David Teo Boon Hwee

The Art of Networking

Posted on May 8, 2013 by David Teo

Up Close and Personal – Shiao Yin, founder of Food for Thought sharing the UCP participants on her journey from student to entrepreneur.

I had the privilege of attending session 2 of UCP (Up-Close and Personal) by SODE (School of Design and Entrepreneurship), a networking session for established and budding entrepreneurs to meet and greet, draw inspiration from each other and exchange ideas and discover business opportunities through activities like workshops, speed networking and talks by more established members of the community.

Participants of UCP networking with each other during the speed networking segment

These forums and workshops are designed to help entrepreneurs network and also gain experiential knowledge. I missed the first session, where Ms Elim Chew (Founder of 77th Street) and Mr Aries Zulkarnain (Executive Pastor of City Harvest Church) shared the secrets of succeessful businesses and networking skills. I decided to check out the second session of UCP – the theme was food, and the speakers were Mr Edward Chia (Founder of Timbre Group) and Ms Kwek Shiao-Yin (Founder of Food for Thought).

Shiao-Yin, left, listening to a UCP participant during the networking session

Kuik Shiao-Yin is co-founder and creative director of the Thought Collective, a business group comprising of a tuition school, restaurants and publishing house. She shared on her journey of self discovery, from her stint studying in the United States, to working in a dotcom company in the boisterous era before the dotcom bubble burst, to starting a tuition centre and finding herself start her first restaurant with a group of friends on a “gun and run” style – where decisions were made based on gut feel, raw courage and a lack of the fear of failure. This fearless attitude propelled her to venture into other restaurants, most notably Food for Thought at the Botanic Gardens. On the 25th of May, she will be opening Food for Thought at the National History Museum as well as rebooting Food for Thought at 8Q into a burger shack / pop-up museum.

City College played host to UCP session no 2 as over 40 entrepreneurs, businessman and woman gathered to network and share ideas.

At the age of 29, Edward Chia already runs 11 businesses, including a music school.

At the age of 27, Edward Chia already runs 11 businesses, including a music school.

For Edward, at the age of 27, he is already running 11 businesses. At the age of 21, where guys his age are still fresh from the army or just entering university, Edward started Timbre @ theSubstation with his business partner. He and his partner Danny Loong, 39, now run 11 different brands of music, food and beverage (F&B) outlets, ranging from cocktail bars to music festivals, delivery and catering services and even a music academy.

Edward Chia of Timbre giving advice to a participant of UCP.

Besides building successful businesses, these two individuals had also created positive change in our communities. Both being Christians, they talked about how they use their talents to serve God, and more importantly, create positive changes in the community with their businesses.

Entrepreneurs for change – Edward, Shiao-Yin and Kenny take the stage during the Q&A session.

Participants listening intently to the UCP speakers. Macarons on the table are sponsored by macarons.sg. It was truly a day where the food industry came together.

Their individual visions for their businesses was not written with a focus on dollars and cents, but on meeting the needs of the community. For Shiao-Yin, she believes in creating change by transforming community spaces and bringing people together through good food for good causes, and Food for Thought was conceived as a space for bringing the community together. For Edward, his interest in music led him to create Timbre as a space where budding musicians can perform for pay, in a country like Singapore where Science and Math are more highly valued as compared to the performing arts. Through his efforts, many musicians have turned professional, and Timbre became a place where new talents are constantly unearthed and the next generation of musicians groomed through public exposure.

Participants geting to know each other at UCP

Speed networking session allows participants to meet many other entrepreneurs.

UCP forces participants to hone their networking skills, an invaluable asset in business.

With a crowd of about 40 people (the fee for the session was only $50), these sessions were designed to be small in size to allow quality networking, and networking is one of the core objective of UCP – to bring together like minded individuals and entrepreneurs, place them in a hot pot frothing with ideas, overrun with creative juices, and stirring them to create opportunities for business and community change. One of the highlights of UCP is the speed networking session, not unlike speed dating, where participants will get a chance to talk to another person of their choice within a set time limit, and at a sound of the bell, make the swap for another participant. Name cards are exchanged, ideas and opportunities for cooperation were created during such sessions.

Networking sessions allow exchange of ideas and increase chances of finding collaboration opportunities.

Alina of abundantearth.sg introducing herbal tea to the participants.

As a bonus, Alina, clinical herbalist and founder of Abundantearth.sg brought along a selection of fine teas for everyone to try. Kevin Teo, founder of Macarons.sg also sponsored free macarons for everyone.

Kevin Teo of macarons.sg (right) chatting with a UCP participant about his business.

Kenny Low (extreme left) the brainchild of UCP enjoying himself at the talk sessions.

UCP is the brainchild of Kenny Low, Schwab Foundation’s Social Entrepreneur of the year in 2007 and founder of City College, a school which has evolved from an institute with a social mission of helping the lost youths of Singapore who have dropped out of the mainstream education system to what it was today, a private school offering O level, English and diploma courses meeting the needs for alternative education pathways in Singapore. Kenny is also the founder of the highly successful O School, a dance school with a social entrepreneur twist, bringing kids off the streets and channeling their energy and creativity into dance, at the same time providing employment to my dancers and a platform for dancers to showcase their talent.

Check here for more pictures from UCP and do like the UCP facebook page here for updates on the next UCP session in June, featuring 2 young entrepreneurs who started their business in their teens. I have learnt some valuable lessons from this session and it’s definitely worth the time!

Posted in Community and Lifestyle, Events, Food | Tagged Bukit Merah, City College, Food for thought, School of Design and Entrepreneurship, sode, Spring Singapore, talk, Timbre, ucp, up close and personal, workshop | Leave a comment

Winds of Change

Posted on April 29, 2013 by David Teo

Winds of change – the windmills at Rochor Centre spin in the winds of change which will soon sweep over this place. By 2016, it will be torn down and replaced with a highway.

In life, changes come to each and everyone of us, sometimes in subtle, imperceptible ways, and sometimes, in a violent cataclysmic fashion, jolting us out of our self-fashioned cocoons of our daily habits and routines. This month, I’ve visited places that are changing, people who will be forced to relocate, and confronted my usual habits and routines of seeing and making pictures.

Silhouette, Rochor Centre 2013 – a shadow of its past glory, Rochor Centre, with its 4 residential blocks will been dropped from the government’s conservation plans and will make way for a new highway to cut down traveling time.

Take Rochor Centre for instance, the iconic multi-colored cluster of housing blocks, offices and shop houses sitting on premise real estate near Bugis Mrt. Rochor Centre is listed as a landmark to be protected by the Urban Renewal Authority of Singapore (URA). However, on 16 Nov 2011, the Land Transport Authority and Singapore Land Authority announced that Rochor Centre will be demolished to make way for the construction of the North-South Expressway by 2016.

Eyes into the past. Rochor Centre, 2013. Another iconic landmark in Singapore awaiting imminent destruction.

This shocking change of mind came not long after the government’s decision to destroy part of Bukit Brown, the largest Chinese cemetery outside of China, that iconic lush green area replete with our nation’s history, also for the sake of a highway.

In Singapore, it seems we are willing to destroy our own heritage and history in the name of progress. Many have lived and business business here since it was first built in 1977. By 2016, a reported 567 households and 187 shops and eating houses in the area will have to relocate.

Young couple at the old estate of Rochor Centre

Contemplating the future – folks sitting at the coffee shop of Rochor Centre pondering what is ahead when the area will be demolished to make way for an expressway

I will be blogging more about Rochor Centre in the next few weeks as it’s an on-going project – I have pictures from visits to the place that I am still sorting out. On a positive note, I chanced upon a Chay Kway Tiao (a kind of local fried noodle delicacy) seller who has been doing business for the past 30 years, together with his wife, at the very same stall.

Chay Kway Tiao seller at Bukit Merah Central. He and his wife has been at it for over 30 years.

This kind of hard work and consistency is rare in a technicolor generation where instant wealth, recognition and upward mobility are valued over traditional values like diligence. Perhaps there is hope some of the spirit of this past generation will filter down.

A past built on red brick walls – Red Hill estate 2013

I also found a quaint part of Red Hill Estate where red brick walls still made up part of the buildings in the area. Remnants of old memories linger on, even as many are being ripped from our collective consciousness.

Me and Whisky, walking on…..

I guess I am in a rambling mood, as I too, must face the road ahead with all the changes that are coming, or already in place. Like I said in my previous post, I’ll just have to keep walking and trust God…….

PS: Most of the pictures in this post (except “Young Couple”) were made with a new camera I acquired at a close-out sale, the now discontinued Ricoh GRD IV, which remains a formidable street camera. Catch my part-review, part editorial on this camera, and the upcoming new Ricoh GR over here at threeguyswithcameras.com, a camera review site I also write for. No, I’m not giving up my Leica M9! But this camera is a perfect complement on the streets.

Posted in Documentary / Street, For Photographers, Personal | Tagged 35mm, CBD, Change, grd4, GRDiv, hawker, Leica M9, ricoh, Ricoh GR, Ricoh grd, Ricoh Grd4, rochor, rochor centre, street, street photography | Leave a comment

The Beauty of the Walk

Posted on March 4, 2013 by David Teo

Alleyway at old Tiong Bahru Estate

I love to walk. And if I were to be honest about it, I love and indeed, need the long walk of a solitary and contemplative nature, a time where I have a chance to reflect, think and pray. This truth is made more poignant in light of what has transpired in my life and especially in the face of what happened over the past 2 months.

Rusted metal gate at old Tiong Bahru Estate

Old Tiong Bahru Estate, Singapore

Laundry hanging at old Tiong Bahru Estate

Front porch of a unit at the old Tiong Bahru Estate

Walking with my camera in hand has come to represent for me a therapy of sorts, a quiet act of healing as I throw myself into the arms of serendipity, confronting each new scene unfolding before my eyes with a kind of focus achieved through the temporal escape from reality. As I trudge through the streets of Japan last year, I felt the thrill of frenetic motion sweeping me into a dreamy landscape where dark figures hurtled towards unknown destinations, and a sense of peace and tranquility emanated from this lack of verbal communication in the surge of humanity.

3 heads,Tokyo, Japan

Street Protest, Shinjuku, Tokyo

I recently felt the need to walk again. But alas, I am no longer in Japan, but the nature, and beauty of the walk remains the same. I took a few walks in the past 3 weeks, seeking God, thinking and at the same time, reveling once again in the lack of a definite destination a long walk entails.

A field of flowers, Istana Park, Singapore

Walking along Orchard Road, Singapore

Even when they are people with me, the movement and energy that is required means that there is no “arrival” and no sense of a place or destination – the fluid nature of a walk focuses my mind and generates creative ideas; the flow of thoughts only matched by the extend to which I am immersed in the experience of walking.

Super Trees at Gardens by the Bay, Singapore

Sun lit tables and chairs at Gardens by the Bay

Kids enjoying the space at Gardens by the Bay

Will it be a bullish year for the economy in 2013?

And once in a while, I take a picture.

Sunset over Marina Bay Sands

A walk at a different time yields a different view of Marina Bay Sands

Super trees at the Silver Garden at Gardens by the Bay. This is a huge area of man made greenery away from the city.

Crowds watching marine life at SEA Aquarium at Sentosa

Professor Gwyn Thomas, the Welsh poet and academic once said ”But the beauty is in the walking – we are betrayed by destinations.” I love it that when I walk, I’m not so concerned about the destination but more on the visceral flood of thoughts and ideas in my mind as I attempt to sort them out, and the visual pleasure of seeing a moment, a scene and putting that down in print using my camera.

Sometimes we do need to take the proverbial road less travelled

The time will come when we will soar, in our own time and season.

Raymond L. Myers said “If you seek creative ideas go walking. Angels whisper to a man when he goes for a walk.” With my camera in hand, the healing and thinking process is complete.

Kid pushing pram at old Tiong Bahru estate.

It’s time to go for a walk.

Posted in Documentary / Street, For Photographers, Personal | Tagged 35mm, 60s, architecture, Cloud Forest, dhoby ghaut, Flower Dome, gardens, Gardens by the Bay, gbtb, Istana Park, Leica, Leica M9, Marina Bay, marina bay sands, Marina Bay Singapore, MBS, old tiong bahru, Orchard, Orchard Road, photo walk, Ricoh GXR, Ricoh GXR A12 28mm f2.5, silver garden, Singapore, singapore river, street photography, streets, stroll, Super Trees, supertrees, Tiong Bahru, Twilight, walk, walking, X100 | Leave a comment

The Voice of the People

Posted on February 17, 2013 by David Teo

A youth holds up a placard proudly proclaiming “Singapore for Singaporeans” at the historic protest in Singapore against the government’s population white paper, the largest bi-partisan protest since Singapore’s Independence.

On the 16th of February, the largest gathering of protesters post-independent Singapore has ever seen, numbering more than 5000, congregated on the open field of Hong Lim Park (also known as Speakers’ Corner) in a historic bi-partisan protest against the Population White Paper, a plan by the Singapore government conceived out of the challenges of an aging Singapore population.

The government has for years run the country by numbers, boasting of economic growth while neglecting, even ignoring the difficulties of the people they claim to serve.

A placard with the message from the people of Singapore to the ruling party – “Say No to an Overpopulated Singapore”

Crowd attendance was more than 5000 by all estimates. Because of the rain, not everyone got onto the field, which meant 5000 is conservative.

This group of guys wore jerseys emblazoned with the Singapore flag and carried Lions XII soccer team scarfs in support of the protest.

Singaporeans want to be heard, and they want to be heard about the population white paper.

The anger and disbelief of the protesters, and indeed, most Singaporeans, even MPs of the ruling party, who are apparently not privy to nor consulted with during the conception of the plan, was palpable – young and old, kids and older folks wave placards, shouted slogans and made known their anger in public, a rare sight in the somewhat authoritative state of Singapore where public dissent was often frowned upon and the rights to hold a protest often withheld below so many layers of bureaucratic red tape that it was often not feasible. More than that, the fear of reprise against any public remonstration of dissatisfaction loomed over Singapore for many years following very public legal cases and (some say, secret) persecutions.

Rain or shine, the protest goes on amidst a dazzling display of different umbrella designs.

A united family standing in protest at the historic mass rally, the largest bipartisan protest since Singapore’s independence, with more than 5000 in attendance.

A guy in a Guy Fawkes mask speaking to his friend about the protest. The mask has come to symbolize protest, and was featured in the movie V for Vendetta.

Undeterred by the rain, this man is a symbol of defiance against the policies laid down in the population white paper.

Rattling his clapper loudly, this man is full of support for the protest. Both the young and old are united by a common spirit.

A supporter applauding the speaker at the protest. Young and old flocked to the protest wanting their voices to be heard.

The Government’s unveiling of the plan to have 6.9 million people eventually in the very small island state of Singapore by 2030, and worse, to have only slightly more than half of that figure to be made up of native Singaporeans blew up well in its face, especially after the devastating defeat at the Punggol By-Election at the ends of the Workers’ Party. This initial uproar caused several members of the ruling party, including Khaw Boon Wan and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong himself to backtrack, saying the 6.9 million figure was only a worst case scenario for planning purposes.

I saw a lot of young Singaporeans at the protest, a healthy sign that we are not as apathetic and apolitical as most think. We care.

Without the lure of free food and free transport typical of the ruling party to bring supporters to their events in an organised fashion, the people came here on their own, rain or shine.

The over-riding message – “We will fix you 2016″, making a reference to the next scheduled General Election in Singapore.

At first I thought a bride had come to join in the protest!

Clappers, whistles and cheers add to the carnival like atmosphere of the protest.

It was then promptly pointed out to these leaders that in the past, the ruling People’s Action Party has always exceeded their “worst case scenarios”, made worse by members of the old guard (whom many consider incompetent and the source of problems today) like the clueless Mah Bow Tan exhorting Singapore to “go for the maximum”, creating a classic “facepalm” situation and possibly bringing about the coup d’etat for the ruling party come 2016, where the General Elections will take place.

The message to the government was clear and simple – NO to 6.9 million in Singapore.

People listened to the line up of 13 speakers talk about the problems of population. Housing, transport woes, over crowding and lack of jobs were sore issues.

Should I migrate to make more space?

Many came to the protest for the sake of their kids. Would they have a place in school, a job in the face of 6.9 million people, half of which are not Singaporeans?

Even at 5.3 million, Singapore’s transport, housing and infrastructure are already straining under the weight. Just look at our pathetic train system!

There was then an extensive parliamentary debate over the white paper, with members of the opposition Workers’ party offering up several alternatives, but the result was never in doubt – as under the party whip, Parliament passed motion (pun intended) on the White Paper, with 77 ayes and 13 nays, prompting cries of “wayang” (play acting) on the whole idea of a debate – that the ruling echelon had already made up its mind, and that the debates were merely all a show.

Placards were seen making a mockery of the number 6.9 million….

Ah Loong refers to the Prime Minister, and 6.9 million is the one population figure the people made clear they do not want.

Braving the weather, people live tweeted / instagrammed / pathed / facebooked the event in the large display of citizen journalism.

Protesters reciting the Singapore pledge in a giant show of patriotism and love of our nation.

We the citizens of Singapore…… reciting the nation pledge in a massive show of patriotism

I witnessed history being made yet again (after the 2011 General Elections, the Punggol East By Election rally, the victory celebrations of the by-elections) that rainy day at Hong Lim Park. I came to photograph a protest, but in the end, I photographed the spirit of the true Singaporean that day, a collective anger at the status quo, a dissatisfaction with the government for turning a deaf hear to many of our concerns, and more importantly, a renewed spirit which cast off the apathy and apolitical mindset of old, a spirit that craves for change, and a belief that we as a nation can, and must, determine our own fate.

We are not your sheeple – the placard proclaims, making a reference to people being treated like mindless sheep in Singapore. Real soft toy sheep used there!

We want to be heard, not herded – possibly my favorite tagline from the protest!

We are Singapore, and this is our home. And I’m glad to say, we have matured.

Waiting for 2016 – we want to be heard, not herded. Well said!

Say No to 6.9 million is a protest organised by transitioning.org

The General Elections in 2016 will be very interesting indeed. The voice of the people cannot be ignored now. We have shown that we care, and we will act, if needed, to be heard.

For more pictures of the protest, please visit my Flicker set. My instagram feed also contains additional images during my live tweeting. Images are copyright – please ask permission if you wish to use them!

Posted in Documentary / Street, Photojournalism | Tagged 35mm, anger, banners, demonstration, Hong Lim Park, Leica, Leica M9, placards, politics, population, protest, Ricoh GXR, Ricoh GXR A12 28mm f2.5, Singapore, Singapore politics, singapore population white paper, singapore protest, Speakers corner, street photography, streets, white paper, workers | 1 Comment

Finding Fortune

Posted on February 12, 2013 by David Teo

Believers in the god of fortune raised inverted umbrellas and looked skywards as they hope to catch a few of the gold dust signifying good fortune for the year.

With cries of “Huat ah!” (Chinese Hokkien dialect for prospser) believers in the god of fortune raised inverted umbrellas and looked skywards as they hope to catch a few of the gold dust signifying good fortune for the year.

Every year at River Hongbao by Marina Bay (and in more recent years, at The Float @ Marina Bay), the annual Chinese New Year festival extravaganza, there will always be a giant Chinese god of fortune installed amidst the rest of the Chinese history, folklore and legend inspired installations. Chinese are great believers in good fortune and prosperity. The common cry of “Huat ah” (to prosper) graces chinese homes across the country during chinese new year season. No where is this more evident than the crowds pushing their way under the god of fortune at River Hongbao hoping for a sprinkle of gold dust and good fortune.

Gold dust spewed forth by the statue signifies good fortune and prosperous times if you can catch some!

A man teaching his 2 daughters about chinese culture and traditions pertaining to the god of fortune and the significance of the gold dust sprinkles.

Among the zodiac lanterns and other giant light installations, the god of fortune towers impressively over the rest of the other structures, giving prominence to the ideals and the hopes of people to prosper financially.

Opening a giant umbrella, this man is ready for his harvest.

An umbrella was raised for the possibility of another gold dust sprinkle after the initial salvo.

The pensive look of this woman says it all – if there’s good fortune in the gold dust, then it’s worth a shot at catching them. Fortune and prosperity are universal human desires.

Every year, at certain times of the festival, the massive structure will spew forth “gold dust” and lucky numbers for adherents of the faith to catch, in the hopes of landing good fortune, and perhaps a lucky number of so to win the local lottery. It’s a spectacle of its own, with everyone from young to old looking skywards towards heaven, with umbrellas, open bags, clasped hands forming containers aiming to capture as much of the specks of gold glitter as they could.

Feeding frenzy – crowds shout and surge towards the scattering of gold dust from the god of fortune.

Whether young or old, fortune favors those who are lucky enough to catch dusts of gold spewed forth from the statue, according to ancient Chinese traditions and beliefs.

Inverted umbrellas form good catchment areas for gold dust from the statue.

I was crushed in the crowd last night as I waded into the middle of the feeding frenzy – that was the first year I felt my safety was threatened by the hordes of fortune hunters, and I had to hold onto my camera tightly while trying to navigate the crowds and take pictures at the same time.

A man checking his loot while his friend looks skywards for glimpses of additional gold dust from heaven.

Wishing for fortune is not limited by race of language or religion – it’s a universal inner desire.

Crowds come prepared with umbrellas ready to catch just that bit of good fortune. This was the only photo I picked from this set shot with a Ricoh GXR.

A man digs into his umbrella for any spinkle of gold dust, and good fortune, that may have landed inside.

What do these people want to find among golden colored pieces of paper? The answer I believe, is a certain hope, a hope that in the lunar new year of 2013, perhaps the good fortune that had proven so elusive for some of them, would finally find its way into their lives.

Fireworks over the god of fortune marking the launch of River Hongbao 2013 – shot with the Leica M9 on a tripod, something which I use like maybe, 3 times a year

Happy Chinese New Year to all!

Photos all shot with a Leica M9 and a single 35mm Summarit f2.5mm lens except for 1 photo with a Ricoh GXR with the A12 28mm f2.5 module.

Posted in Documentary / Street, Photojournalism | Tagged 35mm, cai shen, cai shen ye, chinese new year, chinese traditions, cny, fortune, god of fortune, good fortune, good luck, huat, Leica, Leica M9, lunar new year, Marina Bay, marina bay ambayssadors, marina bay floating platform, marina bay sands, Ricoh GXR, Ricoh GXR A12 28mm f2.5, river angbao, river hongbao, Singapore, singapore river, street photography, streets, the float | Leave a comment