What’s on this weekend in Singapore: 12 – 14 February 2021

River Hongbao 2021

Singapore's annual family-centric Chinese New Year event returns in 2021. Nestled among flora and fauna in nature park for a safer, socially distanced celebration, River Hongbao 2021 lands in Gardens By The Bay for the very first time with dazzling lanterns.

Admission is free but for safety and social distancing measures, all visitors have to book their tickets on its website.

Staying in this Lunar New Year? You can be part of the festivity by catching exciting live performances from home! So save the date and don't miss a single show. Shows will be streamed on River Hongbao's Facebook channel and official website.

Nightly Performance Screenings
10 Feb: 8.30 p.m. - 10 p.m.
11 Feb: 8.15 p.m. - 9.15pm, 11 p.m. - 12 a.m. (midnight)
12 Feb: 7 p.m. - 8 p.m., 9.15 p.m. - 10.15 p.m.
13 Feb: 7 p.m. - 8 p.m., 9.15 p.m. - 10.15 p.m.
14 Feb: 7 p.m. - 8 p.m., 9.15 p.m. - 10.15 p.m.
15 Feb: 7 p.m. - 8 p.m., 9.15 p.m. - 10.15 p.m.
16 Feb: 7.15 p.m . - 8 p.m., 9 p.m. - 10.30 p.m.

River Hongbao 2021
10 - 16 February 2021; 6 p.m. - 10.30 p.m. (*11 February, 5 p.m. - 12.15 a.m.)
Admission free. Book your tickets website.
Gardens By The Bay, 18 Marina Gardens Dr., 018953

Valentine's screenings: Three Times (2005)

Late nights are for romance and romance on films. This Valentine's season, catch Friday evening screenings of acclaimed director Hou Hsiao-Hsien's Three Times (2005), starring Shu Qi and Chang Chen who bring an electrifying chemistry on screen.

Set across three eras with the same leads in each segment - a pool hall in 1966, a 1911 parlour and finally contemporary Taipei in 2005 - these stories of love are sometimes wistful, occasionally optimistic, and always conveyed with poetic intensity by both actors. Echoing the realism and signature long shots of his previous works, Hou takes a quiet but compelling approach in the intricacies of love and relationships over the span of a hundred years.

This film is rated NC16 (Some Mature Content). Please note that IDs will be checked at the door.

ArtScience on Screen: Three Times (2005)
5, 12, 19, 26 February 2021 (Fridays, 6.35 p.m.)
Free admission. Book your seats online here.
ArtScience Museum, Expression Gallery, Level 4, 6 Bayfront Av., 018974

Ink & Drink: Valentine's Day 2020 edition

Make an impression this Valentine's Day with How To Ink and Chawan. Craft a memorable day with your beloved with a curated printmaking session paired with the premium tea blends.

At $100 per couple, the two hour session includes:

• How To: Basic Linocut & Print (by How To Ink)
• 2 Cups of Green Flamingo Tea (from Chawan)
• 2 Tea Mocktails (from Chawan)
• 1 Box of Green Flamingo Tea To Bring Home (from Chawan)

Ink & Drink: Valentine's Day 2020 Edition
11 - 14 Feb 2021; 12 - 2 p.m. & 4 p.m. - 6 p.m. (Special dates/time are available upon request.)
$100 per couple. Sign up here.
How To Ink, Concorde Shopping Centre, 317 Outram Rd., #01-26, 169075

State of Motion 2021: [Alternate / Opt] Realities

The sixth edition of the multidisciplinary series, State of Motion 2021: [Alternate / Opt] Realities conjures pathways into multiple worlds by exploring the science-fiction genre through the potency of audio-visual technologies.

Over the years, the science-fiction genre as a world-building exercise received critical attention in Future Studies. The pandemic, for instance, recalls familiar themes that recur in the genre. The outbreak demonstrates how science fiction can actualise into science; a feedback loop that regurgitates itself. As more imagined technologies engineer into reality, some of these machines, in turn, become finer fleets of imagination, invoking speculative projections into truth.

Considering the 'magical' qualities of science and the power of fiction, how do we make sense of these prevailing simulations? How do we carve out liminal spaces as portals into [Alternate / Opt] realities?

State of Motion 2021: [Alternate / Opt] Realities
Now till 21 February 2021; 12 p.m. - 8 p.m. daily (except public holidays)
Free admission
Marina One, 7 Straits View, 018936

Seniors and Contemporary Art Project

The Seniors and Contemporary Art Project is a pilot programme to engage seniors in nursing homes through contemporary art. Guided by Singaporean artists, the participating seniors were introduced to aesthetic methods, with the environment and nature as the source of inspiration.

The Project is an extension of the Singapore Art Museum's Touch Collection, which seeks to present art to visitors of all abilities, using artworks that are developed to be experienced through tactile means.

The exhibition is presented by the Singapore Art Museum and Society for the Aged Sick, with the support of the Agency for Integrated Care, RSVP Singapore and Singapore Botanic Gardens.

The art exhibition is located at Tanglin Green Pavilion and the Nassim Gate Visitor Centre, while information on the exhibition process can be found at the People's Gallery (Tanglin, Nassim and Bukit Timah Gates).

Seniors and Contemporary Art Project
Now till 28 February 2021
Free admission.
Singapore Botanic Gardens, 1 Cluny Rd., 259569

Film Screening: Sayang 사랑

Fate brought Hussein and Ga In together one day and they got to know each other a little better over teh. Like every typical K-drama you've watched, our main characters fall in love. Months later, they've become an inter-racial couple in Singapore. But not everything is sunshine and roses for them, as Ga In is thinking about returning to Seoul for good, while Hussein plans to bend the knee.

Sayang 사랑 (Sarang or 'Love' in Malay and Korean) follows the story of Hussein Shah, a 30-year-old Singaporean Malay Muslim man, and 박가인 (Park Ga In), a mid 20s South Korean woman, who struggle to accept the reality of their relationship due to their many differences. Can they build a happy marriage while letting go of their ideals and fantasies that they hold dear in today's digital age?

This Valentine's Day, we invite you to decide Hussein's and Ga In's future.

Sayang 사랑
14 February 2021; 3 p.m. & 8 p.m.
Tickets will be made available soon at SISTIC. Follow its Facebook page for updates!
Goodman Arts Centre, 90 Goodman Rd., 439053

The Barista Skill Workshop

Suitable for all coffee lovers, learn everything you need to know about pulling the beautifully latte art, making consistently great shots of espresso and mastering proper milk frothing techniques.

The class covers the following content:

• Espresso Preparation techniques - a skill-building session to produce the prefect espresso shots
• Espresso Extracting Training - adjustments to brewing parameters to achieve prefect espresso extraction
• Espresso Beverages - interpreting the coffee menu and identify different type of beans
• Milk Frothing Training - Learn about ideal milk temperature, apply proper positioning and milk frothing techniques and introduction to free-pouring
• Pour Analysis - A step-by-step guide to achieve respective coffee art design with review after each pour to identify areas of improvement

The Barista Skill Workshop
Daily till 28 February 2021; 2 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Tickets at $138 per pax, buy them online here.
eBazaar, 883 North Bridge Rd., #02-04, 198785

Creative Unions @ Funan

As the first mall-wide art activation in Singapore, Creative Unions is a major month-long, art-meets-retail programme at Funan. Envisioning an imaginative and collaborative future for both art and retail industries, it features exciting and unexpected partnerships between Singapore's artists and Funan's tenants across fashion, food, lifestyle, technology and experiential trades.

Look forward to a unique and rewarding "shoppable" experience that will enrich your understanding of the arts. Creative Unions is curated by Neighborhood and presented by Funan.

Creative Unions @ Funan
Now till 21 February 2021; 11. 30 a.m. - 8. 30 p.m. daily
Free admission
Funan, 107 North Bridge Rd., 179105

This article was first published on The Finder.