A connection to a real hero Lt. Ibrahim Sidek was a warrior at the Malay Regiment, who fought at one of the final stands against the Japanese Army. In February 1942, Lt. Ibrahim was executed for defying the Japanese order to remove the uniform. This tin mug was the only left of Lt. Ibrahim that was kept by his wife, Mdm Sharifah Khadijah bt Hamid. It was later donated to the Reflections At Bukit Chandu interpretive centre. Tags: Reflections at Bukit Chandu, Lt Ibrahim Sidek’s mug Kampong Buangkok Videos Last year, I was approached by three young ladies from the School of Communications and Information. at Nanyang Technological University. They were doing a final project on Singapore’s last kampong at Buangkok and as part of their research, they wanted to speak to guys like me who have experienced life in a kampong in Singapore. I roped in my friends Chuck Hio and Peh Seng Ket to speak to the girls. Good thing I still have their contact and I asked them to put their videos on YouTube to share with you. Altogether there are three videos. Here they are. Part 1: Part 2: Part 3: Thank you Ms Sarina Md Rasol, Dayanna Md Tahir and Wong Po Fong for sharing your videos with us. Tags: Kampong Buangkok, Video, Kampong Life What's your speech bubble? Though yours truly comprehends not a single word in of Bahasa Indonesia, it certainly gave me a sense of knowing upon reading the translated text on the wall beside the work. Undoubtedly the paintings were impressive on their own, but Masriadi’s wit added a quirky touch to them. Highlighting the idea of power relations between people, a memorable piece featured his critics (curators and fellow artists alike) questioning his status as an artist, to an extent of suggesting that he should practice performance art to elevate his popularity. It’s an interesting way of almost poking fun at your antagonists - instead of attacking them, but immortalising them in painting. As the artist said, enemies are created and having enemies will keep you on your toes. So who are your critics? What would your speech bubble say? Social Media Breakfast 3 at the ACM It was a blast to see people freely chatting, chomping down the buffet breakfast spread (actually more like brunch and even lunch for some of us!), and just having a great time networking, rekindling old bonds of friendship and forging new ones. I was especially delighted to see my online buddies from the media socialist group November, Kenneth, and Coleman, as well as Friends of Yesterday Marcus present (we called ourselves the Yesterday Socialists, Friends of Media or something like that lah… haha). Both Daryl and Claudia did a good job in getting the party started, and I had the privilege of giving my “corporate spiel” and explaining why museums and new media can become best of friends (unlikely as that may seem). It was a treat to meet many friends both old and new. Find out more on SMB3 at the ACM on Walter’s Cooler Insights. Tags: Social Media Breakfast Exhbition 3, Asian Civilisations Museum Claudia visits the Asian Civilisations Museum There are so much to explore and discover at the Asian Civilisations Museum! I can’t possible finish everything here. But as I’d said, I’ll be going back more often over the next year. If you’re a blogger and is interested or would like to join me in the discovering of the museums in Singapore, you can apply for a free season pass too! Find out more about Claudia’s visit to the Asian Civilisations Museum, as well as how to get free season passes to the museum as a blogger in Claudia.sg Tags: Asian Civilisations Museum, Season Pass The portrait of Sir Frank Swettenham Sir Frank Athelstane Swettenham was the first resident-general of Federated Malay States from 1896 to 1901. Sir Frank also wrote one of the first English-Malay dictionaries. The painting itself was done by the accomplished John Singer Sargent, who is widely thought as the best portrait painter of his time. The creator of this painting, and the subject of the creation is what makes the portrait of Frank Swettenham the most valuable artefact at the NAMOS collection Tags: National Museum of Singapore, Frank Swettenham Some noteworthy exhibits from the Sculpturing Life exhibition There are some exhibits at this exhibition which I personally find to be worthy of notice. While I am neither an art historian nor art-critic by profession, it is hoped that this post would give visitors who are novice to Ng Eng Teng’s art some ideas of where they could start exploring if they should visit this exhibition. Ng Eng Teng, Tension 1972, ciment fondu. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. Admittedly, I have been rather influenced by the documentaries that are being shown at the exhibition. After watching them, I was led to realise that Tension, 1972, is a work that has a significant place in Ng Eng Teng’s journey to strive to create his own art and yet survive as an artist. Look at the closed-up photo of Tension and one may find that the figurine on this rocker appears as if it would fall any moment. I learnt from the documentaries that this was the effect that Ng Eng Teng was striving to achieve in Tension. As best as I understand, Tension is intended to depict that as one struggles for survival, if one is not careful, one may just slip and fall off. Putting things into context, Tension was created some years after Ng Eng Teng had returned to Singapore from Ireland. He had worked as a Resident Designer at the Carrigaline Pottery in Ireland from 1964 - 1966. Following his return in 1966, I learnt from one of the documentaries Sculpturing Joo Chiat (1999) that Ng Eng Teng had experienced two years of unemployment. The curriculum of art schools in Singapore back then did not have sculpturing as a core subject for students to study. That meant there was no avenue for Ng Eng Teng to teach the art of sculpture in Singapore back then. In addition, in his early years of establishing himself as an artist in Singapore in the 1960s and early 1970s, it appeared that Ng Eng Teng had met with much challenges and struggles with reality. I remember vaguely the following words that Ng Eng Teng had said in an interview shown in Sculpturing Joo Chiat, “(Tension reminds us of) the importance of keeping oneself sane during hard times”.  This is one statement that one should be mindful of during difficult moments. Ng Eng Teng, Tension 1972, ciment fondu. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. Interestingly, Tension was constructed based on the balancing principle of the Kelly doll (similar to the Chinese’ ‘bu dao weng’ 不倒翁). Such a doll is designed to regain equilibrium even when it is tilted at extreme angles. The construction based on such a principle allowed this work to move and rock. I learnt that it was the movement of this work that helps to create the desired sense of tension. Look at the muscles and tendons of the body of the figure in this work, they appear contorted and strained, hence accentuating the sense of tension in this work. The spread-eagle pose of the figure also adds a touch of dramatic tension. Admittedly, I did not feel it was appropriate to touch Tension while I was at the exhibition. Nevertheless, I had managed to see a footage on one of the documentaries of how it would respond like if a viewer were to tilt and rock it. I sensed that it would be a pretty tensed experience to be clutching a rocking object for the sake of survival. Compared to some of Ng Eng Teng’s larger iconic sculptures, Tension is much smaller, and visitors may unknowingly miss taking a good look at it. The thing is that do not judge the significance of an art-work merely by its size. Look beyond. Tension, together with other exhibits on display. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. Another exhibit in this exhibition that is worthy for viewers to study and take a good look is The Last Masterpiece. On the right: The Last Masterpiece, undated. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. The Last Masterpiece is one of Ng Eng Teng’s last works. If I am not wrong, it was completed with the help of Ng Eng Teng’s friends and family. Ng Eng Teng was diagnosed with renal problems in 1995 and this condition was kept a secret. It was only made known to others when Ng Eng Teng had undergone a heart bypass surgery in 1998. The Last Masterpiece is largely made up of cotton swabs. These cotton swabs were collected by Ng Eng Teng himself after his renal dialysis treatment. Do take a close look at this work. The theme of humanity is one of Ng Eng Teng’s favourite subject matters. I like his interpretation of human emotions. Somehow, his works seem to speak with a soul. Look at the work below, Do we look down?. Do you feel as if the figures moved you so much that you wish to offer them a coin or two? Ng Eng Teng, Do we look down?, 1968, ciment fondu, paint, lacquer. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. Personally, I think Ng Eng Teng had been a very resilient man with a very strong yet humble character. Despite being plagued by poor health, he remained dedicated to his goals of creating his own art. Adversities did not stop him. Even though he was already very weak when he was working on one of his last commissioned works, The Explorer, he persisted to complete it with the help of his family and friends. I learnt from one of the documentaries that despite his ailing state of health, Ng Eng Teng insisted on doing the finishing touches of The Explorer. The Explorer is placed outside the Singapore Art Museum for all to view. Sculpturing Life - Ng Eng Teng Collection is held at NUS Museum, located at the University Cultural Centre Annex, 50 Kent Ridge Crescent, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119279. The NUS Museum is closed on Mondays and Public Holidays. For more information on the museum’s opening hours and on the guided tours, please visit: http://www.nus.edu.sg/museum/information_getting.htm *** Acknowledgements: Once again, my heartfelt appreciation to NUS Museum, NUS Centre for the Arts for granting me the permission to take non-flash photography of this exhibition. Many thanks to Siva for introducing me to staff of NUS Museum. Thanks to the staff of NUS Museum, NUS Centre for the Arts for arranging for the insightful guided tour to the exhibition on 2 Aug 2008 and for making my visits to the museum enjoyable and educational. References: - MediaCorp News. (1999). Sculpturing Joo Chiat. (video) - MediaCorp News. (2003). Portraits (Episode 6: Ng Eng Teng). (video) - Sabapathy, T.L. (1998). Ng Eng Teng, art and thoughts. Singapore: NUS Museums, National University of Singapore. - Singapore Broadcasting Corporation. (1977). Profile of an artist - Ng Eng Teng. Sculptor. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ng_Eng_Teng (Accessed on 9 Aug 2008). (video) Tags: NUS Museum, Ng Eng Teng Beadwork Tablecloth This piece, now resting in Singapore’s Peranakan Museum, has a rather international flavour. It came from a Peranakan Chinese family in Penang, but the glass beads were specially imported from Europe. The birds, animals and flowers depicted on the tablecloth are Peranakan fertility motifs – quite apt, since this tablecloth would have been used in special occasions like weddings! Take an up-close look at this intricate beadwork tablecloth at the Peranakan Museum today! Tags: Peranakan Museum, Beadwork Tablecloth We Can Be Heroes The kitchen of the mind This prisoners of war cookbook, on display at the Memories at Old Ford Factory, shows us one of the ways prisoners coped with the stresses of being locked up, with no way of knowing if they were ever going to be free again. In this cookbook, prisoners of the Japanese Occupation collected their thoughts and dreams of what they would prepare once they got home. It is a sad reminder that war makes us understand where home is, and that war is something that should be a avoided at all costs. Tags: Memories at Old Ford Factory, Prisoners of War cookbook Intaglio Printing Plates The intaglio technique is done by engraving metal plates with the designs of the stamps. The engraving required meticulous detail, as any mistakes made on the plate would mean mistakes on all the stamps thereafter! The world’s first stamp, the Penny Black, was printed using this technique. These days, the Penny Black is rare – it raised at an auction in. Learn more about stamps, and their fascinating history at the Singapore Philatelic Museum. Tags: Singapore Philatelic Museum, Intaglio Printing Plates, Penny Black Remembering Ng Eng Teng Ng Eng Teng (1934 - 2001) was a local artist who was probably best known for his sculptural works. I later learnt that his training was in painting and pottery. In recognition of his excellent artistic achievements, he was awarded the Cultural Medallion in 1981. I remember that during the Art History lessons in my Secondary School years, I learnt that the pioneer artist, Georgette Chen, had some influence on Ng Eng Teng. At the very least, it was through her encouragement that Ng Eng Teng headed to England to pursue the study of ceramics. Perhaps his study of ceramics could have helped him to build the necessary foundation to create many three-dimensional masterpieces throughout his career as an artist. He was one of the very few sculptors that I have studied during Art History lessons. As such, whenever anyone asks me to name a local sculptor, Ng Eng Teng would be one of the first names that would come to my mind. Other than Wealth and Contentment, Ng Eng Teng had created the following sculptural works that most people in Singapore would have probably come across at some point in their lives: Ng Eng Teng, Mother and Child. Location: Orchard Rd outside Far East Shopping Centre. Photo taken by Jeremy in 2007. Ng Eng Teng, The Climb, 1987, ciment fondu. Location: HDB Hub, Toa Payoh. Ng Eng Teng, Spirit of Man, 1984. Location: Changi International Airport, Terminal One. Ng Eng Teng, The Explorer, Dec 1999, ciment fondu, stainless steel, gold leaf. Location: Singapore Art Museum. For those of you who are interested to learn more about Ng Eng Teng, there are a couple of publications that would provide indepth information on this artist. Here is a link to a list of these publications: http://nus.edu.sg/museum/publications.htm#net I have a liking for a number of Ng Eng Teng’s works. Somehow, his works felt as if they could speak to the viewers, and communicate various emotions. I fondly remember that I used to frequent the Ng Eng Teng’s museum almost everyday when it was located at the National University of Singapore’s Central Library. Driven by a search for nostalgia and a general interest in his art, I could not help but visit the NUS Museum for a couple of times over the past few months so as to check out the latest exhibition, Sculpturing Life, featuring some of Ng Eng Teng’s works. Foreground: Ng Eng Teng, Tension, 1972, ciment fondu. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. I very much like the fact that in this exhibition, there are archival materials on Ng Eng Teng on display. I strongly recommend this exhibition to art students and anyone who is keen to research on the art of Ng Eng Teng. This exhibition puts on display a number of copies of the sketches that Ng Eng Teng had done prior to working on his actual works. Through looking at these sketches, one could better appreciate the thinking processes that Ng Eng Teng had went through before deriving at the final form of his works. Interestingly, I learnt from this exhibition that the Contentment was inspired by a yoga pose. The maquettes of Contentment and Wealth. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. Ng Eng Teng, Contentment. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. Other than the sketches, there are also copies of old newspaper articles on the sculpture scene in Singapore, and on Ng Eng Teng himself. There is even a multimedia corner whereby visitors could take time to watch a few documentaries on Ng Eng Teng. The duration of these documentaries vary from 20 minutes to about an hour. It is worth putting aside at least two hours to view these documentaries. Copies of newspaper articles and Ng Eng Teng’s sketches. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. I am pleased to share that I have managed to watch almost all the documentaries on display. These documentaries contain footages of interviews with Ng Eng Teng himself, and offer viewers a window to better understand the artist, Ng Eng Teng. When I was watching certain segments of the documentaries, I had felt as if Ng Eng Teng himself was speaking to me. After watching the documentaries, I felt a deepened sense of respect towards Ng Eng Teng for his strong dedication towards his art, his humility, his sense of compassion towards humanity and his resilience. Documentaries on Ng Eng Teng that are worth watching. Courtesy of National University of Singapore Museum Collection. This is an exhibition worth a visit. There is so much to learn at the exhibition that I have visited it at least four times this year. I was lucky that when I visited the exhibition on 2 Aug 2008, there was a guided tour to this exhibition. Attending the guided tour has helped me gain a deeper appreciation to the artworks on display. Many thanks to the dedicated museum guide who had given me the insightful tour. Sculpturing Life - Ng Eng Teng Collection is held at NUS Museum, from 11 January – 31 December 2008. The NUS Museum is located at the University Cultural Centre Annex, 50 Kent Ridge Crescent, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119279. It’s closed on Mondays and Public Holidays. For more information on the museum’s opening hours and on the guided tours, please visit: http://www.nus.edu.sg/museum/information_getting.htm **** Acknowledgements: My heartfelt appreciation to NUS Museum, NUS Centre for the Arts for granting me the permission to take non-flash photography of this exhibition. Many thanks to Siva for introducing me to the staff of NUS Museum. Thanks to the staff of NUS Museum, NUS Centre for the Arts for arranging for the insightful guided tour to the exhibition and for making my visits to the museum enjoyable and educational. Reference: Sabapathy, T.L. (1998). Ng Eng Teng, art and thoughts. Singapore: NUS Museums, National University of Singapore. Tags: Ng Eng Teng, NUS Museum We’re Happy, Are You Happy? This cheeky, yet challenging piece by Teo Eng Seng sits in the Singapore Art Museum and is a commentary on modern society using the birdcage as a main element. Teo also utilises his own technique of sculpture-making from paper pulp – a technique he also uses for paintings. We’re Happy, Are You Happy? is on display at the Singapore Art Museum. Pop by, and discover the works of local and Southeast Asian artists. Tags: Singapore Art Museum, Teo Eng Seng, We’re Happy, Are You Happy? Gunpoint politics Mao believed that art and literature should serve politics. As such, eight model performances like this collectively known as yangbanxi were organised between 1966 and 1976 as models to guide the “artistic activity” throughout the country. This one entitled The White Haired Girl was performed in Heilongjiang Province in 1975 to massive crowds - people who didn’t have much of a choice but to watch and applaud. It was a bold experiment in rallying the people towards a single cause of nationhood as China sought to find its feet beyond the confines of the Bamboo Curtain. These pictures and many other artefacts of China’s Great Leap Forward are on display at the Asian Civilisations Museum in their current exhibition Seeing Red: Propaganda and Material Culture in China. There are many nuggets of information to be had if only one takes the time to visit the exhibition and soak in a truly remarkable period of Asian history. Doesn't this Buddha look happy? Perhaps he’s happy because he’s so rare - this Buddha image is from the Kushana period in India and dates to about 96 BCE. And he’s only one of six such Buddhas known from this period. Another exceptional thing about this piece is the fact that the Buddha is smiling - now that’s something you don’t get to see every day! Well, actually, you could see it every day, since it’s on show at the Asian Civilisations Museum. Tags: Asian Civilisations Museum, Kushana Buddha Second 2nd-Shot - North Boat Quay In 1979 And Now This is my second attempt at a “2nd-shot”. (The first one is in the last post.) I hope that you find this effort a better one. I have blogged about North Boat Quay here before (although at that time, I mistakenly called it Clarke Quay). The following 2 photos show the same view of the Singapore River from Read Bridge. The first one is a video-grab from the movie Saint Jack which was filmed entirely in Singapore in 1979. (Chun See blogged about the movie here.) As you can see, before the 80s, Singapore River had a lot of bumboats. These bumboats carried all sorts of goods - rice, flour, beans, copra, coffee, sugar and other dried goods. The goods would be unloaded from the bumboats typically by Chinese bare-bodied coolies. Each coolie usually had a towel hung around his neck for two purposes - one was to wipe off perspiration - unloading 100-kati sacks is certainly hard labour in Singapore’s hot and humid weather. In fact the word “coolie” came from the Chinese words “ku li” (苦力) which mean “hard labour”. Do you know what is the second purpose for the towel? (The answer will be revealed by next weekend.) The bumboat would be moored next to the river bank. Two long planks, each about 10-foot long and 6-inch wide would be placed side-by-side in such a way that they span the gap between the bumboat and the river bank. The coolie would walk skillfully over these planks to get to the boat, lift a heavy sack onto his shoulder and then walk back over the planks to the bank again. You could see the planks bending and vibrating more when the coolie was carrying a heavy load. In the early 80s, I used to stay overnight quite often at a very good friend’s house which was one of the old houses you see on the left of the photo. During those days, one of the coffeeshops in the row of old houses on the left sold very good bak chor mee (minced pork mee). Many things have changed since then. Comparing the 2 photos, it should be quite obvious to you that the old buildings have mostly been rebuilt. (So much for the conservation of our old buildings.) The fact is that our nation has undergone many changes in its landscape in just under 30 years. And it is not only on the banks of the Singapore River that you see renewal and development - you see them everywhere on this tiny island. But just from the second shot, you can tell that there are many more buildings in the background now. In 1979, you could only see Hill Street Police Station (now MITA Building) and Peninsula Hotel. Today, you could also see (from left) Raffles City Tower, Excelsior Hotel, Peninsula Plaza, Swissotel the Stamford (the tallest building in the photo and formerly known as Westin Stamford), The Treasury, 3 of Suntec City’s 5 towers, among other buildings. I am not going to do a review of Saint Jack as you can read very good reviews of the film on the Internet, one of them here. Tags: Boat Quay A fusion of styles This altar was orignally used for ancestor worship in the Daoist tradition, but the Peranakan family that owned it later converted it for the veneration of the Holy Family in the Catholic Christian tradition. The main image is that of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, butyou can see around the fringes of the sideboard the Chinese gods of happiness, wealth and longevity, along with auspicious animals like the phoenix. Take a closer look at this magnificent sideboard altar at the Peranakan Museum. Remember, this is the last day to enjoy free entry after 1500hrs! Tags: Peranakan Museum, Catholic altar Lim Bo Seng's War Diary Lim Bo Seng was an anti-Japanese resistance fighter who helped set up the guerilla group Force 136 in 1942. For two years, Force 136 conducted espionage missions in occupied Singapore and Malaya, with the aim of setting up a spy network for the eventual re-taking of the peninsula by the British. Sadly, the force was betrayed in 1944 and was quashed. Lim Bo Seng died a war hero under torture and a prisoner of the Japanese. This journal was written during the period before he joined Force 136 for training and describes his experiences at the training. Tags: Lim Bo Seng, War diary, Memories at Old Ford Factory Valerius Sepi’s Wall Mural The foreground to this mural looks ordinary enough – depictions of the natural foliage in the vicinity of Bukit Chandu but the background provides us an insight to how the Malay Regiment soldiers, who made their last stand at Bukit Chandu, were treated as prisoners-of-war to the invading Japanese forces. Take a closer look at the mural at the Reflections at Bukit Chandu memorial centre, where you can be transported back in time to one of the site of one of the final battles in the fall of Singapore. Tags: Reflections at Bukit Chandu, Valerius Sepi’s Wall Mural Straits Settlements Cover This envelope is the first and only known of its kind from the Straits Settlements (Penang, Malacca and Singapore) complete with a full set of stamps. It was issued by the Eat India Company in 1854. In this day of modern and instant telecommunication, the Straits Settlements Cover shows us how far we’ve come from when messages and information took days and months to travel around the world. See the Straits Settlements Cover at the Singapore Philatelic Museum and enjoy free admission after 1500hrs until August 15! Tags: Straits Settlements Cover, Singapore Philatelic Museum Municipal Building plan That’s not the City Hall interchange, either! The grand building, overlooking the Padang, was built between 1926 and 1929 and designed by architect F. D. Meadows. It brought under one roof the branches of the municipal departments like water, electricity and road works. See the plans to the building at the National Archives of Singapore! Tags: City Hall, Municipal Building, National Archives of Singapore It's a Fish! It's a Crocodile! It's a...... A mythical beast drawing from ancient Hindu traditions, the Makara features a combination of an elephant, crocodile, fish and goat in its features.  Also known as a chimera, the head of a Makara was used as a decorative item on processional vehicles in Malaysia over 100 years ago.  The legendary amphibious creature is believed to have special significance.  Adorned with various decorative and symbolic items, this artefact originates from pre-Islamic times and signal the unique blending of indigenous and imported Hindu Buddhist traditions.  It is also one of the 15 star artefacts being featured in NHB’s 15th anniversary celebrations. Want to find out more?  Why not pop down to the Asian Civilisations Museum.  Entry is FREE from 1500 hours onwards from now until 15 August. The Magic of our Museums Rock of the ages So what’s the big deal with this stone?  When I first saw it a couple of months ago, I was less than impressed to say the least. The rock’s most redeeming feature as far as I could tell, was the text inscribed on it that remains undeciphered to this day. Well that was intriguing I guess. Maybe it was some important national proclamation or then again, it may just be some ancient graffiti as far as we know. Folklore has it that the text holds secrets to Singapore’s ancient history. Still, as it has withstood many attempts by scholars to read the now well-worn carvings, makes this little rock even more interesting.  History says the Singapore Stone dates back some 1000 years to the 10th or 11th century and it was part of a much larger monolithic boulder that once stood by the mouth of the Singapore River. For much of its “life” it was lost to history until 1819 when it was rediscovered by laborers who were clearing part of the forest by the river bank. It is said even Sir Stamford Raffles gave it a go in trying to figure out the text without success. Tragically the rock was blown up in 1843 to widen the passageway at the mouth of the Singapore River. Three small fragments were saved. Two were sent for analysis to the Royal Asiatic Society’s Museum in Calcutta and the lone surviving relic – later christened The Singapore Stone – found its much deserved home in what is now the National Museum of Singapore. So this little rock – just like Singapore – seems to have had a tough time “growing up”. And while it still doesn’t look like much, it deserves our respect. On the eve of our National Day, there is no better time to ponder our little rocky history. Happy National Day everyone! Gummybear National Day Open House - Free Entry to the NHB Museums on 9 Aug 2008! NHB15: Dotting the Eye This collage piece is hailed as one of the finest examples of its kind by 1989 Cultural Medallion awardee Goh Beng Kwan. The use of traditional papercuts and brilliant, vibrant colours are meant to evoke to splendour and celebrations of Chinese festivals and rituals. Check out Dotting the Eye in its full glory at the Singapore Art Museum - from now until 15 August, enjoy free admission after 3.00 pm! Tags: Dotting the Eye, Singapore Art Museum, Goh Beng Kwan The New Era of Art in Contemporary World Established in 1994, this art gallery is the fruit of labour between Wetterling Gallery in Sweden and Mr. Daniel Teo, an established businessman with a flair for arts and creativity. To pay a visit to this award-winning gallery, I made an appointment with Leslie, the person-in-charge, a day before I went down. Although the gallery only occupied a single storey, the ambience of cosiness and tranquillity is sufficient to add extra charm to the place. While I was at the gallery, the very first piece of art work that caught my attention was this twin-painting done by late Mr Chua Ek Kay, a prominent Chinese Ink Painter and Cultural Medallion winner who had earned recognition locally and internationally. Although each viewer may react differently to the experience of Mr Chua’s works, what is noticeable is that his works entails the marriage of traditional Chinese and modern Western elements, injecting better insights of Western art into Chinese painting. Chua Ek Kay, “Summer Lotus”, Mixed media on rice paper Also housed at the gallery are works by another contemporary Chinese artist-Shan Fan, who is currently residing in Germany. Very often, his works can be said as neither abstract nor figurative and the paintings are done in a way that creates ambiguity between figure and background or that lines or strong brushstrokes are by themselves pictorial entities yet defining borders within the painting. Shan Fan, “Zollverein”, 2004, Oil on Canvas Shan Fan, “Convex & Concave”, Oil on Canvas Meanwhile, whilst at the gallery, another laudable mention which I spotted would be works done by Cai Heng, a Chinese contemporary artist who was born in China to a family of strong artistic background. Her earlier works are more towards traditional aesthetics before moving towards the inclusion of Western painting. Her works are seldom representational and are rather analogous to abstract expressionism- executed with just the traditional use of ink, brush and rice paper. Cai Heng, “Blossoms 1/2”, Chinese ink on rice paper Cai Heng, “Blossoms 2/2”, Chinese ink on rice paper Wetterling Teo Gallery 3 Kim Yam Road #01-01 Singapore 239321 Tel: +65 6223 1511 Gallery Hours: Please call for appointments Related websites: http://www.danielteo.com/ http://www.agas.org.sg/agas/members/wetterling.html Behind Capitol Building - Through The Years I have no idea whether Icemoon is a gentleman or a lady. With a gender-neutral nick like “Icemoon”, it could be either. However, from the highly investigative and analytical style which the blog is written in, I believe that Icemoon is very likely to be a man. Call me sexist if you like but implicit in that statement is that I think men are naturally better investigators and analysts. You may agree or disagree with me but I think that a man is better in reasoning and logic. (Here, I am using the same reasoning and logic to guess Icemoon’s gender.) So I shall assume that Icemoon is a gentleman unless someone produces irrefutable evidence to prove that I am wrong. Icemoon calls his blog “Second Shot - Same Place Just Different Time”. In some of his posts, like this one, he uses the following technique (in his own words) - “find a source, scout the location today and snap the second shot”. He even has a name for it - “precision heritage photography”. The effect that he created is absolutely stunning, I must say. The 2 photos in the post were of the same scene but taken more than 60 years apart! They look so similar and yet so different. Very clever. Inspired by what Icemoon has done, I am trying my hand at “precision heritage photography”. I took a photo of Capitol Building today from a similar angle as that of the two photos (taken in the 1950s and 1960s) in my earlier post, and here are the results: I am sorry if my photo is not as precise as it should have been - I am a newbie and this is my maiden effort after all. (Pardon me for using the word “maiden” although I am a man but hey, that’s a saying which I can’t change, can I? :p) Anyway, the point is that you could see that everything behind Capitol Building has changed throughout the years. The tall building in the last photo is Peninsula Plaza. The shorter building behind it is Peninsula Hotel/Shopping Centre and further behind is Funan Centre (a famous computer and IT hub) and The Treasury. Even the trees have grown quite a bit and the one on the right is obscuring part of the Capitol Building. If the Capitol Building were to be torn down, then it would not be an exaggeration to say that this place would be totally unrecognisable. Tags: Capitol Building Remembering our traditions Is it possible for us to have a gallery devoted to Singapore traditions and folklore? Take for instance the Hungry Ghosts Festival. I wonder how many of our children would know the origins and rich symbolisms in 20 years time. Or the sinsehs and how popular they have been for much of our history. There should also be a place for our diverse folklore - the stories that we grew up with - of Pontianaks and tree spirits, of the many Chinese Gods in family alters. Passed down by word of mouth, these could well disappear in years to come as old traditions are forgotten. We should celebrate all these for they define in part, the very essence that makes us Singaporeans. I would really love to hear what the bloggers of yesterday.sg think of these humble suggestions ... can we get a little discussion going here? ... any ideas and suggestions would be most welcome. Cheers!  Gummybear Get nostalgic and win big! Click here for more contest details and entry forms.