Art Again tokonoma
The tokonoma (床の間) is a quiet focal point in traditional Japanese homes—an alcove for displaying art, calligraphy, ceramics, or seasonal floral arrangements. It offers a distilled moment of appreciation—unrushed, personal, intimate.
For our first art hang of the year, we bring together artworks from 3 private collections, never before seen on our marketplace. A considered arrangement of paintings, pottery, and plants, our tokonoma display is a sombre, monochromatic, and textural setting punctuated by glimpses of vivid colour. Like ikebana, the compositions here rely on restraint—space, balance, the tension between stillness and intensity, and refinement and raw materiality.
We hope you enjoy the exhibition.
Pottery & Sculpture
Art Again tokonoma offers a rare glimpse into the collection of a dedicated Japanese ceramics collector—himself a ceramicist—who has spent years dedicatedly acquiring works from contemporary masters, to Living National Treasures and their pupils. His collection is built on deep study, each piece a masterclass in form, material, and technique. The collector will be present to share insights on the collection.
Alongside these ceramics are stone sculptures by Singaporean veteran Han Sai Por (Singaporean, b. 1943). Han’s works carry weight and density—stone carved into quiet, grounded forms. Together, these pieces play off each other, shifting between lightness and mass, refinement and raw materiality, forming a considered arrangement that speaks to the essence of the tokonoma.
Ceramic works by:
Akiko Hirai ·
Hidenori Tsumori ·
Kaneta Masanao ·
Ken Matsuzaki ·
Mihara Ken ·
Ryoji Koie ·
Shingo Takeuchi ·
Shoji Hamada ·
Paintings
The paintings in this show come from 2 private collections, each offering a distinct take on the traditional tokonoma display of flora. Eric Chan’s (Malaysian, b. 1975) works sit on one end—hazy, atmospheric, and deeply nostalgic, recalling an early-2000s aesthetic of blurred edges and soft washes. There’s an intentional distance in his work, a push and pull between presence and disappearance.
In contrast, Teng Nee Cheong’s (Singaporean, 1951 - 2013) early paintings from the 1970s are saturated and dense, breaking through the subdued arrangement with intense colour. As one of Singapore's bright spots in the art world, his works take on a bold physicality, offering a counterpoint to an otherwise restrained hang.
Curating as a secondary marketplace is unchartered territory. With so many artworks spanning multiple private collections, Art Again does not adhere to the strict refinement observed in gallery shows, nor can we truly offer the wild unpredictability of hunting for art in a junk shop.
Instead, we sit somewhere in between: come as you are, hang out with the community, and because we are a secondary marketplace, if the collector is willing, prices are negotiable.
Artworks by: Han Sai Por · Eric Chan · Teng Nee Cheong ...and others
Akiko Hirai · Hidenori Tsumori · Kaneta Masanao · Ken Matsuzaki · Mihara Ken · Ryoji Koie · Shingo Takeuchi · Shoji Hamada
14 - 16 March
Tokonoma
16 Shaw Rd, #03-10
Singapore 367954
14.03 Friday <> Saké Reception (5-9pm)
15.03 Saturday <> Life Drawing (4-6pm)
15.03 Saturday <> Open to public
16.03 Sunday <> Open to public