The National Museum of Singapore (NMS) is the country’s oldest museum, and houses the permanent Living Galleries and the Singapore History Gallery. In this entry, we shall only review the living galleries as the entire collection is rather extensive.
The NMS is a short jaunt from both the City Hall and Dhoby Ghaut MRT stations, and its unique colonial infrastructure is hard to miss.
The Living Galleries are situated on the second level of the museum. They are divided into 4 galleries: Film & Wayang, Photography, Food and Fashion. Interactive touchscreen consoles are also stationed at various parts of the galleries for those who want to know more. There are also complimentary brochures in various languages provided at each gallery, providing more information regarding the collections. It’s good to see that our museums are becoming more tourist-friendly.
Being Singaporeans, we felt inclined to first visit the Food Gallery. This gallery focuses much on the street food sold by hawkers during the 1950s through the 1970s. On display are our familiar favorites such as Laksa, Char Kway Teow, Nasi Lemak and Satay. It was fun to identify the tools used to make the kuehs and pastries that many of us love.
While we were there, we heard some elderly museum goers reminiscing about the food practices of their time. It seems quite apt to say that Singapore’s history is best told through our food.
The Fashion Gallery led us through the changing identities of Singaporean women from the 1950s to 1970s. Cheongsams and other apparel are displayed, along with cosmetics and beauty products from that era. In the 1950s, Singapore had a booming garment industry and to commemorate that, the central exhibition hall was retrofitted to look like the interior of an old garment factory. It was also nice to be able to feel the different fabrics on display.
We were happy to note that the Film and Wayang Gallery had a refreshing overhaul. When we were there over a year ago, the design of the gallery was rather outdated and much of the space was badly underutilized. Gone were the empty and gloomy red curtains, now filled with old movie posters, which enhanced the whole classical ambience.
The photography section however, was not much to talk about. We did not find anything of much interest in the gallery. Perhaps the collection paled in contrast to the previous three galleries.
These exhibits depict Singapore’s history through its food, fashion, film and photography. We highly recommend them to all locals and tourists alike. If you’re feeling thrifty, bear in mind that these galleries are open for complimentary viewing from 6-8pm daily. Students of Singapore, and National Service Men also enter free.
Information:
National Museum Of Singapore
93 Stamford Road
Singapore 178897
10:00am – 8:00pm, daily (last admission, 7:30pm)
free admission from 6pm – 8pm, daily
More information at
http://www.nationalmuseum.sg/Exhibition.aspx?id=15&cat=1
Muse@Singapore 