SINGAPORE — Non-F1 fans need not hum Green Day’s Wake Me Up When September Ends next month. While the rest of the city is engulfed with motorsport fever, there’s something else shaking up our cultural landscape to get excited about. Something at Orchard Green opposite Robinsons Orchard to be site-specific — and it’s not just another mall. It’s better.

Get ready for Keepers: Singapore Designer Collective, the largest showcase of local craft and design in a purpose-built pop-up space over five months starting next month during the F1 season. There’ll be 20 resident and 30 guest designers and artisans hailing from different disciplines – fashion, architecture, furniture and even food – holding court at the 4,300 sq feet building specially designed by 2012 President Design Award winner Randy Chan of Zarch Collaboratives and design agency Acre.

This might sound like a novel project but it has been three years in the making. Keepers’ creative designer and local jewellery maker Carolyn Kan first founded Keepers in November 2011 as an event occurring four times a year to connect indie designers, artists and artisanal product makers with people who appreciates their handcrafted products.

“(Keepers) was designed to make independent designers and artisan-crafted work more accessible and valued. It gave people the opportunity to talk to designers and artisans, to learn more about the creative and development process and the stories behind the designs in a relaxed setting at her atelier on a Saturday that was typically from 2pm to 7pm,” explained Kan.

Over the years, she said, the interest has increased and Keepers gained a strong following. What started out as 60 guests grew to an audience of up to 150 for each session. In fact, Keepers held a successful showing at the Georgetown Festival last year. This year, Kan partnered with Textile and Fashion Federation (TaFf) to organise this event in a bigger way with support from the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and SPRING Singapore.

“The main aim is to highlight the work of Singapore designers from multiple disciplines, and with its prominent location, excellent curation of designers and engaging events, will grow awareness and value for the work of Singapore designers and artisans,” said Kan.

Appealing to the overseas visitors is one reason why the event kicks off Sept 19 - tying in with the Singapore Grand Prix. Kan said she was spurred in part to create such an enclave because she would often get asked where local designers could be sought out.

Even for those here already clued into the design scene, there’s plenty to look forward to. For one the 20 resident designers such as furniture makers Grafunkt, fashion label A.W.O.L, handbag makers Desti Saint will present a changing showcase of work and create capsule collections exclusively for Keepers. To further spice things up, there’s a monthly theme tying in with a festival. For eg. the upcoming theme of The Art of Story Telling coincides with the Design Film Fest in September. Also expect a calendar of fun events from nostalgic scent workshops to performances and talks, and of course, food offerings.

“Some of the talks and workshops will be free, and some of them will be ticketed,” said Kan. “And on Mondays and Tuesdays, Singapore designers and artisans may use the space for free to host free relevant talks or share insights for improving the industry or promote collaborations between different disciplines. Interested designers can also reach out to her via email (info [at] keepers.com.sg) to be part of the event. Serene Lim