Kelly Janine (she/they) is a 25 year-old freelance fashion and culture editor based in Singapore. Her writing has been published for print and on digital platforms such as Vogue Singapore, F/Zine (formerly known as Female), Grazia Singapore and more.  Since 2022, she has been working on and off as an independent curator, image-maker, and journalist. 

In 2025, Kelly received a distinction for her Master’s in Art History and Archeology (Southeast Asia) from London’s School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), funded by the Alphawood Foundation Chicago’s scholarship. With her interest in Southeast Asian material culture, Kelly’s dissertation examined 19th-century Thai Buddhist funerary manuscripts from the British Library’s collection in relation to Alfred Gell’s anthropological theory of visual art. 

Currently, Kelly is working with the National Heritage Board’s Built Heritage Policy and Research division.

Profile photo courtesy of Kelly Janine. No part of this image may be reproduced in any form without permission.

  • Available upon request.

  • • NTU President Research Scholar for completion of Undergraduate Research Experience on CAmpus programme in AY 2021/2022

    • Dean's List for AY 2021/2022

    • Recipient of the inaugural Subra and Mary Suresh Gold Medal for the graduating class of 2024

    • Nominated for Nanyang Technological University’s Koh Tai Ann Gold Medal

    • Politics of dress and gender

    • Fashion history

    • Clothing in relation to identity, photography, and the body

    • Southeast Asian art, material culture, and exhibitions

Recent Exhibition: Let It Linger (2024)

Beginning as police barracks during Singapore’s post-war years, 195 Pearl’s Hill terrace (195PHT) has organically grown into an independent creative hub that houses various start-up businesses and tattoo studios.

However, the longevity of this space is uncertain given that its lease tentatively expires at the end of March 2026. It may seem pre-emptive to contemplate 195PHT’s place 19 months ahead, but it offers us the luxury of time to consider this location’s implications and socio-historical significance.

This exhibition, Let It Linger is a group show that brings together textile, installation, and image-based works by six local artists: Agatha Lee, Crystal Lee, Liz Zhu, Kansh, Natalia Tan, and Veronyka Lau. Each artwork is a site-specific response to the final lines of Mikko Harvey’s poem “For M”, which serves as a thematic prompt to explore these questions: What is individually and collectively remembered about 195PHT? Do we sentimentally linger with nostalgia, leave to look towards alternative futures, or come back later for what is left behind?

Visitors are encouraged to explore the colonial building and reflect on our human tendency for sentimentality towards shared public spaces and art enclaves—especially since urban transformations in Singapore are inevitable.