Cats Of The World II - 20 - 31 May 2008

Ciao everyone!

Benvenuto or welcome to the blogsite for "Cats Of The World' photo exhibition aka 'Gatti Del Mondo' in italian.

After a successful inaugural exhibition last year at The Moomba, we're so pleased to announce that "Cats of The World II" 2008 photo exhibition will be taking place from 20 to 31 May 2008 at the Arts House! A BIG thank you to the kind folks over there at the Old Parliament House...

This year’s exhibition will be bigger and better, and continues to spread the message about the joys of our feline friends and that cats all over world are the same - lovable and purrrrfect!

A visual celebration of cats, the photos - contributed by amateurs and professionals - will showcase these furry animals in unique situations and settings (such as out-of-reach rooftops and Mediterranean islands!) in various countries, which also capture them in their element – graceful, lazy, sneaky, aloof, loving etc.

The idea of the exhibition first came about because a bunch of cat lovers realised they have a small collection of cat snapshots taken all over the world in exotic places such as Morocco, Italy, Turkey, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. And when we spread word about it, we got some lovely pictures of cats in Singapore too!

With this exhibition, we hope to create awareness that cats and animals in the bigger picture have a place in our society and heart. As our world becomes more developed and crowded, there seemed to be less public space and compassion for animals. So let us celebrate the joys of our feline friends and all creatures big and small!

"Cats Of The World II' Photo Exhibition
When: 20 to 31 May 2008
Where: The Arts House
Address: 1 Old Parliament House
Admission: Free

Photos Criteria:
- CONTEXT/ SETTING: cats in unique situations, settings & countries, that show their characteristics - lazy, aloof, loving, graceful, etc (please refrain from sending photos of your pets at home)

- STORY: photos with a story to tell, reflecting the flavours of that country/ unique situation/ setting

- QUALITY: photos have to be clear and at least 300 dpi to be blown into A4 size quality for exhibiting's purpose

What's New This Year:
- This year's collection will feature 50 cat photos, including a new section called "Mono-tones" that is devoted to black-n-white or sepia shots, so click away!

- We're also hoping to raise funds for our adopted Cat Welfare Society via a silent auction. Visitors can bid for each exhibited photo by emailing us their secret top bid amount. The photo will go to the highest bidder at the end of exhibition.

- Since this is an entirely self-financed project, each contributor is required to pay a nominal S$15 per photo for framing and admin costs. So if you have 3 photos shortlisted, kindly include S$45.

- This year, HP is sponsoring the printing of the photos so contributors just have to email us the hi-res photos once shortlisted. Framing and exhibition launch costs will be parked under admin costs.

- We are not profiting from this personal project which is meant to share everyone's love for cats and passion for photography. Contributors will get this chance to exhibit their works as well as "donate" their photos to raise funds for Cat Welfare Society - all for a good cause!

- The selection process is determined by the co-organisers and entry decisions made are final. Email us your entries from now untill 30 April 2008 - submission deadline.

- For more info/ submission, please email to sublime.carla@gmail.com or contact 9362 3626. Grazie mille! :)

Preview Party for Cats of The World 2007

The preview party went very well and judging by the photos taken of the event, you can see The Moomba @ Level 2 was pretty crowded. We'd like to thank The Moomba again who provided the refreshments and soft drinks for the evening, all the contributors and the media for their kind support. Today newspaper sent a photographer to cover it and ran a big story titled "Picture Purr-fect" on 2 August 2007, Thursday.

In addition, it was featured as the top pick under Events by The Straits Times on 2 August, IS Magazine (3 August issue) and Shin Nichi Ho (Japanese, 2 August). Special thanks also go to AsiaOne.com, ClubPets, Frequent Traveller, Lifestyle, New Man, Wine & Dine and Time Out S'pore - grazie tutti!

Do support the Cat Welfare Society www.catwelfare.org by signing up as a member! Again, A BIG THANK YOU to everyone involved - here's one up for the cats :)

Cats Of The World 2007 - Contributors

A big thank you to everyone involved especially The Moomba (venue), Pixel Ed (design), the contributors and the media for their kind support. Here's more info on the 13 photographers involved.

Alexandra Jen Wong is a Secondary 4 student from the Singapore Chinese Girl’s School. She received her camera as a Christmas present and has been experimenting with it since. She spends most of her time enjoying the company of her cat, Whiskey Jose, and her dogs.

Ashley Choo was a writer but currently attempting to get back into the writing industry and so in the meantime, whiling away her time being a hobbyist photographer. In the event of a fire, the first things she will grab is, depending nearest object, her cat Baileys, camera and laptop.

Barnie Leow is a professional photographer and an avid fan of things feline. Many of his photographs are feature in “The Real Singapore Cat”, a publication of the Cat Welfare Society. His other photographic works have also won honourable mention at international awards. Visit www.photonx.net/catsdo.html for a sneak peep into his 18,000 photos on cats.

Carlyn Law is a PR consultant, part-time writer-blogger and leisure photographer who longs for her own organic farm in Italy where her three adopted cats - Jarvis, Ripley and Mimi - can roam free. She relishes travelling, food, cats and nature – usually all at once on her frequent voyages.

Christopher Tan is a writer, photographer and food consultant who saw Cats in the West End in 1981 but didn't really enjoy it. He used to be more of a dog person, but now has so many cat-loving friends that he is ambipetstrous.

Dawn Kua is the only full time employee of the Cat Welfare Society (www.catwelfare.org) which promotes sterilisation and management of community cats as the best and most effective way of controlling the community cat population. For more information on Trap-Neuter-Return-Manage, visit her blog at www.catwelfare.blogspot.com

Elgen Kua is a dog lover who has grown to love his cat Tiggi that he and his wife saved from pneumonia. He loves to annoy Tiggi by mock-chasing him round the house and Tiggi returns the favour by chewing on his laces every time he puts his shoes on.

Kwok Wai Yow is a graphic designer, part-time netrepreneur, movie buff, photography enthusiast and enjoys exotic travel. She hopes to be able to combine blogging, travel and photography into a paying gig.

Lucinda Law is an assistant editor for a travel magazine in Hong Kong where she dreams about her 14-year-old tuxedo cat and gallant protector, Jarvis, in Singapore everyday. She is well-adjusted with many friends in HK but likes hanging around cats and is lately feeding feral cats in Victoria Park.

Noelle Tan is a cat lover who sadly does not own a cat - yet. That will soon change hopefully as she continues to appreciate the intrinsic elegant beauty of the feline species. This PR Consultant enjoys photography, cooking and travelling.

Paul Koh is one half of the painting duo more popularly known as paulMysh. Their unique body of captivating and vibrant cat-inspired art – the Catmasutra Series - has been extremely well-received in Singapore. His fascination for the local feline species has led him to explore the subject from acrylic paints to digitally captured images. The photos were selected from his “non-collectibles” exhibition in 2006, showcasing the beauty and predicament of street cats in Singapore.

Rebecca Ho is a student who works part-time for Cat Welfare Society. As a strong believer in Trap-Neuter-Release Management, she actively promotes and practices TNRM in the neighbourhoods to humanely control the population of community cats. She loves traveling, reading and basketball. She shares her home with 2 calico cats.

Veronica J. Zuzarte loves all God’s beasts and wishes she could keep company with her favourite animals - whales and dolphins – but accepts that dogs and cats make easier-to-cuddle companions. Her dog King and cat Garfield lived to a ripe old age of 17 and 18 years respectively and are still dearly missed.