ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how the field of arts and disability has evolved in Singapore, investigates the structural reasons for this change, and highlights some of its consequences. It discusses new possibilities and the potential for moving beyond this 'art-as-service' paradigm and the value of a 'disability arts' that has expressive, aesthetic, and political agendas. Inclusive programming also includes bringing disability issues to the forefront of mainstream arts through disability-themed arts performances and festivals. The role of the arts in community participation and engagement became better articulated in more recent arts and cultural policies, in which the arts were seen as a tool for community bonding through broad-based participation in art activities. Disabled artists may see the arts as a tool for overcoming barriers to academic achievement, communication barriers, and as coping mechanism. Ironically, disability arts in Singapore are championed mostly by non-disabled artists.
