Singapore\u2019s reputation might be that of a conservative society that is rather prudish when it comes to physical intimacy and eroticism, but National Gallery Singapore (NGS) is opening a window into its boudoir with an exhibition that focuses on the artistic expressions of sexual pleasures.<\/p>\n
\u201cPassion is Volcanic: Desire in Southeast Asian Art\u201d borrows its title from Liu Kang\u2019s 1953 essay Trip to Bali<\/em>, in which the Chinese-Singaporean artist wrote that the passions of the Balinese were primal and unstoppable, like a volcanic eruption.<\/p>\n Adele Tan, senior curator at NGS and a co-curator of the exhibition, tells the South China Morning Post: \u201cI wanted to use the lens of eroticism and desire to look at the museum\u2019s collection and see if there were other narratives that may not have been spoken about.\u201d<\/p>\n Showcasing more than 70 works across some 800 years, the exhibition is structured into three fluid chapters that guide visitors through the evolution of desire: \u201cAsian Mythos and Rituals\u201d, \u201cConventions of the Erotic\u201d and \u201cPublic Arenas\/Private Interiors\u201d.<\/p>\n Vajradhara and Prajnaparamita<\/em>, a gilt-copper sculpture from the 14th or 15th century displayed in the first section, depicts two Buddhist deities in a seated, face-to-face, sexual embrace \u2013 a Tantric posture designed to synchronise breath and energy for spiritual connection.<\/p>\n Nearby, Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook\u2019s 25-minute video work, I\u2019m Living<\/em> (2002) \u2013 in which the Thai artist dresses the corpse of an unknown woman \u2013 is accompanied by a textual extract of the Thai artist\u2019s erotic fiction in Thai and English. The controversial video performance probes the concepts of death and ritual, while the erotic fiction harks back to the exhibition\u2019s theme of sex as part of the cycle of life.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Vajradhara](\"https:\/\/img.i-scmp.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto\/sites\/default\/files\/d8\/images\/canvas\/2026\/05\/11\/47ea4cfb-8c20-4a5b-8966-84fd4561f20c_8757f7e1.jpg\" "\\"Vajradhara")
<\/div>