Asian art from far-flung corners

THE Prudential Eye Awards for art from "greater Asia" hasn't always hit its mark. In the past, it was criticised for a lack of diversity and less-than-transparent judging criteria. Its inaugural 2014 edition, for one, had 20 nominees of which seven hailed from Australia and three from Russia. Not surprisingly, charges of Eurocentrism surfaced.

But its third edition feels much improved from its first two. The 15 nominees are more geographically diverse, with several representatives from less-established art scenes such as Cambodia, Bangladesh, Vietnam and Thailand. Singapore has only one nominee - Robert Zhao in the photography category.

The winners were announced last week. But the accompanying exhibition of the 15 nominees' works is still ongoing and worth a visit, now that the madness of Singapore Art Week is over. Several of these artists have never or rarely exhibited in Singapore. And one feels a genuine thrill of walking through ArtScience Museum's circular hallway and discovering their works for the first time.