Tulip fever hits Singapore

On the evidence of the crowds that turned up for Tulipmaniaat the Flower Dome of the Gardens by the Bay on May Day, Singapore’s largest display of tulips which was in full bloom, is certainly a huge hit with Singaporeans. The three week long event which kicked off on Monday, sees some 40,000 tulip bulbs flown in from the Netherlands by official sponsors KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. More information is available on a previous post: Tiptoe through the tulips at the Flower Dome.

Photographs of Tulipmania taken on May Day:

Tiptoe through the tulips at the Flower Dome

While you can’t quite tiptoe through the tulips there is a good chance you can imagine yourself doing it right here in Singapore. For what could be the first time in Singapore at the Gardens by the Bay’s Flower Dome, a mini field of tulips will be in full bloom – from today, 29 April 2013 right up to 20 May 2013, the Flower Field will see a colourful sea of tulips. Some 20,000 tulip bulbs which were planted on last Tuesday by 100 volunteers have already started to bloom and are expected to be in full bloom this week.

It won’t be hard to imagine tiptoeing through the tulips at the Gardens by the Bay’s Flower Dome this May.

Yellow tulips in the Flower Field are already in bloom.

Some of the other coloured tulips such as the pink ones are expected to bloom from Monday.

Visitors to the Flower Dome admiring the tulip field which has started to bloom.

The 20,000 bulbs in the Flower Field are part of a total 40,000 which were flown in from the Netherlands by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, the official sponsor for Tulipmania. The three week event, will not just see the field of red, pink, yellow, white and purple tulips, but also other colourful spring flowers such as  lilies, hyacinths, daffodils and muscari. To complement the display of tulips and the Dutch theme, five miniature windmills and giant wooden clogs placed both inside and outside the cooled conservatory. Further information on Tulipmania is available at the Gardens by the Bay’s Tulipmania page.

Purple tulips in bloom – some 40,000 bulbs were flown in courtesy of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines – the official sponsor.

Visitors can pose for a photograph in front of the Flower Field wearing giant wooden clogs.

More wooden clogs.

A miniature windmill.

Red and white tulips.

There is a chance to smell the roses too.

In addition to the tulips there are also other spring blooms.

Other spring blooms include daffodils.

White tulips in the Flower Dome.

Pink tulips.

During Tulipmania, visitors can also look forward to activities that will appeal to the young and old. These include the opportunity to learn more about tulips through an Acivity Sheet; create handmade tulip clips; taste Dutch cheeses; create tulip postcards which can be mailed to friends; and celebrate Mother’s Day. Promotions during Tulipmania include discounted admission (15% discount) into the cooled conservatories during Mother’s Day weekend (10-12 May), and  a chance to win a pair of tickets to Keukenhof, Holland, in 2014.

A look into a tulip (photograph taken with LG Optimus G).

Finding out mummy’s little secrets

From Saturday 27 April 2013, visitors to Marina Bay Sands’ ArtScience Museum will get to step some three thousand years back in time into the fascinating journey which is somehow filled with much intrigue and mystery that is taken by the ancient Egyptians into the netherworld.

A funerary stela at Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb. The exhibition provides visitors with a journey into the Ancient Egyptian netherworld.

The exhibition, for which the ArtScience Museum has partnered with the British Museum which has a long association with the study of Ancient Egypt and the world’s largest collection of objects from the period, is one that not only brings artefacts such as mummies, mummy cases, and funerary objects into a museum setting, but also peels away at the veneers which reveal the many secrets associated with the Egyptian view of the afterlife. A huge bonus is the opportunity the exhibition provides to look right inside a 3,000 year old mummy, that of a high priest of the Temple of Karnak, Nesperennub, through a 21 minute 3D movie which made its debut at a media conference held at the musuem yesterday, to discover the secrets that the well preserved mummy, still tightly wrapped in its elaborately made and decorate cartonnage cage, holds.

Step into the world of Ancient Egypt at the ArtScience Museum’s exhibition Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb.

The film which I thought is the highlight of the exhibition, is one that could only be made through state-of-the-art CT scanning technology. This allows a non-intrusive “unwrapping” of the mummy to be made without any damage to the cartonnage or the delicate tissues of the mummy itself and provides a better understanding of the priests life and death. The resulting 6,500 images that were produced during the extensive scanning was combined with computer visualisation techniques and made into the very insightful 3D film narrated by acclaimed actor Patrick Stewart. The film is included with the admission into the exhibition.

The mummy of Nesperennub – the subject of the 3D movie.

Mr Neal Spencer, Keeper of the British Museum; Mr Ross Leo Associate Director of the ArtScience Museum; and Dr John Taylor, Assistant Keeper of the British Museum at the media conference.

With more than 100 artefacts which includes 6 mummies on display, the exhibition is in itself one that will surely captivate. The printed backdrops at the first two of the five galleries, Ancient Egypt and Life in Ancient Egypt, takes the visitor into the world where the journey into the netherworld begins – the world of the living or at least the one which is visible to the living. The artefacts in these two galleries include replicas of the famous Rosetta Stone and the head of a statue of King Amenhotep III, as well as mummies of a cat, an ibis several figurines and a water receptacle and ladle that would have been used for purification rituals by a priest like Nesperennub

The Life in Ancient Egypt Gallery takes you into the world where the journey into the netherworld begins – in the land of the living.

Another view of the Life in Ancient Egypt Gallery – with its huge backdrops which take you right into Ancient Egypt.

A replica of the British Museum’s Head of Amenhotep III at Ancient Egypt.

A water receptacle.

The mummy of a cat.

And that of an ibis.

The key of life – an ankh.

A stela with the depiction of the god Amun-Ra.

The gallery which I found most intriguing is the Living Forever gallery – which looks at how the Egyptians send off the dead into the afterlife, what they provided for, and the beliefs and practices involved through the many interesting artefacts that are on display. One that was very interesting is a papyrus which is a page containing the judgement scene from the Book of the Dead – on which the concept of Judgement (a recurring theme in many religions) is seen from the Ancient Egyptian perspective where the heart which was thought to weigh as much as a person’s wrong doings upon death is balanced with a feather of truth.

A papyrus with the Judgement Scene from the Book of the Dead.

That concept also reveals a little more about some of the objects that would be placed in the mummy such as amulets meant to protect the spirit in afterlife. Mummification which involves the removal of the dead person’s organs and the preservation of them in jars or in the time of Nesperennub, wrapped in linen and placed back in the body cavity, would have left the heart preserved in place –  the heart was thought to be the most important organ (the brain was thought to be insignificant and was drained away). Among the amulets on display are several scarab beetle shaped ones representing the heart which are placed next to the organ, including one inscribed with a verse. These are designed to protect the heart at Judgement – so that it doesn’t reveal the misdeeds of the person.

Heart amulets (in the shape of the scarab beetle – thought to represent the heart) to protect the person during Judgement.

Another important item found in the tomb of those of higher status is that of the Shabti – small figurines which are servants bestowed on the dead person for his afterlife – so that work on the fields could be carried out by them and a coffin in which the figurines are placed in. Interestingly we find out, a total of 401 Shabti would accompany a person into afterlife – one for each day of the year plus additional ones required by the complex system of supervisors the Ancient Egyptians had in place to manage their servants.

Shabti on display.

A close-up of the Shabti.

Also on display in Living Forever, are several Stelae, as well as a few mummies including that of the linen wrapped mummy of Shepenmehyt, the mummy of Tjayasetimu in its cartonnage case, the mummy of Padiamenet, and a model of a funerary boat – used to carry the dead of high status down the Nile. An interesting thing I learnt in hearing about the boat was the practice of burying the dead on the western side as the sun sets in the west and it was the belief that it makes a journey through the netherworld

Round-topped funerary stela of a descendant of Takelot III.

Mummy of Padiamenet showing an undecorated extension at the foot of the cartonnage.

The inner coffin of Seni. At the time of Seni, the more well to do would have had their inner coffins encased in a stone outer coffin.

The mummy of Tjayasetimu in a cartonnage case, with the mummy of Shepenmehyt next to it.

The mummy of Shepenmehyt.

The model of a funerary boat with a spell translated from the Book of the Dead.

End of a wooden coffin.

It is in one or the two remaining galleries where an interactive area – the Embalmer’s Workshop can be found. That is where exhibition-related workshops included in the price of admission, are conducted. One of the workshops, The Secrets of Embalming, provides visitors with a demonstration of the very embalming and preservation process – which together with the very elaborate mummification process can take as long as 70 days to complete.

The Secrets if Embalming Workshop.

Showing how the brain is drained through the nasal passage using a brass hook like implement.

The other workshop, Amulets for the Afterlife, is one that would interest many. The hands-on workshop provides an opportunity to make clay-baked amulets – similar to the ones placed in the mummy or in the linen of the mummy as it is wrapped to protect it in its afterlife. The younger visitors might also be interested to know of the Activity Quest – which provides children of three different age ranges with the chance to take a journey through Ancient Egypt through a series of challenges in each of the galleries, armed with quest bags filled with tools for the mission – which families or school-groups can loan during the visit. The bags are aimed at children of three different age groups: those of ages between 3 and 6, primary school children of ages 7 to 12 and secondary school going children of ages 13 to 16.

A peek into the contents of the activity filled quest bag.

The last gallery, the Mummy of Nesperennub is where the story of his journey into the afterlife comes to its conclusion and where we find his mummy in a beautifully decorated cartonnage case, the coffin in which the mummy was placed in, as well as a reconstructed head of Nesperennub … a head you will find out why from the 3D movie, on which a clay bowl was attached to.

The coffin of Nesperennub.

Detail on the painted cartonnage case of the mummy of Nesperennub.

A reconstruction of the head of Nesperennub.

Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb exhibition is scheduled to run from 27 April to 4 November 2013 at the ArtScience Museum. For information on the exhibition and admission charges to the exhibition, do visit the ArtScience Museum’s website.  To mark the opening weekend of Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb, the British Museum’s Dr. John Taylor will conduct four guided tours and two lectures on ancient Egypt at ArtScience Museum, all of which is complimentary to exhibition ticket-holders. Through the guided tours, Dr. Taylor will provide exhibition insight and details regarding ancient Egyptians’ beliefs, customs and how they worshipped.  His lectures will include a look into the evolution of modern mummy research and an in-depth presentation on ancient Egyptian rituals.

---

Opening Weekend Programme:

Saturday, 27 April 2013

Curator’s Guided Tour

(11:30am and 5:30pm; beginning at the first gallery of Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb)

Join Dr. John Taylor from the British Museum as he leads you through the exhibition, revealing fascinating facts about the life and beliefs of ancient Egyptians.

Curator’s Talk

(2:30pm – 3:30pm; held on Level 4 of ArtScience Museum)

Investigating Egyptian Mummies Through Virtual Unwrapping

Dr. John Taylor from the British Museum will trace the development of mummy investigation from its early days to the non-invasive methods of today.

Sunday, 28 April 2013

Curator’s Guided Tour

(11:30am and 5:30pm; beginning at the first gallery of Mummy: Secrets of the Tomb)

Join Dr. John Taylor from the British Museum as he leads you through the exhibition, revealing fascinating facts about the life and beliefs of ancient Egyptians.

Curator’s Talk

(2:30pm – 3:30pm; held on Level 4 of ArtScience Museum)

The Horizon of Eternity: Living and Dying in Ancient Egypt

Dr. John Taylor from the British Museum will describe in detail the importance of rituals and the relationship between men and gods in ancient Egypt.

For a complete listing of dates and times with all ArtScience Museum programming, please visit: www.marinabaysands.com/ArtScienceMuseum.

---

Yesterday Once More at the GPO

Take a stroll through a Singapore we have forgotten about through a series of postcards on display at The Fullerton Hotel. The postcards are part of a collection of 500 that were donated to the Singapore Philatelic Museum in July 2006 by renowned philatelist, Professor Cheah Jin Seng. The postcards date back to the pre-war years and go as far back as to 1893. The exhibition, Yesterday Once More, was officially opened yesterday by Mr. Sam Tan, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth.

A photo of one of the postcards on display showing the former Orchard Road Market (where Orchard Point is today) in its early days before an extension at the front took away the little square and fountain. The fountain can now be found at Raffles Hotel.

Yesterday Once More which is being held as part of The Fullerton Heritage’s Art in the City Programme. Yesterday Once More and is organised in collaboration with The Singapore Philatelic Museum, not only takes one back in time but also provides an appreciation of the transformation Singapore has seen through the last century. The highlights are the parts of the collection which show how much areas such as Orchard Road and the area around the old waterfront where The Fullerton is located has changed.

Detail of another postcard showing an aerial view of the city. The present National Museum can be seen in the foreground as well as the old YMCA Building.

Postcards which were first used as an economical and convenient means to communicate, evolved to the picture postcards which in the days before the advent of the internet, served to document the tales of travellers. In time, these also served to archive places, faces and events. It is probably appropriate that the exhibition is also held at The Fullerton, which older Singaporeans fondly remember as the General Post Office or GPO – a special guest at the launch was Mr Subramaniam, independent Singapore’s very first Postmaster General, who is in his 90s. He was a treat to speak to, having many tales of his time first as the Director of the Post Office, and after separation, as the Postmaster General, to share.

Singapore’s first Postmaster General, Mr. Subramaniam who is in his 90s.

Yesterday Once More runs until 30 April 2013 and is being held at The Fullerton’s East Garden Foyer.

More photos from the launch: 

The faces of Chingay 2013

If anyone reading this appears in any of the photographs below (or in this album), I would be pleased to extend a higher resolution copy of the photograph to you if you can drop me an email.

---

Photographs from what was certainly a feast for the senses, Chingay 2013, which was held at the F1 Pit Building over two evenings on 22 and 23 February 2013. The annual event, touted as “Asia’s Grandest Street Parade”  is organised the People’s Association. In its current incarnation, Singapore’s Chingay was conceived as a street parade to celebrate the Chinese New Year in 1973 in the wake of the ban on the tradition of letting off fireworks, the parade has evolved over the years into the spectacular celebration of Singapore’s rich multi-ethnic mix and includes participants from many other countries. The event wouldn’t have been a success if it wasn’t also for the efforts of many participants and volunteers, to whom this post is dedicated to:

The spirit of Chingay 2013

Themed “Fire in Snow”, Chingay this year celebrates the strength of the human spirit in the face of life’s challenges. Presenting a spectacle (as it always does), with fire representing resilience, bravery, perseverance, passion and determination. This will be placed in contrast with snow representing challenges and hardships. Exemplifying the spirit of this year’s Chingay will be not just the resilient Singaporeans who would be honoured during Chingay, but also the participants who have collectively put in many hours of tireless efforts including rehearsing through last evening’s pouring rain to bring the show to the audience tonight and tomorrow night. Besides being part of the audience, Chingay 2013 can also be watched live at this link.

Participants rehearsing through the pouring rain – exemplifying the spirit of Chingay 2013.

Mr Nah Juay Hng, Chairman of the Chingay Parade Exco with Peng Qia Qia (澎恰恰), Hong Rong Hong (洪荣宏), Yang Lie (杨烈) and Billy Wang (东方比利) as well as some of the resilient Singaporeans who will be honoured at the event.

Celebrating the Lunar New Year at Marina Bay

In celebration of the Lunar New Year, The Float @ Marina Bay once again plays host to River Hongbao. The annual event, now in its 27th year, is organised by Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations (SFCCA), Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce (SCCCI), Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and People’s Association (PA) with the aim to allow both locals and visitors to immerse themselves in the festive atmosphere. This year’s fair sees a display of lanterns including some of the largest which have been designed and specially handcrafted for River Hongbao on display at The Float. This combined with the host of fringe activities including amusement rides and carnival games; nightly shows on the main stage and; brought specially this year – food and handicraft from Guangdong Province, will certainly make this year’s River Hongbao one that will certainly be worth a visit.

The Guangdong Arts Troupe during the Countdown Ceremony on Saturday.

The Float coming to life for River Hongbao 2013.

The lanterns will definitely be a draw this year – the most eye-catching one being the towering 18 metre tall God of Wealth, as well as two large Screen Lanterns, which measuring 30 metres by 10 metres, will certainly not be missed. The lanterns have all been locally designed and handcrafted by craftsmen in China and also include zodiac lanterns – 12 of them each with a zodiac animal – the one with the snake will of course be taking centre stage. One rather interesting lantern is that resembles a Chinese Opera or Wayang stage – with lantern puppets as well as puppet show performances at selected times throughout the day. Visitors can also look forward to receiving fortune numbers from the God of Wealth at two hourly intervals from 1 to 11 pm.

The lanterns will add light and colour to The Float over the nine days.

The 18 metre tall God of Wealth.

The zodiac lantern featuring the snake.

A floating lantern.

A lantern featuring giant pandas.

Besides the lanterns, the happenings on the main stage which comes alive every evening, should also not be missed. The shows on the main stage will over the nine evenings, feature performances by both local and foreign performers, including acts which hail from China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia.  The highlight includes the performances which feature dancers from the National Taiwan University of Arts and the Nanfang Song and Dance Company, as well as acrobats from Shantou Acrobatic and Magic Troupe. In addition to these acts, the evening of 13 February will see a “Local Talent Night”,  14 February a “Youth Night” which showcases upcoming young talents and 15 February, a “SFCCA Night” during which the clan associations will put up both Mandarin as well as perfromances in dialects. The last evening (16 February) will see a “Harmony Night” when the different ethnic groups come together in a grand finale. For more information on the programme, please visit the River Hongbao’s Programme page. River Hongbao 2013 runs from 8 to 16 February 2013. More information on River Hongbao can also be found at the event’s website and Facebook Page.

 

---

Further information on River Hongbao 2013:

Working with Guangdong

As part of efforts to further cultural cooperation with Guangdong Province, River Hongbao will be partnering the Department of Culture and Department of Tourism of Guangdong Province to bring the region’s highlights to Singapore. Visitors to The Float will be entertained by the Guangdong Arts Troupe, which comprises of performers from the highly acclaimed Nanfang Song and Dance Company and acrobats from Shantou Acrobatic and Magic Troupe. Guangdong is also well known for its popular Cantonese cuisine so expect your tastebuds to be tantalized by the region’s delicacies available at the River Hongbao Food Street. Handicrafts from from different provinces of Guangdong like silk scarves from Shunde, Guangzhou bone and jade sculptures, Foshan paper cuttings and souvenirs from The Musuem of Dr Sun Yat Sen will also be available for visitors to bring a small piece of Guangdong back with them.

River Hongbao Food Street

Continuing with 2012’s success, River Hongbao’s Food Street will bring back last year’s winning local fare like Char Kway Teow, Hainanese Chicken Rice, Fried Hokkien Noodles, Satay Bee Hoon, Oyster Omelette, as well as Asian street favourites from Taiwan and Thailand. Guangdong chefs will also be flown in to entice palates with popular Guangdong delicacies like Grilled Quail’s Eggs, Soup Dumplings, Oysters steamed with garlic mince, Traditional double boiled soups and many more.

Memory Collection Drive

This year, River Hongbao will work together with the Singapore Memory Project (SMP) to collect memories of Chinese New Year celebrations in Singapore. Visitors can share their memories of the festive traditions or past River Hongbao events at the Memory Collection Drive. For memories contributed, they will receive specially designed hongbao packets, while stocks last. These memories will enable future generations of Singaporeans to understand the collective journey of our nation and the different facets of Singapore. Members of the public can also submit photos and stories via singaporememory.sg or the SG Memory iOS App.

Minister for Prime Minister’s Office Mr Lim Swee Say joining the countdown celebrations.

The fireworks display at the countdown.

Singapore’s gods of fortune, old and new …

Fire in snow lights up the Lunar New Year

While many in Singapore feel that the annual Chingay parade, now in its 41st year, has moved away from its original purpose of a street parade for the masses first celebrated in 1973 to make up for a total ban on the long held tradition of letting off fireworks during the Lunar New Year, the parade is without a doubt still very much a celebration of what Singapore is and what perhaps Singapore has become. The parade has in its recent editions become a show of the spectacular, combining a street-like parade in which the people from all major races and from all walks of life participate, with a well-orchestrated show of lights, music and effects which never fail to dazzle the audience. The theme of this year’s parade, “Fire in Snow”, will on the evidence of Saturday’s rehearsal, no doubt be as dramatic, if not more so, than last year’s water show was, with the opening scene seeing some 3000 performers light pots of fire, which turns the 360 metre parade route at the F1 Pit Building into a spectacular sea of light. The parade’s dramatic opening is matched by an equally staggering finale during which the parade’s audience and participants will be showered in falling “snow”, in which falling soap and pieces of paper brings the parade to a sensational close.

Chingay brings together members of the various communities in Singapore in an annual street celebration.

The opening scene sees the lighting of pots of fire.

The spectacular closing sees “snow” falling on the parade.

Saturday’s rehearsal, which was opened to members of the media, also had some 8,000 students in its audience. The students, representing some 56 schools, were there to participate in a National Education (NE) show to educate students about multicultural harmony. This is the first time students an NE show, usually associated with National Day Parade rehearsals, is being held in conjunction with the Chingay Parade rehearsals. The six-part parade will see some 10,000 performers representing some 120 organizations and will include a Chinese classical featuring 450 young performers from Singapore and China; a combined Chinese Opera Show with 300 members of local Teochew, Hokkien and Cantonese opera troupes who will perform to the strains of Phantom of the Opera; Tai-chi Swordmasters; and the participation of a 1,000 strong PAssion Zumba Community which includes the youngest participant in the parade who is only 4.

The largest Chinese Classical Dance in the show’s history sees 450 young dancers from both Singapore and China peform.

A close up of the Chinese Classical Dance segment.

Tai-chi swordmasters.

The parade will be held on Friday 22 February and Saturday 23 February this year. More information including that on ticketing can be found at the Chingay 2013 website.

Members of the Queenstown CC Cantonese Opera troupe pose for a photograph before the rehearsal.

Student performers dressed in Chinese Opera costumes practicing before the parade.

The youngest participant who is 4.

Ms Elaine Tjon a member of the PAssion Zumba Community sharing her experience at the media conference.

Student participants at the media conference.

Mr Nah Juay Hng, Chairman of the Chingay Parade Exco speaking.

Members of the Japanese community.

Float carrying more participants from Singapore’s Japanese Community.

The NE Show audience – schoolchildren expanded a lot of energy during the parade.

---

More photographs from Saturday’s rehearsal:

A world I would love to be trapped in

One current exhibition that is certainly well worth a visit to is one that is devoted entirely to building bricks most of us would have been familiar with from our childhoods. ‘The Art of The Brick’ at the ArtScience Museum which opened on 17 November 2012 and will run until 14 April 2013, takes visitors into the world of 39 year old Nathan Sawaya, whose life-long obsession with Lego building bricks has seen him abandon his job as an attorney to devote himself to the ‘art of the brick’.

Trapped, one of the brick pieces that offers a look into the world of Nathan Sawaya at the ArtScience Museum. Trapped is inspired by the artist’s feelings of being trapped. Speaking of being trapped – Sawaya’s world is one I certainly wouldn’t mind being trapped in.

I was provided with the opportunity to visit the exhibition recently by good people of the ArtScience Museum. The visit provided me not only with the opportunity to see the artist’s work, but also step into the artist’s own world seen through some of his work which includes both representative brick sculptures as well as one which explore surrealist themes in what is some of the more fascinating pieces. Sawaya’s obsession with what is indeed a very popular and timeless toy we were told began at the age of five. Not being able to get that pet dog he had wanted, Sawaya did the next best thing – he dismantled his Lego city brick set and built a dog with it which he named Boxer.

The entrance to the exhibition. The exhitbition runs until 14 April 2013.

Sawaya decided to turn what had in his working years become a means to blow off steam. It was when he realised that his sharing of his hobby on his website brickartist.com was receiving quite a fair bit of attention that he decided to dedicate his life to being a ‘brick artist’ first joining Lego before setting up his own art gallery in New York City.

A giant FaceMask.

The 52 large-scale brick pieces at the exhibition are displayed across eight galleries. In the first gallery, we are introduced to the artist himself, with several pieces through which Sawaya reveals some of his personal take on himself. The gallery includes several ‘iconic’ pieces including ‘Yellow’ and ‘Swimmer’. My personal favourite among the works in the gallery is Yellow which depicts a human torso tearing its chest open. Thousands of toy bricks can be seen to spill out from the gap. The work represents the artist’s personal metamorphosis and transitions and is said to capture his emotional journey in which the artist opened himself up to the world.

Yellow – which represents Sawaya’s personal metamorphosis and transitions, and captures his emotional journey.

Another piece in the Introduction Gallery – ‘Hands’ which depicts a dream Sawaya had in which he loses his hands.

The seven other galleries are no less interesting. The next one we come to is the Catwalk Gallery where works are displayed on a runway like platform. Works here that caught my eye were Circle, Triangle, Square and Everlasting. Another interesting gallery is the Portrait Gallery, where there are some familiar faces in 2D – all made again from Lego bricks which I thought was rather amazing. Among the portraits are those of Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, and Janis Joplin. What is interesting to learn about is the approach that the artist takes when creating a 2D portrait is that he starts off with the eyes – after which he says everything falls into place. The choice of colour is also important we are told. Sawaya, despite his talent in creating 2D likenesses of famous personalities with Lego bricks, we are also told, does not like to take on commercial commissions for 2D portraits for fear that he may offend clients should the work not come out right.

Circle, Trangle, Square in the Catwalk Gallery.

Everlasting.

Close-up of a portrait of Janis Joplin.

Close-up of a portrait of Bob Dylan.

And one of Jimi Hendrix.

Our very able guide Dina, speaking on Courtney Yellow – a portrait of Sawaya’s then girlfriend (and now wife) Courtney Simmons.

Another gallery which I did take my time to look at was The Emotion Box which has pieces all of which seemed to have a deeper meaning in them. Stepping into the gallery one encounters works that are mesmerisingly fascinating such as Mask, Ascension, Grasp and Trapped. There certainly are deeper meanings that one will discover in the works. Ascension depicts the artists desire to ascend to a higher place without experiencing death, whereas, Grasp refers to the many people telling the artist ‘no’ – people he would like to rid his life of.

Mask.

Ascension.

Grasp.

One work that will certainly impress is a six metre long one – a T-Rex skeleton at the Art of Play. The last gallery is where you will find a brick sculpture of a familiar sight – that of the ArtScience Museum itself. The piece was specially commissioned by the ArtScience Museum and was created without the artist having actually visited the museum, and purely from 2D images.

The six metre long T-Rex skeleton.

One of the ArtScience Museum.

Peace.

The exhibition also has several areas which allow visitor interaction, including light and sound displays, a photobooth, a Play and Build area and an area where visitors can attempt to recreate Sawaya’s rain. The exhibtion is open from 10 am to 10 pm daily (last entry is at 9 pm). More information on the exhibition and ticket prices can be found at the ArtScience Museum’s website.

Writer in The Drawing Board gallery.

Interacting with light.

Photobooth.

The search for love and happiness in Marina Bay’s secret spaces

It was around midday on the first Sunday of 2013 that I found myself on an exploration of what can be said to be secret spaces around Marina Bay, an exploration which was to lead me and the group I found myself in the company of, to the search for happiness during which I did also find love. It was an exploration of places and spaces in which we might have expected love and happiness to be in short supply including a lawyer’s office and as well as the offices, meeting spaces and even a boardroom and trading floor of one of the world’s largest financial institutions.

The search for happiness.

involved a passage on a secret travelator.

A page from Kafka’s ‘The Trial’ … found at the secret travelator.

A participant takes a closer look at ‘Fragile Structures’ – the work of Frayn Yong which involves wireframe like models of structures found around Marina Bay made of mechanical pencil lead.

The search for happiness did lead us to a seemingly happy space – the offices of Google Asia Pacific. There I did momentarily find that elusive emotional state – I was very happy to have a peek into Google’s much talked about working spaces. The goal however was a happy looking abstract art installation, Eeshaun’s ‘The Search for Happiness’, one of several installations awaiting discovery along a rather unique trail, touted as Singapore’s only art walkabout, OH! (or Open House). OH! Marina Bay, The Happiness Index, is the latest edition – three previous sell-out events had some 5,000 strangers taking a look at art installations in real life homes in Niven Rd (2009), Marine Parade (2011) and Tiong Bahru (2012).

Detail of ‘The Search for Happiness’ – an abstract piece by Eeshaun in the offices of Google Singapore.

For OH! Marina Bay, there is a shift from the more personal and intimate spaces that the previous OH!s explored. For the latest edition, participants take a look instead into corporate Singapore. This shift is explained by Alan Oei, the co-founder and curator: “I thought Marina Bay was all office, glass, steel and mirrors. But there is a secret and fascinating life beneath all that. In many ways, one can look at it as manifesting a kind of zeitgeist. It’s a really interesting moment in Singapore now, and the arts should be part of that conversation.”

The corporate offices around the new downtown in Marina Bay is the focus of the latest in a series of OH! events.

That the arts is part of the conversation, OH! leaves little doubt. OH! Marina Bay features the installations of twelve artists, in very different and exclusive locations. There is a little bonus in that as well as the installations (some of which I could identify with), the walkabout does offer that peek into the ultra modern offices of major financial institutions housed in the glass and steel structures which have risen where the sea once stood – as well as taking participants back some three decades to an office that once housed the practice of renowned architect Tay Kheng Soon, who played a role in shaping the architectural landscape of Singapore back then. The office, now hosts the law practice of Ann Tan and Associates, and does still bear some evidence of Tay’s interventions within its space.

Love broken by a bomb in Deutsche Bank’s offices.

It was at the lawyer’s office that one of what I did think was one of the more interesting installations – sound artist Tan Peiling’s ‘And they gathered them together in heaps’ was to be discovered. Set amongst stacks of documents stored in files are the records that perhaps have not been stored – a visual record as well as one of the sounds of the old harbour – once only an earshot away.

Tan Peiling’s ‘And they gathered them together in heaps’ is made up of visual …

as well as sound records … in this case sounds of the old harbour which was once only an earshot away.

The installations that to me delighted the most however was Joy Abigail Ho’s lighthearted and interactive piece at the first stop, as well as the tea ladies dancing to the strains of Bengawan Solo entertain also at the first stop. And it is for this as well as the little discoveries along the way that makes OH! Marina Bay worth the two hours spent.

Joy Abigail Ho’s interactive piece at DBS Asia Central.

Joy Abigail Ho.

Dancing tea ladies at DBS Asia Centre.

There was a little to discover as well of the area’s development history. Land reclamation which started in the 1970s has shaped much of what we do see today, including the Marina Bay Financial Centre (MBFC). It is from there as well as from the offices visited where we are able have a better appreciation of this, as well as have a peek into the future of the area. Just beyond the MBFC we see a multitude of cranes, cranes which help in the spread of the new downtown southwards on what is now bare reclaimed land. It is also a less known fact that even the area we see as the older part of the financial district centred on Shenton Way, was in fact built on land some of which was reclaimed as far back as the 1880s – the shoreline prior to that had been located at Telok Ayer Street!

A view of the past from the modern boardroom of Deutsche Bank. OH! Marina Bay besides taking one into the modern glass and steel buildings of key financial players, also offers a glimpse into the past buried in the present.

It is close to where the walkabout began – at Deutsche Bank’s offices which does offer a great view of the past, the present and perhaps the future from its boardroom, where it ends. It is here where the largest collection of works can be found – including many which is in the bank’s own collection. It is also here where we find love, which takes the form of a love bomb – a bomb like installation with the Chinese word for love on it. There are also some accompanying paintings which spread the message of love on the walls. It is also here where another highlight of the walkabout lies in waiting – a look at the trading floor on the 18th. The trading floor’s location was one selected for its auspicious number we are told.

Participants heading to the 18th Floor – the trading floor of Deutsche Bank where photography is not permitted. The Deutsche Bank mural painted entirely by the bank’s staff is seen in the foreground.

There are four more days during which you can seek love and happiness in and around some of Marina Bay’s secret spaces. Further runs of OH! Marina Bay will be held on 12, 13, 19 and 20 January 2013. Tickets are $20, and can be bought only at the door from 11am, at DBS Asia Central Branch, Marina Bay Financial Centre, Tower 3, Level 3. Last tours leave at 3pm daily. See http://www.ohopenhouse.com/ for more information.

The curious ridge of sand which runs from Katong to Kallang Bay

Taking a walk by the waterfront by the Singapore Indoor Stadium these days, it would be hard to imagine a time not so long ago when looking across to Tanjong Rhu, a very different scene would have greeted one’s eyes. Where million dollar condominium units housed in cream coloured blocks now dominate the view across, the scene a quarter of a century ago would have been one of wooden boats, wooden jetties, slipways and drab looking structures running along a body of water the surface of which would have been littered not just by rubbish that had found its way into the three rivers that flowed into the basin, but also by carcasses of dead animals that floated down from the many farms that has once been located upstream.

Tanjong Rhu (left), seen across the Kallang Basin today.

Tanjong Rhu translates from Malay into the Cape of Casuarina (Trees). Once described as a “curious ridge of sand which runs across from Katong to Kallang Bay”, its tip, known as “Sandy Point” has had a long association with the boat building and repair trade, having been an area designated for the trade by Sir Stamford Raffles as far back as 1822, with Captain Flint being the first to set a company to do that in the same year. By the 1850s, the trade was already well established around Sandy Point and the trade continued to thrive in the area even after the first graving dock was constructed in New Harbour (Keppel Harbour) in 1859. Over the years, among the business that found their way to Sandy Point were the well established names such as British boatbuilder J I Thornycroft which set up in 1923 and United Engineers. Thornycroft became Vosper Thornycroft in 1967 following the 1966 merger of the parent company with Vosper Limited in the UK. Vosper Thornycroft’s Singapore operations in turned merged with United Engineer’s in 1967. The yard unfortunately got into financial difficulties due to the mid 1980s recession and went into voluntary liquidation in early 1986.

The end of Tanjong Rhu was home to several shipyards including Vosper Thornycroft (seen here), the parent company of which is an established builder of Naval craft in the UK and Singapore Slipway (which became Keppel Singmarine), established as far back as 1887.

A slipway of a boatyard on the Geylang River

A well established organisation involved in shipbuilding still around that can trace its history to Sandy Point is the newbulding arm of Keppel Corporation, Keppel Singmarine. The subsidiary of what is now Keppel Offshore and Marine is a merger of Singmarine and Singapore Slipway. It was Singapore Slipway that had been established at Sandy Point in 1887 when a group of merchants bought William Heard and partner Campbell Heard and Co’s slipway which was set up earlier in the decade and formed the Slipway and Engineering Company. Keppel Singmarine’s yard operated at Tanjong Rhu until the early 1990s.

A boat littered Kallang Basin in 1973 at the time of the completion of the National Stadium (Singapore Sports Council Photo). Land reclamation along the Nicoll Highway promenade can be clearly seen.

Besides the shipyards, another area of Tanjong Rhu a short distance away from its tip that wasn’t very pretty was at the area known as Kampong Arang. That had been an area that was dominated by wooden jetties, used by charcoal traders to offload charcoal from tongkangs (wooden lighters) coming in from Indonesia and Thailand. The charcoal trade was established in the area in 1954 when charcoal traders were uprooted from the waterfront along the reclaimed land south of Beach Road to allow for the construction of Merdeka Bridge and the Nicoll Highway. The once thriving charcoal trade operated at Tanjong Rhu up until January 1987 when the trade was already in decline. At its height in the late 1950s, as many as 300 tongkangs plied between the two countries and Tanjong Rhu, falling to 60 by the time the 1970s had arrived when demand fell as many households had by then already switched to using gas and electric stoves. The traders were relocated to Lorong Halus (only 15 of the 40 that operated at Tanjong Rhu continued at Lorong Halus with demand mainly from the reexport of charcoal than from the local market) in early 1987 at the tail end of the decade long Kallang Basin cleanup efforts.

Another view of Kallang Basin and Tanjong Rhu today.

Beyond the cleanup efforts, the face of Tanjong Rhu has also been altered by the land reclamation south of the cape which has increased its land mass. The land reclamation, started in the early 1970s, was originally intended to allow for the construction of the East Coast Parkway and was further expanded to give the area now referred to as Marina East – at the tip of which the Marina Barrage now closes the channel between it and Marina South which has turned Marina Bay and the Kallang Basin into a huge reserve of a much needed resource, fresh water. The shifting out of the trades from the area were complete by the time the mid 1990s had arrived and allowed much of the northern waterfront area of Tanjong Rhu to be developed into a residential area and the basin into a recreational area that it is today.

[see also: Where slipways once lined the muddy banks of the Geylang River: Jalan Benaan Kapal]

The making of Marina Bay

The decades that followed Singapore’s somewhat reluctant independence from Malaysia were ones of enormous growth and development which has led to an amazing transformation of a city state, with a burgeoning population, the threat of unemployment and facing much uncertainty into the modern city that it is today. One place where that transformation is very apparent is in and around the city centre, particularly in the Marina Bay area which has seen it morph from the old harbour on which Singapore’s wealth was built into the city of the future built around what has become Singapore’s 15th fresh water reservoir that it is today.

The dawn of a new Singapore at Marina Bay.

View of Clifford Pier, the Inner Roads and the Breakwater in the 1950s from an old postcard (courtesy of Mr. Low Kam Hoong).

Map of Singapore Harbour in the 1950s showing the Detached Mole, Inner Roads and Outer Roads.

The transformation that took place was a story that began in the years that followed independence. Singapore embarked on the State and City Planning Project (SCP) in 1967, assisted by the United Nations under the UN Development Programme’s special assistance scheme for urban renewal and development for emerging nations. The SCP which was completed in 1971, Singapore’s first Concept Plan, identified the need to build an adequate road transportation network. This included a coastal highway to divert traffic that would otherwise have to go through the city. For this land was to be reclaimed, with the construction of what is today Benjamin Sheares Bridge providing a vital link. Initial thoughts were that a green belt could be created on the reclaimed land with space created providing for a future expansion of the city. What did become of the plan and further developments over the years was to give us not just the highway which is the East Coast Parkway (ECP), but in addition to that a city of the future, a city in a garden, and certainly what is a truly amazing new part of Singapore we celebrate today.

Singapore’s City in a Garden concept is very much evident in the transformation of Marina Bay.

The last decade has seen the many developments which were the result of decades of planning take shape around Marina Bay.

You can find out more about this transformation and how it took place by participating in a guided walk this weekend or the next, ‘The Making of Marina Bay‘ which be conducted by Zinkie Aw, held as part of a month long ‘Loving Marina Bay‘ event organised by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). Details of the walk (and also one more that I will be conducting on 25 Nov 2012 entitled ‘A Walk Around the Old Harbour’) can be found at The Loving Marina Bay site. To sign up for the walks, do visit the Eventbrite signup page. The month long event will also feature a street museum exhibition at Clifford Square (in between Clifford Pier and One Fullerton) in which photographs of the old have been superimposed on the new to provide an appreciation of the changes around the bay through which you can also discover where places such as the Satay Club once were.

A ‘Street Museum’ panel at Clifford Square.

Discover where places such as the Satay Club were through the street museum.

---

About Loving Marina Bay

See the story of Marina Bay through our AmBAYssadors

Located at the heart of Singapore’s city centre, Marina Bay is the centrepiece of Singapore set to be a thriving 24/7 destination with endless exciting events and a necklace of attractions where people from all walks of life come together to live, work and play.

This photography exhibition showcases the different facets of the Marina Bay precinct through over 100 enthralling photos taken by 20 of our beloved AmBAYssadors made up of Singapore’s popular bloggers and photographers.

Heritage is very much part of the precinct’s foundation, captured in key historical landmarks such as Merlion Park and Collyer Quay.

An interesting Street Museum section chronicles Marina Bay’s story over its first few decades since the 1960s, telling a story of strategic, far-sighted and meticulous planning and committed engagement to reach its present state through archive photos superimposed on its modern-day context.

Join us during the month-long event where every weekend is full of exciting activities such as heritage walks and photography workshops led by our very own AmBAYssadors. We want you to be part of Loving Marina Bay too – submit a photo taken at Marina Bay anywhere, anytime to win prizes; or simply pen a Love Note to your family/friends, drop it into the red pillar post boxes at The Fullerton Hotel Singapore and we will send it anywhere in the world for you! Visit www.marina-bay.sg/lovingmb for more details.

---

The Merlion at 40

A few more photographs of the Merlion during its 40th birthday celebrations, taken on the last evening of the light, sound and pyrotechnic display, Merlion & I: An Inspiring Journey on 16 September 2012. More information on the event can be found on my previous post ‘Looking sexy at 40‘.

Kids at the Conservatories

With the September school holidays upon us in Singapore, the Gardens by the Bay which has not seen any let up in the flow of visitors since it opened at the end of June, has been running what is the first of their school holiday programmes which they hope to extend to the future school holidays as well. The programmes, named “Kids at the Conservatories“, is a series of specially curated guided tours aimed at children between the ages of 4 to 9 and each includes a tour of the two conservatories with an interactive activity at the end of each which reinforces the key lessons learnt during the tour.

A school holiday kids programme in the clouds! The Gardens by the Bay’s school holiday Education and Outreach Programme has kids on the Cloud Walk learning more about plants and their usefulness.

I was able to follow one of the activities, Talented Plants, designed for children of ages 4 – 6. While at the initial introduction, many of the young participants seemed reluctant to part with their parents, most had warmed up by the time the guided walk took them into the cool conservatories, starting with the Australian Garden in the Flower Dome and participated in answering questions that the guide, who introduced herself as ‘Teacher’ Grace, posed along stops where she introduced plants and their usefulness to other living things around them.

‘Teacher’ Grace introducing water holding bromeliads in which tree frogs lay their eggs at the Cloud Forest.

The walk also took the kids (and their parents) through the Cloud Forest, where one of the things I did learn was that tree frogs lay their eggs in water holding plants known as bromeliads. The walk which took a little over an hour ended with an activity during which the participants were able to participate in a craft activity using recycled materials – used plastic bottles and newspapers – which were transformed into a ‘bottle tree’ which they were introduced to during the visit to the Flower Dome – which judging by the smiles on the faces of the kids at the end of it, was very well received. The tours, more information about which can be found at the Gardens by the Bay’s website (click here), are unfortunately all fully booked for this holidays, but do look out for more at the next school holidays.

Grace and the participants in the Cloud Forest.

The participants at the source of the waterfall.

The interactive activity at the end of the programme which saw the kids turn recycled materials into a bottle tree which they could each take home.

Real plants were used.

A proud owner of a ‘bottle tree’.

The view from the other side …

While some 26,000 in Singapore had gathered for the wonderful show that was this year’s National Day Parade on 9 August at The Float@Marina Bay, another 10,000 or so had turned The Promontory@Marina Bay across Marina Bay into a sea of red. The 10,000 were at the Promontory to participate in Young NTUC Celebrates! National Day 2012 – an event organised annually for the Labour Movement since 2007 to celebrate National Day. The event brought many families out together in a community celebration of National Day which allowed participants to watch the parade on giant LCD screens as well as watch up-close crowd favourites such as the Red Lions parachute team, the aerial fly-past as well as the always spectacular fireworks display that lit Marina Bay up at the end of the parade. The highlight of this year’s parade came at the end of the event when the Promontory was transformed into a sea of candlelight during a symbolic candle lighting activity, “A Celebration of Unity” held to signify the solidarity and mutual support of the Labour Movement and its role in the building of the nation.

A garden in bloom

In Pictures: The Bay South Garden which opened on 29 June 2012 and its two cooled conservatories in full bloom.

A place for community activities … both those that are organised …

… and those that are not …

Ticket queues for entry into the cooled conservatories … the two conservatories which offer a peek into botanical worlds that are out of reach for many are proving to be a hit with visitors to the Bay South Garden.

Cacti in the Flower Dome which replicates the cool dry climate found in areas such as the Mediterranean and Semi-Arid sub-tropical regions around the world.

Ghost Trees from Madagascar.

A thousand year old olive tree.

The Baobabs section of the Flower Dome.

The Flower Dome also features a changing floral display in the Flower Field.

The Cloud Forest replicates the Cool Moist climate of the Tropical Montane regions.

Pitcher plants are abundant in the Cloud Forest.

As are some rather unusual orchids.

---

All photographs in this post have been taken using a Sony α57 (SLT-A57) DSLR camera.

---

More information:

• The Supertree Grove, OCBC Skyway and Cloud Forest by night
• Official Opening on 28 June 2012 (with photos inside the completed Cloud Forest)
• In the merry month of May (Night twilight views)
• Ascent into the Clouds (A preview of the Cloud Forest)
• New Light in the Old Harbour (Night scenes from November 2011)
• Sneak Peek at the Gardens (A sneak peek in November 2011)
• Gardens by the Bay website
• Getting to the Gardens
• Map of the Bay South Garden

---

The enchanted garden

The opening weekend of Bay South Garden of the Gardens by the Bay saw crowds turning up in droves to have a look at the latest attraction – one of several developments that adds to the futuristic looking part of the city that is fast coming up on land that once had been the sea. The opening day – a Friday, had attracted as many as 30,000 visitors to the garden, 15,000 of which came for the first of two open air concerts held at the garden’s The Meadow – a sellout featuring Jason Mraz. The concert was part of a host of activities held to celebrate the garden’s opening. I managed to attend the second concert, a one-and-a-half hour performance in which Singapore born singer – the very talented Corrinne May, impressed the 5,000 audience with a soulful repertoire of songs which she had herself written. Both concerts were very well received and the garden is set to become the location, much as New York’s Central Park is, for open-air concerts in Singapore.

The enchanted garden – the Bay South Garden by night.

Concert goers at the Corrinne May concert on 30th June.

The Meadow seen during a free screening of an open air movie during the opening weekend.

After the madness that accompanied the opening weekend, I was glad to able to find the time to take a walk through part of the 54 hectare garden without the distraction of the crowd on a weekday evening. Free from the distraction of the weekend crowds, I was able to see how, as day turned into night, the garden being transformed into a world like none other – a world bathed in a magical glow of the illuminations of its rather curious but strangely captivating man-made structures. The visual highlight of the garden by night must certainly be the garden’s Supertrees of which there are three clusters which seem to sprout around the two cooled conservatories. The Supertrees, of which there are 18 in total, are really vertical gardens that are planted on steel structures arranged around a concrete core that ranges from 25 to 50 metres in height. The vertical displays of plants are primarily of tropical flowering climbers, epiphytes and ferns. The largest cluster, the Supertree Grove, is made up of 12 Supretrees. The other two clusters are each of three Supertrees in the Golden Garden (near the Arrival Square) and in the Silver Garden (near the Dragonfly Lake).

The Supertree Grove – a cluster of 18 Supertrees including one that is 50 metres high and two 42 metres high ones – one of which is dominates this scene.

Two other clusters of three Supertrees can be found at the Silver Garden (seen here) near the Dragonfly Lake and the Golden Garden near the Arrival Square.

The moon rises over a Supertree in the Golden Garden.

The Supertree Grove is the cluster that will certainly draw the most interest, not just because it is the largest cluster and also where the largest Supertrees are found – the 50 metre tall one which will house a treetop bistro and two 42 metre tall ones between which a curved 128 metre long aerial walkway, the OCBC Skyway, is suspended. The OCBC Skyway, 22 metres above ground, offers not only an amazing view of the garden, but also a view that extends east towards the Marina Barrage and west where the Marina Bay Sands Complex stands.

The OCBC Skyway at dusk.

The Supertree Grove also plays host to a 15 minute long audio-visual spectacle – the OCBC Light and Sound Show (which opened on 2nd July 2012). The show will come on twice every night at 7.45 pm and 8.45 pm and is something that certainly should not be missed.

The Supertrees during the OCBC Light and Sound Show …

Supertrees in the Supertree Grove and the OCBC Skyway against the backdrop of Marina Bay Sands.

Another part of the gardens that I found to be quite a wonder at night is inside one of the two cooled conservatories – the Cloud Forest. Whether by day or by night, the entrance into the Cloud Forest is one which would be greeted by a spectacular sight – that of a 30 metre high waterfall that falls from Cloud Mountain. It is however at night that the waterfall bathed in the purple-blue of its illumination takes on a magical appearance. The conservatory takes on a warmer and a more welcoming appearance by night and it is for this, the conservatories magical waterfall, and the glow of the Supertrees that makes what seems almost like an enchanted garden, very much worth a visit after night has fallen.

The 30 metre high waterfall that greets the visitor is bathed in an enchanting purple-blue glow at night.

The cantilevered Cloud Walk seen from ground level.

A view of the Treetop Walk, seen from the Cloud Walk at night.

The Cloud Walk and the Treetop Walk below.

The Cloud Walk, with Cloud Mountain and The Cavern, seen from the Treetop Walk.

Another view of the side of Cloud Mountain from the Treetop Walk.

View from the Secret Garden by night.

---

All photographs accompanying this post have been taken using a Sony α57 (SLT-A57) DSLR camera.

---

More information:

• Official Opening on 28 June 2012 (with photos inside the completed Cloud Forest)
• In the merry month of May (Night twilight views)
• Ascent into the Clouds (A preview of the Cloud Forest)
• New Light in the Old Harbour (Night scenes from November 2011)
• Sneak Peek at the Gardens (A sneak peek in November 2011)
• Calendar of Opening Events
• Rhythm with Nature website
• Gardens by the Bay website
• Getting to the Gardens
• Map of the Bay South Garden

---

Changing moods of a changing face

Marina Bay is where the most dramatic of changes that the city of Singapore has seen over the last 30 years has probably taken place. It is now a showcase of the new Singapore – one that reflects how the mood of a nation that emerged out of uncertain times to where it finds itself now, proudly standing on its own. The bay as it is referred to now, was once the harbour – the harbour on which modern Singapore was founded on and from which much of its people and its wealth came in from. Cut off from the sea that brought it life by the reclamation of land and the construction of the Marina Barrage, the old harbour is now part of a large body of fresh water – an important reserve of the important resource that Singapore has always struggled with. Beyond that, it has also become the showcase of Singapore’s transformation with several rather iconic developments rising around the bay that has given the area a ‘wow’ factor. Even as I struggle to come to grips with this new world that has replaced much of what I loved of the Singapore that I grew up in, I must admit that I find myself in celebration of this new world. The new world in reflecting the changed mood of the nation is probably also where it is best to capture the changing mood of each day at daybreak – which I have tried to do on four out of five working days this week … the photographs that follow are taken at about the same time on each of the four days, each capturing a very different mood.

The calm after the storm

28 May 2012, 6.37 am.

A clear day

30 May 2012, 6.36 am.

The calm before the storm

31 May 2012, 6.38 am.

In the midst of a storm

1 June 2012, 6.39 am.

The Gardens by the Bay in the merry month of May

Thanks to the Gardens by the Bay, with several other photographers and bloggers, I had a chance to wander around the Bay South Garden of the Gardens by the Bay this May. Much of the Bay South Garden is still very much “work-in-progress” – a lot of planting and sprucing-up is still going on, but it was nice to see that most of the structures that add a sensational touch to the garden is up and turned up beautifully in photographs. One of the highlights of the Bay South Garden that we were able to see this time around which wasn’t accessible during the Cloud Forest media preview in early April was the aerial walkway at the Supertree Grove. The 128 metre walkway suspended some 22 metres above the ground, since named as the OCBC Skyway, offers a spectacular view of the gardens. OCBC which sponsors the OCBC Skyway also sponsors the “OCBC Light and Sound Show” – a light and sound show at the Supertree Grove. This will debut as one of the opening activities for Gardens by the Bay from 2 July 2012. The Bay South Gardens will open to the public from 29 June 2012.

The Cloud Forest and Supertree Grove as seen on a rain washed morning.

The Flower Dome seen from the OCBC Skyway.

The Cloud Forest.

Another view from the OCBC Skyway.

The Supertree Grove at dusk with the OCBC Skyway.

The view across the Dragonfly Lake at night.

Another view across the Dragonfly Lake.

A night time view of the Supertree Grove.

The Cloud Forest seen at night.

The OCBC Skyway.

The Bay South garden of the Gardens by the Bay will open to the public from 29 June 2012.