Shackled Economies

Exhibition:
Indelible Marks
Art Seasons Gallery, Singapore

Supported by the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport, Western Australia (former DLGSC) and sponsored by the Australian High Commission Singapore, celebrating 60th years of friendship with Singapore.

19 September - 19 October 2025

Artists:
Nazerul Ben-Dzulkefli, Desmond Mah, Ilona McGuire, Ezzam Rahman, Alya Rahmat, Brian Robinson, and Tyrown Wigana.

Shackled Economies examines the economic marginalisation of indigenous Malay and Bugis traders during the 19th century through the lens of two Malay syair (narrative poems) composed by Tuan Simi — Syair Dagang Berjual-beli and Syair Potong Gaji. As a contemporary of Munshi Abdullah, the secretary of Sir Stamford Raffles, Tuam Simi offers a rare and invaluable indigenous perspective on the socio-economic conditions of the period. These poetic text serve not only as literary works but also as historical documents that critique the exploitative trade practices instituted under the British colonial rule, particularly the East India Company (EIC). 

The works reveal how the EIC disrupted existing local trade systems by installing foreign middlemen merchant classes, effectively removing indigenous actors’ economic agency. Contrary to colonial depictions of Singapore as an undeveloped fishing village, the island was historically an active node in regional and global trade networks, particularly as part of the Johor-Riau-Lingga Sulnate. The stair suggests that a sophisticated indigenous economic infrastructure existed long before colonial intervention, with established systems of commerce and currency circulation involving distant polities. The imposition of colonial economic structures not only curtailed these networks but also left enduing disadvantages for the Malay populace - effects that reverberate into the present. 

Shackled Economies, 2025, 80 x 80 cm, Glazed earthenware, gold plated jump rings, steel rod

Photos by Arron Tan Art

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Next

Where Do We Truly Belong? (2025) Midland Junction Arts Centre.