The spirit of giving

JAZZ LI started collecting art with Mandopop megastar Jay Chou several years ago. The two met when Li relocated from Singapore to Taiwan in 2013. They hit it off almost instantly, bonding over their love of music, art, fashion and all manner of creative pursuits. Chou would take Li to the hidden food gems and make Li play basketball with some of the best players on the island.

"Jay's great at basketball, I'm terrible at it," Li says with a laugh.

Li eventually became responsible for sourcing some of the world's best artworks for Chou. The musician's collection today includes works by blue- chip artists such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Gerhard Richter, Anselm Kiefer, Albert Oehlen, Kaws and Genieve Figgis.

But Li admits: "We really didn't know that much about art when we started. We learnt about it on our own and taught each other what we knew."

There are now over 180 works in Jay's collection, which Li manages with the help of advisers and consultants. Li's own personal collection is more modest, but still includes pieces by notable artists such as Kaws, Futura, Jahan Loh, José Parlá and Jacky Tsai.

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Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

[scald=255690:article_inline_image] Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

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Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

Because friendship was the starting point for Li's foray into art collecting, he wants to mark this Christmas with the opening of a new art space called Void Deck on Race Course Road. Officially, it's a base for him to promote good, accessible art to the public. Unofficially, it's a space for him to enjoy the company of his art-loving friends till late and remind him of his deep passion for human interaction.

"When you grow up in Singapore, you take pride in celebrating all the different public holidays with your friends - which, of course, includes Christmas. So although I'm not Christian, I welcome the spirit of joy and hope that comes round this time of the year," he says.

Li is the CEO of Enviseam, which is building itself to be a platform for artists, entertainers and opinion leaders from across disciplines to come together and tell their authentic stories to a wider audience. Most recently, Enviseam co-hosted the showcase of Kaws' giant sculpture on The Float @ Marina Bay. It was organised by Hong Kong-based company AllRightsReserved founded by SK Lam, Li's close friend.

For Enviseam (a portmanteau of Envision and Dream), the Kaws show represents one of its key missions to "share good art with everyone, regardless of who you are and where you're from", says Li.

To this end, Li dreams of turning his art space Void Deck into a communal hub not just in Singapore but also around the world. He hopes to someday open Void Deck outposts in Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Taipei, London, New York and other cities.

But would anyone outside of Singapore know what a "void deck" is? Li laughs and replies: "When non-Singaporeans think of 'void', they might think of a wide open space where there's freedom to do anything. When they think of "deck", they think of a kind of platform. So the name works!"

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Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

[scald=255691:article_inline_image] Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

[scald=255691:article_inline_image]

Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

Jazz Li wears a Gucci 100 blue nylon track suit and red leather sneakers by Gucci. Christmas tree by The Blush Sparkle. Artwork by Jahan Loh.

Void Deck's first showcase features the works of Jahan Loh, a respected local pop artist whose designs have adorned all kinds of collectibles from G-Shock watches to Vans skateboarding shoes.

In a significant move, Void Deck will also offer rare Be@rbrick figures designed by Loh in collaboration with ACU at recommended retail prices. Usually these collectibles are well-nigh impossible to get one's hands on. When they later appear on the secondary market, they're tagged at much higher prices.

But Li says his friendships with artists, toymakers and distributors help him to get these gilded allocations, often with a promise to engage the audience in the artist's philosophy. He will then sell these collectibles at recommended retail prices through a raffle, so that everyone gets a fair chance of owning them.

Li says: "I want art to be a lot more inclusive. I feel that a lot of major cities lack non-traditional art spaces that celebrate unpretentious art - or art that's just fun and cool." For a virus-stricken, anxiety-ridden world, "fun and cool" may just be the panacea it needs this Christmas.

Visit void-deck.com and check out its limited edition Jahan Loh merchandise available at recommended retail prices.