Where does the “public” reside in public art? Is it within people, within shared spaces, or both? Does the notion of the “private” exist in public art? Can public art infiltrate the private spheres of individuals? Can it be privately experienced?
A Daily Act focuses on everyday, mundane life occurrences. Participants are encouraged to explore the emotional nuances of their daily routines, whether at home or on the streets. As they go about a regular day, some individuals may encounter instructions; they may walk past them on their way to the train station or pause to observe a postcard while enjoying their coffee. Over time, these prompts may lead their perceptions to shift, senses to sharpen and movements to become more deliberate.
Motivated by a desire to introduce poetry into daily lived experiences within the city, A Daily Act asks: Can the banal become remarkable? Can the ordinary become extraordinary? Widely distributed as site-specific instructions across Tanjong Pagar, the project aims to evoke an aesthetic experience rooted in participants’ willingness to engage.
Developed by Atelier HOKO, A Daily Act is commissioned as part of The Everyday Museum, a public art initiative by the Singapore Art Museum.
Final Presentation
A final presentation of A Daily Act will be happening in conjunction with Singapore Art Week 2025, from 17 – 26 Jan. More details to be released soon!
About the presentation
A Daily Act is a year-long project by Atelier HOKO, commissioned by The Everyday Museum, a public art initiative by Singapore Art Museum. In July 2024, the project explored the nature of public art and daily routines through over 80 prompts distributed across Tanjong Pagar via banners, flyers and postcards. Each prompt invited public responses, written or performed. Reflecting on these responses, the creator turned their focus to the concept of “instructions” and observed a key insight: we perform instructions daily, often without realising it.
The concluding presentation of A Daily Act, as part of Singapore Art Week 2025, will further the dialogue on how we navigate the boundaries between routine compliance and creative expression in our daily interactions. When presented with an instruction that neither restricts not regulates our bodies in space, does confusion – or sometimes even frustration – emerge? What ingrained social habits do our reactions toward these instructions reveal? A Daily Act invites us to consider how instructions can free us, embrace subjectivity, and foster spontaneity and joy in everyday life.
About Atelier HOKO
Atelier HOKO (2002) is an independent research lab that focuses on the study of the growing disengagement between people, things and space. The atelier hopes to cultivate in people an open-ness and ability to un-know, bringing about a heightened curiosity towards all phenomena by taking a fresh look at reality. Founded by Alvin Ho and Clara Koh.