Open Reception, Para//els

Venue: INSTINC Space, 39 Keppel Rd, #03-10 Tanjong Pagar Distripark, Singapore 089065

Opening Reception: 2 October 2025 (Thu.) 5:30PM–8:30PM

Exhibition Duration: 2 to 19 October 2025 (Wed-Fri, 1PM-7PM. Sat - Sun, 1PM-6PM)

Artist Talk: 5 October 2025 (Sun.) 3:00PM-4:00PM

Para//els is Chan Wan Kyn’s first solo exhibition, showcasing works developed during his residency at Fondation Fiminco in France as part of the VISIONS programme, alongside recent experiments from his ongoing practice. The exhibition marks a year since his first in-person residency and traces a journey of exploration, where data, materiality, and personal experience converge.

In his practice and throughout this residency, Wan Kyn documents his journeys from GPS, light and sound data to interactions with artists, communities, and spaces. These recordings and interactions have not only influenced or directly provided material development of the artworks and experiments you see on display, but have also deepened his interest in the ways environments and human connections leave subtle, often hidden imprints on lived experience.

The concept of Para//els extends beyond its literal meaning, evolving into an inquiry into layered relationships between place, technique, and artistic exchange. What began as an intention to compare urban development, city planning, and architectural facades between France and Singapore gradually unfolded into a multifaceted exploration of how similarities emerge across contexts — from the warmth of street lamps, symmetry of façades and layouts of gridded streets, to the creative dialogue and techniques that are learned, adapted and grown.

During the residency, Wan Kyn also embraced new processes, experimenting with traditional printmaking for the first time and integrating it with modern methods such as 3D printing and laser engraving. These hybrid approaches reflect his interest in blurring the boundaries between the craft and computation, form and data.

Para//els invites viewers to experience this evolving practice, where art and technology intersect to explore perspectives on space, memory, and the connections that shape our understanding of place.

About Artists

Chan Wan Kyn

Wan Kyn is a Visual Artist and Engineer who draws inspiration from the intangible elements of his surroundings, such as negative space, light, and human connection. Expressing his concepts through a variety of mediums, multidisciplinary practices, and methodologies, his works manifest themselves in myriad ways, from sculptural forms and immersive installations to digitally generated works.

Currently engaged with a local 3D printing company, he aims on stretching the limits of this process, exploring its uses, applications and techniques through scientific research and experimental artistic techniques both through his design and artistic practice. He has applied 3D printing in a myriad of ways, from installations such as the orchids of Symphony 1 (2023) in iLight Singapore 2023 and Unlight Unwound (2024) and 3D printed etching plates for printmaking his residency in France, to novel uses in mechanical engineering for perceived colour change, morphing prints and tessellated displays. He teaches basic 3D printing to SMU and other local institutions.

Wan Kyn was a member of the pioneer class of the School of the Arts, Singapore (SOTA), later graduating with a Bachelors and Masters of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University where he was later commissioned to produce two immersive installations for the Boiler Gold Rush 2022 orientation programme. Wan Kyn is also a winner of the 2023 Julius Baer Next Generation Art Prize and first Singaporean resident of VISIONS Residency at Fondation Fiminco, France. He has exhibited at INSTINC, Singapore Art Week, iLight Singapore 2012 and 2023, Bangkok Thonburi University and Art Outreach, LOY Contemporary.

About INSTINC Space

Founded in 2004 by artist Yeo Shih Yun, INSTINC is a leading artist-run institution based in Singapore. With a distinguished presence in the arts ecosystem, INSTINC diligently sustains the growth of contemporary art through exhibitions, residency programs and curations. Their esteemed Artist-in-Residence program has cultivated invaluable regional and international networks since 2009. INSTINC is celebrated for producing immersive, large-scale exhibitions that encompass installation, new media, performance, painting and sculpture, showcasing the diverse range of artistic expressions.

Notable collaborations include partnerships with renowned brands such as Volvo and Guinness, further demonstrating INSTINC's commitment to fostering cross-disciplinary exchanges. Moreover, INSTINC takes immense pride in organising the highly anticipated INSTINC D:Art Festival 2022, generously supported by UOB Bank and the NAC start fund.

INSTINC continues to foster creative individuals and collective practitioners by establishing a platform for cross-disciplinary exchanges with their relocation in Tanjong Pagar Distripark. With expertise in exhibition curation, commissioned works and brand alliances, INSTINC endeavours as a vital presence in the cultivation of contemporary art.