Singapore Label An Asylum Finds Its Purpose In Supporting Emerging Local Artists
To help emerging designers realise their creative vision while navigating the challenges of sustaining in Singapore, the founders of one of the most under-the-radar fashion labels here have been putting their own time and money into running one of the most intimate – and meaningful – residency programmes around.
The Philippines-born, Singapore-based fashion designer and artist Josh Tirados made a real splash when he staged the debut show for his label Tirados in a Geylang shophouse in May 2023. The event struck a chord with showgoers and industry insiders not only because of what went down the runway – a concise, well-made collection of gender-neutral workwear staples with an organic edge – but also for its polish. Much of this would not have been possible if not for An Asylum, the independent fashion and art label started by Singapore multidisciplinary artist Becky Ng, 28, and product designer-slash-creative director Jaren Neo, 33, which sunk a cool five-figure sum to fund it. Yep, you read right
Jaren Neo (second from left) and Becky Ng (second from right), the founders of the independent Singapore fashion and art label An Asylum, have been helping to foster the local creative community through the label’s self‐funded residency programme, offering their advice, industry connections, studio space and even funding to emerging creatives with, in Ng’s words, “potential and passion”. The programme’s latest and second resident is fashion designer Josh Tirados (far right), whose first runway show An Asylum helped to fund. Now, he’s assisting the brand as head pattern cutter for its next collection, and even introduced to Neo and Ng the producer Nate Ng (far left), who has modelled for one of the label’s past collections and is working on its upcoming show.
Launched in 2019, An Asylum has garnered a cult following for its shamanistic-like clothes and accessories that are entirely handmade and allude to traditional Japanese crafts such as boro – the art of patchwork – despite keeping a low profile. Its first collection, Sage, was revealed only at the 2021 edition of Singapore Art Week through an installation-like showcase at the Stamford Arts Centre. That same year, Neo and Ng established An Asylum’s in-house residency programme out of an altruistic desire to support others in the local creative community, having experienced firsthand the same challenges emerging designers and businesses face.
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Under the programme, Neo and Ng spend about a year or so with each resident – considerably longer than most art residencies, which typically last for a few weeks up to a few months. This is partly due to practical limits: The duo run everything themselves (including their own label), so they can work with only one candidate at a time. They also want to have the space and flexibility to ensure the programme is truly effective: It ends only when the resident’s goals have been adequately met. So far, two young creatives have completed An Asylum’s residency – before Tirados, there was the product design student Mai Yuyan. Here, Neo and Ng share more about how and why they are supporting the next generation of Singapore creatives their way.
An Asylum's debut collection, Sage, was unveiled exclusively during the 2021 edition of Singapore Art Week.
An Asylum’s neither government‐funded nor a big conglomerate. What made you guys decide to invest considerable resources into starting this residency programme?
Becky Ng (BN): “When we started our label, we had to figure out a lot of things through trial and error, which can be pretty daunting. We’ve experienced first‐hand how difficult it is to navigate this business on your own. There are resources one can turn to, such as the DesignSingapore Council, but these are often limited to a select few due to stiff competition. We’re not a large company, but we’ve found a meaningful way to contribute back to the community. Our residency programme allows for a supportive and inspiring environment where emerging creatives can engage with their craft, experiment and grow. Being one ourselves, we wanted to prove that it’s possible for small, independent players to support one another.”
Tell us more about the programme and what residents get out of it.
BN: “It’s really about empowering those with potential and passion but who might not have the necessary support to fully realise their ideas by ensuring that they have a space and access to equipment. More than just physical tools, we offer guidance on running their own career: from business development to risk assessments, sourcing and production. It’s a space for creatives to engage deeply with their craft. They can experiment, collaborate with others and take risks in a supportive environment that encourages them to push their boundaries and explore new concepts.”
A scene from Tirados’ debut show last May, which An Asylum helped to fund as part of its residency programme that he was undergoing at that point in time.
How do you fund this programme? Do you have day jobs outside of An Asylum?
Jaren Neo (JN): “We work full-time at the label and we’ve funded the programme entirely with our own budget. There can be a misconception that it primarily offers financial assistance, but our residents aren’t here just for that. They’re seeking a safe space to create, learn and move towards self-sustainability in their own projects ... Beyond offering monetary support, we want to impart intangible values that are just as essential for growth as a creative, be it a designer or an artist.”
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Elaborate more on what you mean by ‘intangible values’.
JN: “The ability to understand and manage one’s emotions both personally and in a team dynamic is an example – when working on a collection, this can greatly enhance collaboration and productivity. Creative freedom is another – which explains why we’ve created this environment where residents can feel safe to take risks and push boundaries without the pressure of commercial success. This freedom to explore and innovate is crucial for their artistic growth and can contribute to more authentic creations.”
What happens during An Asylum’s residency programme?
BN: “Our programme is really flexible and we adapt it to the needs of each resident. For instance, our second, the artist and fashion designer Josh Tirados, is fairly independent ... so we didn’t need to provide much guidance or micromanage him during his residency. Like most young creatives, what he needed help with most related more to logistics and operations: a lack of studio space, places to source for materials and so on.
After five years in the business, An Asylum is set to stage its first show this September, showcasing its fully hand‐made, craft‐intensive garments and accessories.
Residents in the programme get to use our studio space at no cost and in the case of Josh, we also helped to produce his debut runway show, which set us back, in total, a five‐digitsum. In addition, as we saw his potential and really wanted to support the production of a meaningful runway show for him, we took him to Seoul Fashion Week to gain more exposure as well as to show him how we source fabrics overseas because the supply of fabrics in Singapore is quite limited. And along the way, we shared our experiences in negotiating with suppliers, project management and bookkeeping – the last isn’t very exciting, but keeping tabs on finances is really important in sustaining a fashion label. Meanwhile, our first resident, the product design student Mai Yuyan – our residency isn’t just open to fashion designers – wanted guidance on her final‐year project, so we spent a lot more time mentoring her to ensure it turned out coherent and was consistent throughout the residency. Her project didn’t require as much financial investment as Josh’s, but it demanded a lot more in terms of guidance and support. Each resident will have different goals and we try to help them achieve them.”
A five-figure sum is considerable for an independent, self-funded outfit such as An Asylum.
JN: “We do acknowledge that the sum is quite big ... We also recognise that it’s going to be difficult to recover this investment – fashion shows are typically very expensive while their returns are quite low. However, it was Josh’s first show and we think the memories of creating it are priceless. He may or may not go on to have more shows in future, but one’s first show is always going to be special. At the end of the day, we decided to just go for it because we felt that creating this memory was worthwhile.”
What does An Asylum gain out of running this residency programme?
BN: “Most importantly, it has really widened our own community because we’ve met so many incredible people through it. Josh and his friends have been invaluable to us – for example, Josh is now assisting as head pattern cutter for our next collection and, through him, we met Nate (Ng), the co-producer of our own upcoming show. The residents also bring in new perspectives and ideas for us; it’s not just a one-way street. We often get inspired from watching them work and we’re often bouncing ideas off one another. Watching them grow has been very fulfilling for us – we do see the results of our support and guidance. Watching Josh’s beautiful show last year, for instance, really reinforced our belief in the importance of nurturing creativity and collaboration in the local creative community.”
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Residency programmes aren't as common in the fashion world as they are in the realm of art. What comes to mind, rather, are incubation programmes such as those run by the Singapore Fashion Council come to mind. How does An Asylum’s programme differ from these?
BN: “We see our residency programme as a project by creatives for creatives. With me being an artist and Jaren being a designer, we do acutely understand the problems that young creatives typically face, and we genuinely want to support creative visions and provide the necessary resources to make them a reality within our limits.”
What are some new challenges that emerging designers face today and how does An Asylum’s residency programme aim to help them deal with these?
BN: “The brutal reality is that creating a brand that can survive in the long run calls for a lot more than just outstanding design. It’s about building a strong operational foundation, understanding the market
deeply and continually adapting to new challenges ... Maintaining discipline for both short- and long-term goals is incredibly important. One can be susceptible to losing track of time, especially when you’re running on your own clock. Planning ahead is also crucial for managing your finances and keeping an eye on your cash flow. Many people overlook this aspect only to realise its importance when it’s too late, because it directly affects future projects. We’ve noticed that many young designers get caught up in chasing quick successes as well. There’s a kind of survival bias out there – everyone sees the successes, but not the failures. Rather than hunt for instant fame, it’s more sustainable to build a steady pace that allows your label to grow organically.
You have to be disciplined, too, in the less exciting aspects of the business such as bookkeeping, and to have the mental resilience to keep going when things are tough. In addition to these, newer challenges include marketing on social media, which we do in-house as well. Anyone who has worked with content production will tell you that planning and creating the actual content for social media takes up a lot more time than anticipated. Sometimes, doing a product shoot and editing it already takes up the entire day. What we do in this programme is to try to alleviate some of these logistical challenges. For example, if you’re facing high rental costs for a studio, we offer you our own. If producing a particular design is a challenge, we have the network to help bring that design to life. And if finances are tight, we can offer stipends. I’m not saying we can solve everything, but we try to help to create this space where creatives can safely experiment, learn and prepare for their projects without all these more logistical obstacles hindering their progress.”
Singapore has had some wildly successful labels – Beyond the Vines and Love, Bonito are just two that come to mind. While they might be more commercial than some designers might like to be, what are some things emerging designers might be able to learn from them?
JN: “It’s important to recognise that these brands operate under different business models. We don’t discount their hard work, but they often leverage a lot on significant investments or bank loans, or utilise large supply chains to support a fast fashion strategy. This approach may not be feasible for emerging designers who can’t commit to MOQ (minimum order quantity) right at the start of their careers. What they can take away from these brands, though, is the importance of having well‐defined business strategies and understanding the fundamentals of running a business – things such as financial management and marketing, which Becky mentioned earlier.
The resident feline at An Asylum's studio
To us, the most vital thing is building a strong brand identity that sets you apart from the competition, especially now, with added competition from brands that solely exist on social media. For us, brand identity is something that’s constantly informing everything we do, right down to the videos we create for social media. That helps to reinforce your brand’s message to your community. At the end of the day, we believe that success in fashion doesn’t always have to mirror that of the commercial giants. It can be achieved through your own creativity, innovation and smart business practices, all tailored to your own strengths and circumstances. So we don’t recommend blindly copying others: You have to find your own groove.”
You’ve mentioned that you have an upcoming show. Tell us more about that.
BN: “We wanted to mark a milestone and to demonstrate our growth as a label – this year marks our fifth year in the business and this show will be our very first. We’re still working out the location, but what I can tell you is that it’s likely to be held this September and it forms the next part of our ongoing project that’s based on Carl Jung’s 12 Archetypes (Jung’s thesis that there are universal models within the collective unconscious of people across cultures that influence people’sbehaviours, motivations and interactions). We’re adopting these Jungian archetypes to deconstruct their original meanings and reposition them into unique characters of their own through world-building – the garments in this collection will reflect the world in which they live. We’re hoping to open the show to everyone because we’ve always believed strongly in communicating our story to people, so we don’t really want to have this barrier delineating who can and cannot come. We’ll be sharing more details on social media in the coming weeks, so keep a lookout!”
THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN EDITED FOR BREVITY AND CLARITY.
COORDINATION KENG YANG SHUEN PHOTOGRAPHY ATHIRAH ANNISSA ART DIRECTION JONATHAN CHIA HAIR AND MAKEUP SARAH TAN
This article first appeared in the August 2024 Passion Edition of FEMALE