SG Prize, Singapore’s annual literary award, has been running for three decades. Its 12 top prizes are awarded in the four official languages – Chinese, English, Malay and Tamil. The prize also hosts a Readers’ Favorite exercise, where the public votes online for their favorite shortlisted book in each language.
In the first round of the award, a total of 49 titles made it to the final shortlist. There were 29 submissions from local and international authors. The shortlisted works include two books on a new theory of the city’s formation, and one that chronicles the lives of residents of Gedung Kuning, an old residential area in the heart of the old town that was demolished by the government in the 1970s.
Prof Miksic’s work stood out because it is based on the “first systematic study of a small area of Singapore.” The 71-year-old said his book was intended to help people understand their past, and to remind them that they should cherish what they have today. The author spent five years putting the book together and interviewed hundreds of former residents. He has now set his sights on a sequel.
Another Singaporean project to have made it onto the World Architecture Festival (WAF) shortlist is Kampung Admiralty by local architects WOHA. Designed to address the nation’s aging population, it aims to foster intergenerational bonding and encourage active ageing. The design features a series of terraces, gardens and hawker centers that are open to the public. The upper parts of the building house 104 apartments for elderly citizens while the lower sections contain leisure facilities, such as a swimming pool and sports courts.
The WAF jury praised the design for its “delicate balance between private and public space,” a reflection of the city’s culture and heritage, and an attempt to preserve its historical fabric while meeting the needs of the aging population. WOHA has already won two previous WAF awards. In 2016, its Interlace, a pair of stacked apartment blocks, won the top prize and in 2015, its extension to the National Museum of Singapore was named best museum building.
Prince William returned to Singapore this week for the third annual Earthshot Prize ceremony, this time to honor the five 2023 winners. At a star-studded awards ceremony held at Mediacorp Theatre, Accion Andina, GRST, WildAid Marine Program and S4S Technologies were presented with the catalytic $1 million prize to scale their environmental solutions.
The event was hosted by Emmy award winning actress Hannah Waddingham and three-time Emmy winner Sterling K Brown, with performances from Bastille, OneRepublic and Bebe Rexha. Other celebrity guests included Cate Blanchett, Nomzamo Mbatha and Donnie Yen.
