and history being written about them. It’s easy to forget your culture and hard to appreciate your roots when there is no representation in the mainstream art world.

I also want to make art more accessible to and for the general public. There are many places getting demolished in Singapore and we often appreciate them a little too late. I really hope they don’t demolish Peninsula Plaza—I practically grew up there!

What do you appreciate most about the art scene in Melbourne?
The inclusivity and warmth in the art scene there really caught me by surprise—they embrace the art of People of Colour (POC) and the queer community, and they’re always looking to know more Asian and POC artists outside of their local art circle, so I’ve helped connect my friends in Melbourne with the artists that I know in Singapore.

We hear that you’re a skater. How long have you been skating?
I picked up skating a year ago in Melbourne—the skating scene there is so welcoming and a lot more accessible than in Singapore.

There’s one skate park that I frequent that even does Ladies’ Nights to offer free lessons for women on Wednesday evenings. Guys are not encouraged to be there during that time, but of course, many come down to try to pick up skater girls, but I wish they would just leave us alone because we’re not interested—we’re just there because we want to learn how to skate! In fact, I can bet you that most of the girls there either already have a boyfriend or are lesbians. Skater guys are a red flag! (laughs).

Tell us where you got your tattoos.
I got the morning glory tattoo from @vivian.tattoo in Melbourne just three days after I arrived (laughs). It was my way of commemorating being in a new country and starting a new chapter of life.

The Cybersiligism tattoos were done by a Korean artist, @hyoni_tt. At the time, she had just finished her apprenticeship and was trying to build her portfolio, so she gifted these tattoos to me. I was planning on getting tattooed by her again when I go back to Melbourne, but I found out that she’ll be guesting in Singapore this month, which works out perfectly for me!

You have many piercings! Which one hurt the most?
Surprisingly, the industrial and eyebrow piercings—industrial because it’s like getting two piercings done at once, and the eyebrow because it just gets infected so easily when we sweat and all that.