The past few years have been a weird period for many people, but none more so than for Sam Lo. While pushing his artistry in the local and international scene, the artist also dealt with his own personal issues. From his arrest for a graffiti offence to feeling creatively blocked to slinging art at this year’s National Day Parade, Lo is now working on an exciting new project: himself.
On being the Art Director for the Chingay [2023, 2024, 2025]
“Mr Fan [Dong Kai] [Chingay’s Art Director] is amazing. He was like, ‘Sam, I call you not just to do illustrations only. I can call anybody to illustrate. [For Chingay] I want you to push more.’
“He wanted me to own the entire story, not just apply visuals to 2D mediums like collaterals, but also translate that to 3D sculptures and the stage itself. It was a lot of thinking in 3D and experiential concepts, rather than just a mural.”
On being the Art Director of this year’s National Day Parade
“I’ve always wanted to do it. But my experience at Chingay didn’t exactly prepare me [for this year’s National Day Parade]. While the designations were similar, the job scopes were very different. For the NDP, I worked on the colour palette for all the acts with [Boo] Jun Feng—we planned the colour scheme, mood, and feel for each segment.“
On validation
I don’t know if I’m looking for validation. I’m doing things the younger Sam would’ve wanted. I don’t know if it’s validation anymore, but when the opportunity came, I was like, yeah, let’s do it. No hesitation. It wasn’t like, ‘I don’t know what I’d do for a national day thing.’ It was a ‘Screw it, let’s do it.’”
On the future
“I really want to grow my artistry. I've been doing a lot of commercial work but I’m focusing more on doing my own thing now—conceptually pushing myself. Next month in September, I’m painting the entire GSM building at Middle Road. Five, six stories. It’s very wide, and I'm planning to do it on my own. I’ll give myself a month for it; not to kill myself, but also to feel more in tune with the artistic process.”
On being a mentor
“Not at this moment in time. I just don’t know how, to be honest. I feel like I'm not qualified. I never went to school, I don’t feel like an expert. There’s so much more to learn. And I'm still trying to figure my stuff out, you know? Trying to balance mental health, work on myself, be a better person. I'm still learning what it means to be open. So, if I can’t even do that for myself, how can I help others?”
On a simple life
“Last year I was commissioned to do a mural for a school in LA. I stayed at the organiser’s house and one day, I was looking at these flowers above the dining table and I said, ‘Oh, those are really nice.’ The organiser’s husband, who was in the room, said, ‘Yeah, those are her favourites, so I put them there.’
“It was such a simple gesture and I realised, ‘Oh my God, that's what I want my life to be like’. I thought about how every day has just been about pursuing the next goal or trying to achieve more but the relationships in-between those moments? We kinda let them go… yeah, I kinda want that.”
On achievements
“We can have so many of them—which is great. It goes into our portfolio and stays there. I recently did that giant building projection [of my artwork] for NDP and apparently, it broke three Guinness World Records.
“And then all this becomes a memory. Or sometimes you’d even forget about it all.”
On the last few years
“I’ve been very blocked. Not just creatively but emotionally. It wasn’t simply just a mind block; it was the inability to be open, which was a big problem. If you can’t be open as an artist, you can’t create work that people can relate to. Even after decompressing after a long day of work, I’d still miss out on time with my partner. It’s like, I’m not there. And when you’re in self-preservation mode, you’re just blocked off. Even if exciting things come your way, you accept it, but you’re jaded.
“So, I needed to be more intentional; that was my biggest takeaway: to be more intentional.”
On being a “tortured artist”
“My astrologer told me, “You feel like, if it comes too easy for you, you don't deserve it.” I don’t think it’s a ‘tortured artist’ thing; I just have some stuff to work on (laughing).”
On his past arrest
“I was just suay. When you do street art, you already know the consequences [if you get caught]. I wouldn’t blame society for how I turned out because it was up to me to decide how I should have handled it. [But now I’m making art for the NDP]; it’s a redemption arc. If you told my 20-year-old self this would happen, I wouldn’t have believed you.”
Photography: Jaya Khidir
Creative Direction and Styling: Asri Jasman
Grooming: Sophia Soh at THE SUBURBS STUDIO
Styling Assistants: Naysa Subba and Quek Yu Tong
