【The Âtre 】：不要怕，踏實做

二零二三年十月號 Issue 10 https://tireless-cherry-5zll1q.mystrikingly.com/

自2016年以來，非營利藝術團體「叄南瓜」在新加坡不同社區（大巴窯、麟谷峇魯和文禮）進行活動，以藝術進行社區參與，為來自貧困或破碎家庭的孩子與青年人提供藝術創作的體驗。

「叄南瓜」創辦人兼藝術總監林詩韻曾在2011年與來自弱勢群體的孩子們進行藝術工作，讓她湧起了把藝術帶入社區的念頭。2016年，她獲得國家藝術理事會的補助金，發起了「到外面玩吧！」企劃，每個週末到大巴窯社區與20余名孩子們一起進行藝術活動。任何孩子都可前來參與，且都無需繳費，林詩韻也請了幾位藝術工作者為孩子們提供協助。2018年，孩子們在自己的社區遊樂場內呈現了名為“顯而易見”的藝術展覽，例如在柱子間綁起繩網、用紙皮搭起「私人俱樂部」，等等。

2019年，「叄南瓜」與社區聯繫站計劃攜手，選擇了位於文禮社區的一座組屋底層，租下了半個店舖，設立了「Tak Takut Kids Club」。「Tak Takut」是馬來語，意思是「不要害怕」，這個「不要怕兒童俱樂部」旨在為孩童與青年們提供一個屬於他們的安全空間。任何青年與兒童都可以隨意進出這個空間，也可隨意利用空間裡的一切材料進行藝術創作，孩子們甚至會負責打理這個空間的整潔衛生。

幾年下來，該俱樂部有了5名全職人員，也與約20余名志願工作者們合作。他們與逾二百名7歲至17歲的孩子們進行長期的活動，該俱樂部由孩子們運營，由他們自行理出俱樂部的活動，設立每週的「歌台」表演節目、烹飪活動、拳擊或球類運動等等。他們自行擬出節目表，以建立他們生活裡少有的儀式感：週二是藝術創作與園藝活動、週三是現場表演、週四是戶外活動、週五是舞蹈練習。

孩子們每年都自行製作雜誌「這是我」，介紹他們的各種藝術創作。2022年，他們還舉辦了「我們在家的伙食」展覽，在新加坡不同地方展出，為公眾介紹自己的家庭，通過自己喜歡的家常菜，介紹他們與親人之間的關係。展覽過後，這些故事也都以數碼方式存留「叄南瓜」網站。

在新加坡，這類由基層發起的志願企劃相當難以執行並長久持續，「叄南瓜」實在為新加坡的社區服務提供了一種可持續性的模式。「藝術進駐社區」、「藝術與社區共融」，是「叄南瓜」一步一腳印的實踐，讓人期待他們未來的發展。

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The Âtre Issue 10 (October 2023) https://www.the-atre.com/

Doing It Fearlessly, Steadily

Written by Neo Hai Bin

Since 2016, a non-profit arts organization 3Pumpkins (https://www.3pumpkins.co/) has been working in different communities in Singapore (Toa Payoh, Lengkok Bahru and Boon Lay), engaging the community through the arts, providing art-making experiences to children and youths from underprivileged or broken families.

Lin Shiyun, the founder and executive director of 3Pumpkins, was inspired to bring art to the community when she worked with children from disadvantaged backgrounds back in 2011. In 2016, with a grant from the National Arts Council, she initiated the "Play Outside! program, where she travelled to Toa Payoh community every weekend to work on art project with more than 20 children. The program was free and opened to any interested children, and Lin Shiyun enlisted the help of several artists to assist the children. In 2018, the children presented an art exhibit in their own community playground called "Seeing the Obvious", featuring art works from children such as rope nets tied between posts, a "private club" made of cardboard, etc.

In 2019, 3Pumpkins, in conjunction with the Community Connections program, chose the ground floor of a HDB flat in the Boon Lay community and rented one-half of a shophouse to set up "Tak Takut Kids Club". "Tak Takut" is a Malay word meaning "Don't Be Afraid", so this "Don't Be Afraid Kids Club" aims to provide a safe space for children and youths to belong. Any youth or child can enter or leave the space at will, they are free to use any materials in the space to create art, and the children even have a roster to help to take care of the cleanliness and hygiene of the space.

Over the years, the club has grown to five full-time staff members, with about 20 volunteers, working with more than 200 children between the ages of 7 and 17. The club is run by children, who plan their own activities, setting up weekly "sing-alongs," cooking events, boxing or ball games, etc. They create their own schedule, building a sense of ritual that is otherwise absent in their lives: art and gardening on Tuesdays, live performances on Wednesdays, outdoor activities on Thursdays, and dance practice on Fridays.

Each year, the children produce their own magazine, "This Is Me!", featuring their various artistic creations. In 2022, they held an exhibition, "This Is What We Eat at Home", which was displayed at various locations in Singapore. Through their artworks, they introduced to the public to their families and their relationships with their loved ones via their favorite home-cooked meals. After the exhibition, the stories were digitally archived on 3Pumpkins website.

In Singapore, where such grassroots-initiated volunteer projects are usually difficult to implement and sustain, 3Pumpkin provides an effectively sustainable model for community service in Singapore.  Step by step, it put in practice a possible way for "art in the community" and "art and community integration", and one can't help but be excited at the possibilities of its future development.