The official opening of The Singapore Freeport augurs a thriving visual arts scene for the country.

The Singapore Freeport, a cutting-edge, 225,000-square-metre high-end storage facility located next to Changi Airport, opened its doors to the art world in May, joining the country's flourishing art ecosystem of art institutions, businesses and platforms. The facility leverages Singapore's excellent financial infrastructure, secure environment and reputation as a global trading and transshipment hub.

International auction houses, galleries and buyers have began setting up in Asia in the past decade to tap into the region's burgeoning visual arts industry, a development that bodes well for The Singapore Freeport. Said Alain Vandenborre, President and co-founder of The Singapore Freeport Pte Ltd: "The international market has been looking forward to the completion of this Fort Knox state-of-the-art facility with great anticipation. Ninety-eight per cent of our space is already fully allocated. The Singapore Freeport will be the perfect partner of international fine art collectors and dealers, auction houses, diamond dealers, museums, investors and sovereign state collections looking for a safe, stable and secure location to store and trade their valuable collections and treasures."

Taking advantage of the Freeport's advanced technology and comprehensive services are Singapore-based art businesses, which are using the facility as a springboard to expand their regional activities. Fine arts auction giant Christies' and homegrown art transporter Helu-Trans are both expanding their businesses to include the storage of artworks and collectibles at The Singapore Freeport. The high demand of The Singapore Freeport’s services reinforces Singapore's status as a rising arts hub in the region.

Said Beh Swan Gin, Managing Director, Singapore Economic Development Board, "The Singapore Freeport is one of the world's largest facilities dedicated to the storage of art and collectibles. It complements Singapore's strong connectivity to the world and our reputation as a high-trust location, and strengthens our value proposition for international businesses looking to meet the needs of the art and collectibles market in Asia."

The Singapore Freeport lobby (Photo courtesy of The Singapore Freeport)

Gateway to Contemporary Asian Art
Arts activities in Singapore have increased by 57 per cent over five years to 30,000 in 2008, with the country's 52 museums attracting 6.5 million visitors in the same year. The success of The Singapore Freeport signifies a milestone achievement in the growth of Singapore's art ecosystem - one that is built upon a diversity of dynamic arts players to create, produce and distribute the arts. New developments in Singapore's art landscape include:

Art Stage Singapore
Singapore's newest international art fair, slated for January 2011 at the Marina Bay Sands, will position the country as the art hub for Asia Pacific with former Art Basel director Lorenzo Rudolf at its helm. Featuring top artists and works from prestigious galleries within Asia and the world, Art Stage Singapore aims to provide a platform from which stimulating dialogues between the Eastern and Western art world can take place.

National Art Gallery
Targeted to open in 2014, the museum will contribute to Singapore's push towards becoming a regional and international hub for visual arts. The institution will focus on the display, promotion, research and study of Southeast Asian Art. When completed, it will also own the largest public collection of Southeast Asian modern art in the world.

Gillman Village
The rustic enclave, just 10 minutes from the Central Business District, is set to become a vibrant arts belt and will house auction houses, private museums, artists and galleries. Upon completion in 2012, Gillman Village will also be the location for service providers specialising in art storage, conservation, logistics, as well as art consultancy and investment businesses.

Arts Education
To grow the country's creative talent pool, Singapore's first national pre-tertiary independent arts institution, School of the Arts Singapore (SOTA), opened its doors in 2008 to offer an all-rounded creative arts education to talented youths aged 13 to 18.

At the tertiary level, LASALLE College of the Arts offers more than 20 diploma and degree courses across different disciplines while Singapore's oldest arts school, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, nurtures talent with a focus on Asian art.

A Sustainable Art Renaissance
Together with The Singapore Freeport, these investments have put Singapore on the global arts circuit and will continue to form a foundation from which a more robust arts scene can flourish to serve Singapore and the region well.