Singapore launch for contemporary art foundation focused on Southeast Asia
The Tanoto Art Foundation has been set up by Belinda Tanoto to champion Southeast Asian art and bring together artists and art lovers
In January 2025 collectors, curators and artists crowded into the sleek basement of Belinda Tanoto’s Singapore home. The younger daughter of Indonesian billionaire Sukanto Tanoto was hosting an intimate soirée to coincide with the city state’s annual art week.
The sprawling, white-cube space was filled with monumental sculptures and large works by major Asian artists such as South Korean Mire Lee and Malaysian fibre artist Anne Samat.
While this was a private party for insiders, Tanoto also hosted a symposium open to the public earlier that day to mark the launch of the Tanoto Art Foundation (TAF), a Singapore-based non-profit organisation devoted to contemporary art in Southeast Asia.
Both events were among the highlights of Singapore’s art week, and TAF is garnering attention as one of the first private foundations of its kind in the region.
“We saw that there were ways that a private institution that is more nimble, agile and flexible can play a part.”
