Creative Self Expression

Creative self expression gives you the opportunity to express yourself through art, writing, photography or any other form of self expression. There is no right or wrong to your personal creative expressions.

Unleash your creativity and submit your marvellous work to be displayed here on this website.

Contributor: Artist Celine Chia

Art therapy in Singapore - Therapeutic Art Project titled 'Fight' by Artist Celine Chia
Therapeutic Art Project - Fight (2020), Artist Celine Chia

The 7 penknives and 7 pencils (coloured) represent the 7 days in a week.
For any particular day of the week, each and every one of us has a choice. 

Dye the canvas in black or Dye it with colours.
Pick up a penknife or Pick up a pencil.
Self-harm or Self-Love.
The choice is yours.

SPFA x ACS Volunteer Contributions

“What is something that means a lot to you or motivates you to live your life to the fullest?”

Click on the menu ( + ) below to read some personal stories written by volunteer contributors from ACS.

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In our lives, despite facing many obstacles and challenges, we tend to hold on to something in order to get us through. One of the things I treasure the most in my life is my Michael Jackson ‘Billie Jean’ costume that my uncle bought for me as a 5th birthday gift. It remains to be one of the best birthday presents that I received in my life. For those who know, Michael Jackson’s ‘Billie Jean’ costume is one of his most iconic costumes. However, that isn’t the only reason why this costume holds a really special place in my heart. After getting the costume, I was determined to learn the dance itself and somehow decided to perform at the end of the year for everyone in the school. In order to prepare for the performance, I was taught the dance by my uncle. Although my memory of the performance is rather foggy, the scene where everyone around me starting singing along while I was dancing still stays etched in my mind. This is why I treasure this costume so much – it is a symbol of overcoming my fears and performing in front of a large crowd. It represents to me how if we enjoy something so much and put in effort, we’re able to overcome any obstacles and fears in our lives. It inspires me to always enjoy life and do my best to overcome any obstacles I may face along the way.
Something that holds deep meaning to me is my ukulele. I was never good at music before picking up the ukulele, having learnt piano for 6 years without having a single grade under my belt. I never thought I had the talent for music. However, thinking about giving music another try, I bought my first ukulele when I was in Secondary 1 using my own savings. Fuelled with passion and interest to learn music once again, I started practicing. Before long I was able to play many songs on the ukulele, which gave me confidence in my music abilities, taking a Grade 4 examination in ukulele and passing it after seven months. Motivated by my newfound interest in music, I carried on and picked up the electric and the acoustic guitar. Music has evolved and become an integral part of my life, which I cannot let go of, leading me to many new experiences in life, like banding up with people who eventually grew to become my closest friends. Sometimes life is just about having a positive attitude towards things, and never giving up in general. In some cases, taking a break would greatly help one tackle new challenges, big or small.


Accordion Content

My Ferrari insulated water bottle means a lot to me. While it does not seem like much on the surface, it holds a special meaning to me and my understanding of my future. This Ferrari F1 bottle was gifted to me by my parents on my birthday, because I was a huge fan of the F1 team. However, what made me realize its profound meaning was the fact that it symbolized a value to which I hold myself towards. It represented the ideas of hope and excellence. At the time that I received the bottle as a birthday present, Ferrari was having its worst season in its 70 years of racing history, placing itself just sixth out of ten teams in F1. Yet, the bottle did not symbolize the shortcomings of the glorious team, but rather reminded me of the need for hope. Hope is a value that was encapsulated within the gift, which gave me the motivation in life and knowledge that whatever circumstances I was in, I need to have hope. It came as a timely reminder as I too was facing a slump in my academic performance in my educational life. The second value that it reminded me of was excellence. Ferrari is the longest running F1 team with a glorious racing history. It’s excellence in racing as a team, probed me to understand that striving for excellence and living life to the fullest is crucial to our meaning of life. Hence, whenever I see that bottle, it isn’t a simple matter of material ownership, but rather as a daily reminder and motivation of how life should be lived.
This Taekwondo belt means a lot to me as it not only represents my ability to compete, it also represents one of the first major accomplishments I achieved. This belt was something that I had worked hard to achieve, and I was very proud of it. This was also one of the first times that I truly felt ownership for something, that I could gladly call my own. The journey that had earned me this belt was extremely challenging for me at the time. Yet, this was what taught me the virtues of patience and perseverance, all while at a young age. Furthermore, the tests and sparring that I had to do in order to progress was a memorable experience, with the stadiums and sports halls looking extremely intimidating to me. More importantly, the belt also constantly reminds me of the nice coaches and good friends that I had made along the way, people that I still stay in contact with. All in all, this belt represented an unforgettable period in my life, one that made me what I am today.
When I was 4 years old, my parents bought me my one and only stuffed toy. It was a teddy bear with the Harrods tag on his left foot. I named him “Harrods” after the tag, not knowing that Harrods was the departmental store my parents had bought him from at that time. When I was younger, Harrods was there for me through it all, the good and the bad. He was there when I was crying about getting scolded by my parents. He was there when I did well for exams and was overjoyed. No matter what I was going through, it felt as if there was always someone there for me that would never judge and always be that supportive listening ear that we all need in our lives. Of course, I have grown up and grown apart from Harrods and have started to see how childish it was to relate so much to a toy. However, I will always treasure my childhood with him and he will always be a fond memory for me.
I have always been into sports since young, but I have found that weights and sports has been very important to me in the last few years. It gives me a temporary escape from my problems, and lets me vent out my frustration and bottled emotions. To me, exercise is something I can rely on at any time of my life, no matter what is going on around me. Exercise and specifically lifting weights is something I can always fall back on. In the past, lifting weights helped me through some darker times in my life. It created memories, friendships, goals and achievements over the past few years. Lifting weights has given me satisfaction in life and has motivated me to strive to achieve higher goals. It gives me a reminder that I can achieve anything if I am willing to put in the hard work and never give up.
This is my basketball. In this picture you can see how worn out my basketball is. I play basketball almost every day and it serves as a form of relaxation, a way to play with friends, and fosters a competitive spirit in me. Whenever I feel depressed, I play basketball on my own and it always soothes my nerves. It has travelled with me since I was in Primary 2. I started taking basketball seriously in Primary 6. I improved and it has become a part of me ever since. Whenever I play basketball, my mind is free of other thoughts and a positive vibe just flows throughout my body. I also play it competitively. The feeling of winning cannot be beat. Moreover, basketball has also instilled important values in me like resilience, teamwork, grit, sportsmanship, and brotherhood. It has made me realise that there is family outside my parents and relatives. My teammates are brothers from other mothers. We always stay with each other through difficult times and help push each other through. I have also formed some great memories that I will cherish forever through basketball. Hence, this picture motivates me through the difficult times by bringing the beautiful memories I have to mind.
This wallet means a lot to me as it was a Christmas gift from my Mom. Usually, she gifts my brother and I the same gift. However, this wallet was gifted to me only, making it more special. This wallet is very valuable to me as it holds both my money and my identity. I had lost this wallet once on a flight to Singapore, where it fell out of my pocket and ended up flying to Kuala Lumpur while I served quarantine in Singapore. Miraculously, I was able to contact the airlines and they were able to return it back to Singapore, allowing me to collect it after serving my 2 weeks of quarantine. Nothing inside was missing and I was very thankful. The experience has made me treasure the wallet even more and I always check whether I have it with me when I’m out as I don’t want to lose it again. It also motivates me to live life so that I can fill this wallet with money and cards when I am successful and I can then give gifts back to my parents
Contributor: LEL
Contributor: Santiago
Contributor: Mr Rys
Contributor: Kellin Lisa

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