Modeled after Secret Wars—live art battles that take place in the kookiest urban spots of Europe and Australia (among them, an abandoned abattoir)—Face Off, the inaugural Asian league of this burgeoning street art competition, hits town for the first time. Choice weapons of visual assault: Free form, black on white, single medium, 8ft. by 8ft. boards, no extra time, one brush or marker. Two intrepid up-and-coming street art stalwarts, Addica and zero3sixtyfive, must draw or paint in black on a virginal white canvas in 90 minutes in a classic battle of the sexes. Guest judges TraseOne and the KillerGerbil will unveil the critic’s choice while the crowd will vote for the winner. Certainly more fun than your presumably secret ballot in the upcoming elections. “I agreed to come on board because I’ve seen this project going on outside of Singapore before in Europe and I had longed for something similar to happen in Singapore,” says TraseOne. “This project covers pretty much all aspects of street art when we have to consider space, material and time, besides the concept, when creating work. Another important way this project appeals to me is the opportunity to pit our skills against not only locals, but against artists from around the globe, and to push local artists out into the global creative industry by bringing them overseas for collaboration opportunities.” Face Off organizer, Michelle Luehman of Raw Art, tells us what’s in store: “I think people should be prepared for a surprise. This is going to be one hell of an event and it covers a lot of different interest groups. Anyone who thinks that this is restricted to a few fringe dwellers is going to have to reshape their thinking.”
Get ready to Face Off on Mar 30, 6:30pm. The Hall, Old School, 11B Mount Sophia, 6338-7682. $12.50-15 from www.ticketcrash.com.
