Art Stage Singapore 2017: Ivan Lam’s vending machine as art…selling art

Visitors ponder potential art purchases at Ivan Lam’s “For those who believe, no proof is necessary. For those who don’t believe, no proof is possible. 56/200” (2016-2017) at Art Stage Singapore 2017, held at Marina Bay Sands. (photo by Yuan-Kwan Chan / Meniscus Magazine)

Exclusivity butts heads with mass consumerism in Malaysian artist Ivan Lam’s “For those who believe, no proof is necessary.  For those who don’t believe, no proof is possible.  56/200” (2016-2017).  This vending machine – the latest in a series that stretches back to Art Basel Hong Kong 2013 – was borne out of Lam’s frustration with the bureaucratic selection process by prominent art fairs, making it nearly impossible for new artists to break through.  The artist decided to use the vending machine as the main art piece, then showcase other artists’ work for sale with one restriction: featuring reproductions of mixed media collages on foam backings no larger than business cards, encased in clear Perspex® acrylic boxes.

The result is the ingenious idea of using the vending machine itself as an art piece – and a blatant opportunity to promote Lam’s colleagues who had otherwise no means or clout to get into a prestigious art event on their own terms. There is a thought-provoking catch. In this particular piece, those who inserted 20 Singaporean dollars into the machine didn’t know whose artwork they were going to get or whether it was signed. In other words, they were making a purchase purely based on aesthetics.

As such, making art available to the masses in this way raises questions. Is it cheapening art as we know it, especially given the restrictions of how the artists had to create? Is this method of circumventing the process boosting their name recognition?  Or both?  (Or neither?)

Artist: Philip Hemnell
Cheated (2016)
Counterfeit 100 Yuan note, business card, marker
8 cm x 5 cm x 0.2 cm
(photo by Yuan-Kwan Chan / Meniscus Magazine)

Artist: Nurul Farida Binti Zahari
In Between (2013)
Mixed media
5 cm x 8 cm x 0.3 cm
(photo by Yuan-Kwan Chan / Meniscus Magazine)

Photos: Ivan Lam’s “For those who believe, no proof is necessary.  For those who don’t believe, no proof is possible.  56/200” (2016-2017) – Art Stage Singapore 2017
all photos by Yuan-Kwan Chan / Meniscus Magazine

Video: Ivan Lam’s “For those who believe, no proof is necessary.  For those who don’t believe, no proof is possible.  56/200” (2016-2017) – Art Stage Singapore 2017
video by Yuan-Kwan Chan / Meniscus Magazine