In Bad Taste #1: Esquire Singapore Loves AI, Uniqlo Singapore Loves Homogeneity, etc
Esquire Singapore doubles down on AI
In March, Esquire Singapore published an AI interview with its cover star, Mackenyu. The magazine was heavily criticised by local Redditors, international media, and even a Youtuber called Cr1TiKaL. This week, Esquire Singapore put out a response to the backlash, describing its use of AI to generate new quotes from Mackenyu as a “deliberate creative decision” to suit its March issue’s theme, Echoes. As I suspected, Esquire Singapore saw its use of AI as an innovative approach to doing a cover story: “We appreciate the dialogue this piece has sparked among our readers and the industry. We have noted the feedback for future editorial considerations, and remain committed to pushing the boundaries of traditional media.” (Notably, the statement is credited to Esquire Singapore, instead of its editor-in-chief, who usually has no qualms about making provocative statements out loud.) Anyway, since Esquire Singapore is all for AI journalism, I propose they move into a new office at Kampong AI, Singapore’s own AI village. It will open in 2028. Hopefully, by then, the Esquire Singapore team isn’t rendered redundant by AI.
IS IT IN BAD TASTE? Very much so. But even worse taste was displayed by Esquire Singapore’s EIC, who apparently attended a media tasting this week wearing a band tee from IDLES printed with a big heart and the slogan, “I’m Scum”. The T-shirt was a “fuck you”, actually: IDLES infamously used AI for one of its music videos.
The Singapore Art Book Fair suggests that artists stand on business
The organisers of the independent, annual Singapore Art Book Fair (SGABF) wanted to scale things down this year. They posted an open call for artists and exhibitors, offering booths and a new “Walking Exhibitors” format. The latter, which is cheaper than booking a booth, was meant to allow an exhibitor to walk around with their wares in an open briefcase. The local creative community not only found the idea ridiculous but also ableist and classist, going by the comments on SGABF’s Instagram. A top comment reads that it “is so demeaning to have artists and budding graphic designers to pay $150 for essentially a setup of a walking hotdog stand in a stadium”. One Twitter user compared the Walking Exhibitors to the street vendors in Thailand who sell lottery tickets, and encouraged people to “shame” SGABF about it. CNA, which has rarely covered the SGABF in the past 13 years that the fair has been running, shared the news that SGABF has dropped the Walking Exhibitors option and will rethink the structure of the fair.
IS IT IN BAD TASTE? On SGABF’s part, maybe. I thought the Walking Exhibitors idea could have allowed artists to actually get creative and showcase their work in an unexpected, even interesting way. But the responses from Singaporean creatives show their total lack of imagination. They reveal just how privileged and entitled these people are, that they would kick up a fuss over the idea of doing just a bit of physical work to promote their work as Artists. If Singaporeans think standing like a street vendor is beneath them, I wonder how they view the elderly workers at hawker centres who serve them their lunch everyday. Or, for that matter, Mr. Basheer Ahamed and Mr. Abdul Nasser, the father and son behind the beloved Basheer Graphic Books store. Before they opened their store in Bras Basah, the two would go door to door carrying heavy suitcases to sell their art books. That sounds like a dignified endeavour to me. Certainly more so than sitting all day at a table full of amateurish stickers and prints.
Uniqlo Singapore celebrates the diversity of body types in Singapore
If you’re wondering which style of jeans suits you best, don’t ask Uniqlo Singapore. The fashion brand posted a video on Instagram showcasing how different jeans can be worn by different body types, but they forgot to feature models of different body types. Or skintones, for that matter, which is ridiculous given that our diverse population includes Malays, Indians, Filipinos, and so, so many different types of Wasians.
IS IT IN BAD TASTE? The video irks me in two distinctive ways. First, there’s the blandness of the styling. If you wear a white shirt with blue jeans and white sneakers, you should know that your outfit screams, “I don’t have a personality”. Secondly, there’s the blatant racism, which is obviously way, way worse than just bland, bad taste.
Subdued opens in Singapore
Brandy Melville closed its store at Ion Orchard, but as we all know, evil doesn’t die. It reinvents itself. This time, evil comes in the form of Subdued, an Italian brand that sells the same basic, boring clothes that Brandy Melville does, in sizes XS, S and M. Subdued opened its first store here at Wheelock Place and when it did it attracted a long queue of locals dressed, unfashionably, in tank tops and shorts and Crocs. The queue was so long that it extended up to the second floor.
IS IT IN BAD TASTE? If you don’t think this is the very picture of bad taste, I don’t know what to tell you.