Twardzik Ching Chor Leng
Born in Singapore, Twardzik Ching Chor Leng is an artist and arts educator who has been practising installation art and land art for more than 10 years. She has exhibited extensively in group and solo exhibitions throughout Western Canada and in Singapore, and is currently developing several public art projects in Singapore. A regular recipient of meritorious awards and scholarships including the Hanna Kristmanson Ceramic Scholarship, the Ceramics Canada Award, and the Crown Life Entrance Award, Leng's work is included in numerous public and corporate collections. Leng holds a Master of Fine Arts Degree from University of Regina, Canada, a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ceramics and a Diploma in Ceramic Arts from Alberta College of Art and Design, Canada. Leng's work in Singapore has been featured in The Straits Times and in D+A Magazine (Asia) issue 012, 2003; She has also been interviewed on national radio on the topic of Land Art.
The houseWORK project
The houseWORK project is an artist-initiated community project to encourage
reflection on the function and impact of housework on the fabric of individual
and family life.
By drawing attention to the nature and types of housework, who does it and why,
and what difference it makes, we hope to raise the level of appreciation and
respect for housework and the people - mothers, wives, husbands, sisters,
foreign domestic workers - who perform this work daily either as part of family
duty or for economic returns.
The houseWORK project is the effort of several artists, some members of TWC2,
the civil society initiative to improve the welfare of the foreign domestic
worker, to create a mutually supportive environment for the foreign domestic
workers and her Singapore employer.
The focus of the houseWORK project is the perception and nature of housework,
its role in and relationship to our lives.
Each artist has conducted a survey of 10 households on their perceptions of
housework. The objective is to get the public to reflect on received perceptions
and attitudes towards housework. This engagement with the public is integral to
the artists' process and provides the material and inspiration for collaborative
works and individual works.
One such interactive event planned is an ironing performance because from the
survey conducted, ironing seems to be the most hated chore. Members of the
public are invited to bring their laundry, for the opening night, to be ironed
by the artists.
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The Exhibition is to be held in two phases.
Phase I - the Opening Show
This is scheduled for 5 to 10 September 2003 in a formal art space at the
Alliance Francaises, Sarkies Road.
By putting the subject and images of houseWORK in the sanctity of a formal art
space away from its routine spaces, we hope to cast new light on the value of
this work and generate thought and discussion.
Phase II- Community spaces
We are in negotiations with community organisations to host the exhibition at
their venues. Ideally, we would like to hold one exhibition in each area of
Singapore - the north, south, east and west.
Taking the exhibition from the formal gallery to community spaces bridges the
gap between art and community. A community participation element will be
included at each of these exhibitions to encourage dialogue and enhance the
non-art community's experience of art and its processes, and to encourage
reflection.
The organisers are concurrently looking for interested parties to host the event
in community spaces in the north, south, east and west sections of Singapore.
Source: houseWORK press release
Home Service
By Twardzik Ching Chor Leng, Vincent Twardzik Ching and Amanda Heng
For the housework project, we (Leng, Vincent & Amanda) propose to set up a Home Service Agency to provide domestic help for the period from 10 August to 10 September 2003. Any member of the public who requires domestic help can make an appointment by phone (from now) or at the customer service counter set up at the exhibition space. Home services will be provided as requested at a negotiated fee (no real money involved) by any of the three professionals, Twardzik Ching Chor Leng, Vincent Twardzik Ching & Amanda Heng.
Home Service Agency proposes to make an issue of Housework. The professional business set up presents a situation where Housework, the everyday routines that are often regarded as non-productive and a waste of time, can be made an issue for discussion. Public participation is essential. Dialogues and exchanges about housework and our values in contemporary life are engaged and performed between the public and the artists/domestic help in the form of negotiations in the “employer’s” own home. Documentations of the services/exchanges provided in video, texts and photos will be made for presentation at the exhibition space during the exhibition at the Alliance Francaise Gallery from 5 to 10 September 2003.
Services offered includes: laundry, ironing, floor mopping, vacuum cleaning, carpentry, plumbing, window cleaning, gardening (pruning, watering, weeding) marketing, washing toilets/ kitchen/ room, making tea, meal preparation, making beds, dish washing, feeding pets, walking pets, etc…
Service fees (no real money involved) are negotiable based on the nature of the work, the amount of work, time needed, the location, necessary equipment and cleaning supplies and the working environment/condition.
Working hours from 10 am till 7pm
Home Service Agency is open for appointments from now until 10 September 2003.
For appointments or more information
Call or email Leng, Vincent, or Amanda
Curriculum Vitae
Twardzik Ching Chor Leng – Singapore Born Chinese female, with 12 years worth of domestic work experience. She is a mother of a 2 year old and is an expert in diaper changing, breast-feeding and story-telling. She is also well versed in early childhood education; she conducts weekly Children’s Classes in her own home for the neighbourhood children teaching them about the importance of virtues. Chor Leng is also an art practitioner and arts educator who has been practising installation art and land art for more than 10 years. She has exhibited extensively in group and solo exhibitions throughout Western Canada and in Singapore, and is currently developing several public art projects in Singapore. A regular recipient of meritorious awards and scholarships including the Hanna Kristmanson Ceramic Scholarship, the Ceramics Canada Award, and the Crown Life Entrance Award, Leng’s work is included in numerous public and corporate collections. Leng holds a Master of Fine Arts Degree from University of Regina, Canada, a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ceramics and a Diploma in Ceramic Arts from Alberta College of Art and Design, Canada.
Vincent Twardzik Ching – Canadian born Polish/Fin male. Expert in general household maintenance, carpentry and plumbing. Vincent has more than 15 years experience in bathroom sanitation. He has 10 years experience in children’s education and is very good with children. Vincent also has basic food preparation skills. Vincent is also an artist specializing in Painting. Vincent completed his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Regina, Canada in 1998 specialising in drawing. A recipient of the Lakehead University Academic Achievement Award, Vincent has exhibited in Canada and in Singapore at Plum Blossoms Gallery, Sculpture Square and Wetterling Teo Gallery through which he was included in the AGA New Finds Exhibition 2003. His paintings and drawings are included in private collections in Canada, Taiwan and Singapore. Vincent’s work received Honourable Mention in the prestigious Phillip Morris Asean Art Awards in Singapore 2001/2002. He is currently a full-time artist and permanent resident of Singapore.
Amanda Heng –Singapore born Chinese female, with more than 30 years of working experience. Able to speak in English and Mandarin, and Teochew, Hokkien and Cantonese dialects. She has developed a special interest in gardening and toilets washing. Amanda Heng is also a full-time independent Art Practitioner. She adopts an interdisciplinary approach to her art practice, prefers to work in collaboration with people from all fields (art and non art), especially people of different cultural backgrounds and often concern with issues of communication and human relationships in urban condition in Singapore. She has exhibited widely in the international scene. She had co-directed and performed in theatre productions and also organized and participated in various public forums, workshops, research projects, art events, creating space for artists collective and archives for visual art in Singapore. Amanda graduated from Curtin University of Technology, Australia in 1993, with BA degree in Sculpture and was awarded the best student of the year.
Source: Home Service Press Release
