UOB has announced that it’s now accepting entries for its annual Painting Of The Year Competition. Entry forms are available here, UOB branches, schools and art institutions. Artists can submit their works at the Visual Arts Seminar Room, Level 2, Nanyang Academy Of Fine Arts Campus 1 (Wing B), between 1pm and 6pm on July 9. Winners will be announced on July 16. New changes include the addition of POY contests in two new countries – Malaysia and Indonesia – alongside Thailand and Singapore (so any reader from the neighbouring countries reading this, spread the word! Eh, but how come no Philippines ah. UOB folks, time to set up shop over there). And then of course the big whammy. UOB has scrapped the photography category. Yes, scrapped it completely. They won’t be accepting photographs at all. I find it a bit strange considering the past three winners are all related to photography. The “controversy” surrounding last year’s winning work by Bai Tian Yuan was really blown out of proportion. A painting based on a photography? Sacrilegious? Surely not. People have been basing paintings on photographs for the longest time – it’s called photorealism or hyperrealism. So really, that’s a non-issue. But why would you suddenly ignore photography when the two winning works before that were clearly photographs? The victories by Joel Yuen and Zhao Renhui bring to light a number of things: a) photography can duke it out with paintings; b) it is a fine art (doh); c) painters in Singapore need to get their act together; and d) categories are problematic. After being around for three decades, the past three years have offered UOB POY organizers the opportunity to re-think the premise behind the whole contest. It offered them a chance to take stock of a local art scene in a state of flux. But it looks to me that instead of addressing the issue, they simply refuse to engage the debate. It's a blow to the local photography scene, which has blossomed greatly these past few years -- exhibits left and right, an international photography festival, annual photography showcases. In the press release, NAFA president Choo Thiam Siew, who’s the chief judge this year, said: “By concentrating solely on painting, UOB is returning to the essence of the POY Competition, in keeping with what the name suggests.“ What is the "essence" of the POY? Surely the quality of a work -- whether it's a painting or not -- is more important than a contest's title?