What is it that draws all of us to art? Many believe it allows us to transverse onto a new dimension, a new world that takes us away from our own. And what better way to do this than to allow artist Jon Jaylo as he opens a wondrous passage door, inviting his audience to step in, and immerse themselves into a world of dreams through his paintings.

As writer Dave Lock writes, “What he creates is a pathway, offering an odyssey of the mind where one’s jaunt would be so vivid and real, in an ecosphere full of fantasy, adventure and pixie tales. Jon Jaylo shares with us his world of reverie and fantasy, invites us to hold hands with our inner child, abandon all cares and join him in a journey of wondrous dreams.”

A rarity in today’s contemporary world, Jon’s works are enthralling, reminding us how fantasy can enamour our inner being, and how many of us still yearn to play in that world of make-believe.

The exhibition opens on Tuesday, April 24th, 2012 at 7PM. It ends May 15th.

We welcome Renato Habulan Guerrero as our artist-in-residence this April, at Artesan’s studio. Son of his namesake, Renato Habulan – a well known social realist of the 70s – RG (as he is better known by his friends) finally arrives to wow the Singapore art community with his amazing skill in painting.

Born in 1980, painting is truly second nature to RG. The same way a child prodigy learns singing, or playing an instrument at a very early stage, RG can pick up tubes of oil paint and conjure up a hyper realistic subject on canvas in a matter of hours. He tells us how his father took him everywhere at an early age to meet his artist friends, exhibitions, art events – he was breathing, eating, drinking art as early as he recalls. “I just went along, watched, observed and soon I became part of that life. It just evolved very naturally, I didn’t even need to aspire to become an artist – it was already part of my being. My ambition was to join the army!” he muses.

“My challenge during this residency is to now seek an artistic vernacular that appeals to the local audience. I have spent hours at the national library trying to understand the local culture. It’s a young country with diverse influences – it will be interesting to try and juxtapose what I’ve observed onto a canvas.”

RG ends his residency at Artesan’s studio on April 24.

Twenty twelve is going to be a very unique year. We are poised and ready to present you with some of the best pan-Asian art you’ve seen to date.

We began the year with Indonesian artist Hansen Thiam Sun joining the ranks of our house artists, and opening Crimson Thread last February 9th at the gallery. Hansen’s works have been collected by the likes of Bill Gates, the famous Al Fayed family (famed owners of Harrods of London) and top indonesian collector Dr Oei Hong Dijen. He has exhibited all over the world including New York, Venice, Spain, London, Hamburg, Jakarta, Jogjakarta and Tokyo. His collection was received warmly with much enthusiasm and acclaim.

P.S. We know, many of you have written in and yes, we think we’ve finally got it. Maintaining websites aren’t easy but our kind webhost has finally found a way for Artesan to get hands on and we are forging ahead.  For all enquiries, please contact us at network@theartesan.net or call Tel +65 6469 7818 (Singapore).

Its such a fab feeling when you know you will have the next three weeks just chillin’ n a millin’… sweet!  Twenty eleven has been an exhilirating year, not devoid of the usual frustrations, mind you. But hey – we all learn to ‘see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil’ as life is to short to dwell on those shortcomings.

So to one and all I say, bring it on twenty twelve!  We know it’s going to be an amazing Dragon year.  

Who else can motivate an artist to hone his talent than a gallerist who works with the artist to help draw out the best in them?

Artesan has had only two true motivations:   to make art available to a wider audience, and to give exposure to undiscovered talent. Artesan Gallery and Studio is dedicated to collaborating with contemporary artists in Asia and creating opportunities to expose and nurture vibrant artistic talent. It also works with far-sighted institutions, companies and individuals who are equally passionate about supporting and nurturing artistic talent in Asia.

In addition to gallery exhibitions, Artesan’s outreach subsidiary, Art on Tour, takes art out to the community and fosters art education through appreciation, by making art more accessible, more approachable and viewer friendly. Various exhibitions are organized each year touring a wide variety of different venues in the city.

Partnerships with institutions and museums, initiating residence programs, organizing workshops and artist exchange programs, allows Artesan to showcase the true spirit of its young artists and let a wider audience experience the dynamic pulse of Asian art today