Celebrating 85 Years of Excellence: NAFA's 'Bold & Gold' Gala

Group photo with the NAFA Board Chairman, NAFA President and NAFA 85th Anniversary Gala Organising Committee. From left to right: Senior Director of Growth (Sales & Marketing) of Aureus Group, Ms Angela Cortez; Founder of The Culture Story, Ms Ning Chong; Editor-in-Chief of Tatler Asia Group (Singapore), Mr Aun Koh; NAFA President, Mrs Tan-Soh Wai Lan; Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Mr Lawrence Wong; NAFA Board Chairman, Ms Low Sin Leng; Chairperson of NAFA 85th Anniversary Gala Organising Committee, Dr Lucy Ooi; Founder of Cheryl W, Ms Cheryl Wee and Managing Director of PT. Prakarsa Pramandita, Mr Chew Sin Hwa.

Welcome address by NAFA Chairman, Ms Low Sin Leng.

Address by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Mr Lawrence Wong

Presenting a token of appreciation to our Eminent Patron, UOB, represented by Mr Frederick Chin. This show plate is the winning design at the Luzerne Decal Design Competition by a Year 1 student in Diploma in Design (Landscape and Architecture), Muhamad Hazim Bin Ab Wahab. The design underscores the significance of Singapore's heritage, as he elegantly weaves the traditional shophouses and futuristic Gardens by the Bay into his design, showcasing the enduring relevance of the past in shaping our understanding of the present.

From left to right: Chairperson of NAFA 85th Anniversary Gala Organising Committee, Dr Lucy Ooi; NAFA Board Chairman, Ms Low Sin Leng; Head of Group Wholesale Banking and Markets, UOB, Mr Frederick Chin; and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Mr Lawrence Wong.

Presenting a token of appreciation to our Eminent Patron, Mr Wu Hsioh Kwang. This show plate is the winning design at the Luzerne Decal Design Competition by Muhamad Hazim Bin Ab Wahab, a Year 1 student in Diploma in Design (Landscape and Architecture). The design underscores the significance of Singapore's heritage, as he elegantly weaves the traditional shophouses and futuristic Gardens by the Bay into his design, showcasing the enduring relevance of the past in shaping our understanding of the present.

From left to right: Chairperson of NAFA 85th Anniversary Gala Organising Committee, Dr Lucy Ooi; NAFA Board Chairman, Ms Low Sin Leng; Eminent Patron, Mr Wu Hsioh Kwang; and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Mr Lawrence Wong.

Presenting a token of appreciation to DPM Wong. The calligraphy artwork '勇 Yong,' created by Dr Ho Kah Leong, a distinguished artist and the 7th President of NAFA, embodies the spirit of courage and optimism, inspiring a fearless journey into the future.

From left to right: NAFA Board Chairman, Ms Low Sin Leng; Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Mr Lawrence Wong; and Chairperson of NAFA 85th Anniversary Gala Organising Committee, Dr Lucy Ooi.

NAFA’s School of Music presented a performance arranged by NAFA’s School of Music alumnus, Lim Han Quan: Yizhu Dance Music, also known as Yizhu Wuqu, is a traditional form of Chinese dance music with deep historical roots tracing back to the Tang Dynasty. For this special celebration, Han Quan has reimagined the music for electone and pipa, seamlessly bridging traditional and contemporary sounds. The pipa virtuoso, Wang Siyuan, is a student in NAFA's Master of Performance programme and a musician of the Singapore Chinese Orchestra.

Pia Angela Paz Custodio (graduating Diploma in Dance student) and Brandon Tang (NAFA alumnus and recipient of the NAFA Best Graduate Award 2021) from NAFA’s School of Dance performed a pas de deux from Kathabi, a full-length dance theatre piece showcasing the pre-colonial stories behind the traditional weaving practices of the Itneg Illaud Tribe from the northern mountainous regions of the Philippines. The performance was choreographed by NAFA Senior lecturer, Dr Filomar Cortezano Tariao, in collaboration with the University of the Philippines and the Itneg weavers.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Mr Lawrence Wong (fifth from left) with some of our talented performers, as well as Head of Chinese Instrumental Studies, School of Music, Sunny Wong (leftmost) and Senior Lecturer, School of Dance, Dr Filomar Cortezano Tariao (rightmost).

NAFA’s live auction took place with auctioneer Marcello Kwan, Head of Modern and Contemporary Art, Asia, at Bonhams, based in Hong Kong.