RELIEF FUND, #CORONAREADS, AND ART IS +

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Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, not only has international travel been restricted, but book events have been canceled, theatrical productions closed, and filmmaking halted. We do not know for sure how long this situation will last. After reviewing the situation, Singapore Unbound has decided to postpone this year’s writing fellowships to Southeast Asia and to commit the funds instead to aid Singaporean writers badly affected by the shutdowns. We understand that this news may be disappointing to fellowship applicants, and we apologize for their disappointment. We would like to seek their kind understanding in light of the extraordinary circumstances. Singapore Unbound fellowships to Southeast Asia will return in 2021.

By postponing the fellowships, we are able to create a starting fund of USD2,000, to be called Singapore Unbound Relief Fund (SURF). Creative writers, whether they are Singapore citizens living anywhere in the world or Permanent Residents of Singapore, may apply for a USD200/SGD280 grant from SURF with no strings attached. We ask champions of the arts and well-wishers to donate to SURF so that even more writers may be helped at this difficult time. Since announcing the fund on Wednesday, we have already received 5 donations totaling USD300. Thank you, donors! Donate now at https://fundraising.fracturedatlas.org/singapore-unbound.

For freelance artists of whatever field, working in the USA, this aggregated list of FREE resources, opportunities, and financial relief options may be useful. They are mostly offered in the USA, but some are from the UK and Canada too.

Whether you are suffering from cabin fever or not, you will enjoy reading the #CoronaStories that Gaudy Boy, our imprint, is sending out every Sunday. The first installment "The Rice Bowl" by Ricco Villanueva Siasoco is a funny and sassy story about two drag queens and a gay boy living in Des Moines, Iowa. Will David leave his father's Chinese restaurant to go off to Chicago with his love? More importantly, will David join Viva and Barbarella in lipsynching Diana Ross at the Iowa State Fair?

The 2020 campaign theme for International Women's Day is #EachforEqual. It is therefore apt that the second installment of our interview series "Art Is +" highlights Singaporean artist Geraldine Kang, whose introspective works examine her relationship with migrant domestic workers, usually female, in Singapore. The interview is unusually frank in reflecting on one's own artistic practice in the highly commercial and competitive context of New York City.

Wishing all our readers good health!

Jee Leong Koh
March 19, 2020

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