With the intention to make apparent the contributions of LGBT+ writers to the literature scene in Singapore, our studio collaborated with Sing Lit Station to organise and run a screen print showcase and jam sessions as part of Pink Fest 2019.
Featuring text from esteemed writers who identify with the different queer sub-groups, do different types of writing and span across different generations, the team designed and silkscreened prints based on the words from JY Yang, Ng Yi Sheng, Norah Lea, Stephanie “Dogfoot” Chan and Tania De Rozario.
The title of the event comes from a line Alvin Pang‘s The Scent of Real (2001) in which the longing for something real and the back-and-forth described in the poem became symbolic of the sentiments for the LGBT+ community in Singapore where Section 377A of the Penal Code still is not repealed. In particular, the design of the event logotype—created to be dynamic and fluid—draws reference from these sentiments. The title also alludes to the event’s raison d’être—to bear witness to presence of LGBT+ people in all sectors of Singapore society, in this particular case, the literature scene. The identity’s colours, pink and blue, were used interchangeably to turn clichéd gender connotations of each colour on its head.
