Another World Is Possible is an exhibition on the future, exploring the practice of world-building across cinema, architecture, design, and speculative fiction.
ArtScience Encounters: Windswept Adan by Ichiko Aoba
From Nov
SPECIAL EVENT
ArtScience Encounters: Windswept Adan by Ichiko Aoba
Enter the dreamlike archipelago of Windswept Adan, a multi-channel sound installation by singer-songwriter Ichiko Aoba. Conceived as a soundtrack to an imaginary film during journeys through the Ryukyu Archipelago, the work invites visitors into a speculative world where music and imagination intertwine.
At its heart is the story of a young girl exiled from her home on the fictional island of Kirinaki. Travelling to Adan, a place alive with plants, animals and creatures who communicate using seashells instead of words, she encounters wonder, loss and transformation. Her journey echoes the cycles of life, emphasising impermanence and the interconnectedness of all beings.
This narrative unfolds through spatialised sound: Aoba’s delicate vocals interwoven with orchestral textures, field recordings and instruments both familiar and unusual — from harp and celesta to charango and prepared piano. The installation conjures tides, breezes, birdsong and other sonic contours, enveloping visitors in an immersive, emotional landscape.
Presented as part of Soundworks from Worlds Not Yet Born within Futures Festival: Worlds in the Making, Windswept Adan becomes an invitation to slow down, listen closely, and inhabit a world as intimate as it is speculative.
Composed by Ichiko Aoba & Taro Umebayashi
Sound Engineer: Toshihiko Kasai
Art Direction & Photography: Kodai Kobayashi
About ArtScience Encounters
Presented in collaboration with artists and creatives, ArtScience Encounters is an invitation to discover curious spaces hidden within ArtScience Museum’s unique architecture. Spaces are refreshed periodically with compelling artworks, intriguing happenings and sensorial experiences spanning various genres and mediums.
Fri – Sat: 10am – 9pm
About the Artist
Since her debut in 2010, Japanese singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ichiko Aoba has captivated listeners worldwide with music that is at once intimate and expansive. Known for her delicate voice and classical guitar, Aoba creates sonic worlds that feel fragile yet unyielding, understated yet deeply transportive.
Her seventh album, Windswept Adan (2020) became a global phenomenon, winning acclaim from critics and online communities alike. This was followed by Luminescent Creatures (2025), which extended her imaginative universe with renewed spareness and subtlety.
Aoba’s live performances—whether solo or with full ensemble—have enchanted audiences at iconic venues such as the Sydney Opera House and Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles as well as Singapore's Esplanade, where she returns in February. Beyond the stage, she has created work for radio, narration and film, including the award-winning soundtrack for Amiko (2022).
At the heart of her practice is a music of stillness and imagination: songs that invite listeners into dreamlike landscapes where memory and possibility intertwine.
About Futures Festival: Worlds in the Making
13 – 15 Nov
Futures Festival: Worlds in the Making is an invitation to hold the future open. It brings together the community in a shared exploration of plural worlds emerging from the equator — worlds that are generous, resilient and already in the making.
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