Ong Keng Sen discusses the role of artists, archives, philanthropy, and the performing arts in fostering an understanding of the arts in Singapore and Asia.

Ong Keng Sen, currently on leave from his role as the artistic director of TheatreWorks, is the director of the new Singapore International Festival of Arts. He has presented performance works at international venues including the Lincoln Center in New York, Edinburgh International Festival, Tanzquartier Vienna, Paris Centre National de la Danse, iDans Festival Istanbul, Festival Panorama Rio de Janeiro, Adelaide Festival, Hong Kong Arts Festival, and Cocoon Theater Tokyo. Ong mentors emerging artists and founded the Arts Network Asia to award micro-grants for collaborations across borders. He has served on the jury for the Prince Claus Awards in Amsterdam since 2012. From 2001 to 2003, he created and directed the In-Transit Festival in Berlin. A Fulbright Scholar, he was awarded the Fukuoka Asian Arts and Culture Prize (2010) for his work in Asian contemporary performance, and is the first Singaporean artist to have received the Cultural Medallion Award (2003) and the Young Artist Award (1992). He completed his postgraduate studies at Tisch School of the Arts, New York University, and also holds an LL.B from the National University of Singapore.