It was a huge treat going to watch the 'God of Songs' Jacky Cheung at his 60+ concert at the Singapore Indoor Stadium!
It was the 300th show of Hong Kong Heavenly King Jacky Cheung's 10th concert tour. But it wasn't just the spectacular sets (like the four-storey structure his 50+ (number not age) band members were displayed on or the 20 member dance ensemble that struck me most... but the fact that Jacky Cheung is the same age as I am--born in 1961, we turned 64 years old this year--and still doing his trademark splits on stage!
In his words (translated) "I once had to get up slowly after doing a split. Now, after 300 performances, I can jump up instantly!" and he did!
"Can you still do the splits at 60?" He asked the crowd. "For Sure! Don't let outdated definitions of old age limit your power at 60!"
That and "What doing 300 concerts proves is how much I love to sing and perform on stage" were my biggest takeaway from this evening.
But the evening was also a big shock--I'd expected a Jacky Cheung crooning his familiar, nostalgic ballads, maybe with some gentle swaying. Instead he was leaping, dancing, spinning with lasers and light sticks and huge digital projections as he belted out his numbers.
To be honest, the concert made me feel a little uncomfortable--because these weren't the slow, sad ballads I was familiar with. But then when you go on tour, you need to go big--stadium-filling, spectacle-creating, write-up worthy big.
But not all artists 'go big' with digital enhancements to keep their audience. Another influence who 'went small' is David Hockney--yes, the artist who in his 80's took on digital art!
I'm particularly fond of this series because I have a little bonsai that looks like that and I'm going to try painting it now.
David Hockney had already been experimenting with his iPhone and Xerox machine and embraced the iPad when it came out in 2010.
In 2011 he prosented 'Arrival of Spring in Woldgate' a digitally created series documenting landscape changes between January and early June 2011.
Starting on a tablet screen much smaller than a typical canvas, he produced giant prints and print combinations.
Just to benchmark, in October 2025 Sotheby's live sale of the series achieved ￡6.2 million.
But how does this happen, given digitally printed art is as easily (or more easily) copied/ shared/ pirated as our digitally published books?
Taking the listings for this print of 'Arrival in Spring in Wodegate'
Reg format: 55" X 41.5" (edition of 25)
Large format: 93" X 70" (edition of 10)
At auction (Sothebys, London) on 19th February 2025 brought in ￡762,000.
It's not just about the money--you can still see life, joy and discovery in the work. I'm just trying to figure out how this could work in writing!
It's easier for us writers who don't have to do physical leaps and spins, but we need to protect our own skills and keep growing.
I'm trying to remember that as the year winds down, now that my structural edits--fingers crossed--have gone thorugh and I'm thinking about my next project.
The problem is--there are already so many things I want to do and everything I read or watch and every place I visit triggers new ideas!
And that's good too!
If Jacky Cheung can still vault across the stage and laugh for joy and David Hockney can reinvent his art with the enthusiasm of teenager with his first iPad, I can allow myself to have fun with whatever I encounter next!
This Thursday, though, I'll be at the Singapore Pavilion of the Asia TV Forum and Market (ATF) for the big announcement--(which also explains why this post is so scattered)--I'll update once I can. Till then--wish me luck!