Vision Tunnels is the name of the installation designed by Hong Kong architect Rocco Yim. Within its three “tunnels” are a selection of artworks loaned by galleries, most of which are conveniently located in Central. These artworks are hung up in the tunnels, and you have to look up to see them.

Salvador Dalí, L’oeil fleuri, 1944, Opera Gallery

The first artwork I encountered was Dalí’s. I found it strange yet fascinating; I just absolutely love this Surrealist work! The amount of detail is also notable, like the flowered eyelashes, the scratchy orange color on the stone eye, the contrasting texture between the eye and bricks – so brilliant to me.

Eric Baudart, Concave – Cuivre, 2015, Edouard Malingue Gallery

Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Portrait of Pierre Renoir a la Capeline, 1886, Opera Gallery

This is the second time I’ve seen Renoir, the first time at Singapore Pinacothèque de Paris. It’s in his signature light, fluffy style, and the painting comes with a gorgeous gold gilt frame. But I think that Renoir’s small portraits look too lightweight. Naturally, his renowned works seem to look much better, at least in digital images. I’ll like to view them for myself in real life one day and see if I might think differently.

Huang Rui, Dance of I Qing – Yao (1-32), 2015 (left), Dance of I Qing – Yao (33-64), 2015, 10 Chancery Lane Gallery

Tseng Kwong Chi, Hollywood Hills, California, 1979, Ben Brown Fine Arts

Coincidentally, I’d just seen this photograph in an art magazine a little while before I saw it in real life! Always feels good to encounter an artwork you’ve only seen as an image before.

Sir Peter Paul Rubens, Hercules and Omphale, early 1620s, Christie’s

I used to be pretty interested in Greek mythology when I was a kid, with their host of gods and goddesses and their classic stories. I didn’t realize how broad Greek mythology was (and how little I knew of it) until I started probing around the gazillions of Greek myths depicted in many European paintings of earlier centuries. I’ve no clue what’s going on in this painting, and I don’t know who Omphale is, though I’d heard of Hercules (thanks, Disney)… So a bit of research it is.

This mythological story is about the Greek god Hercules who had to atone for the murder of a friend, and does so by being lowered from his godly status and becoming a slave of Omphale, the queen of Lydia, an ancient kingdom located somewhere in present-day Turkey. Hercules was forced to do the bidding of Omphale, and he was involved in women’s work like spinning yarn/wool and would also wear women’s clothing. Omphale is often depicted wearing Hercules’s lion skin, while Hercules often holds a distaff or spindle, representing his work. While the story is originally about Hercules’s humiliating punishment, Renaissance and Baroque art took it as a representation of woman’s dominion over men. I assume that’s what Sir Peter Paul Rubens was also going for as he was a Flemish Baroque painter. In this painting, Omphale is the woman in red pulling on Hercules’s ear, who is surrounded by who I presume are Omphale’s maidens.

I’d happened to visit Vision Tunnels while there was a children’s painting workshop going on, and they were either painting after individual artworks or painting the Vision Tunnels. I found one young boy’s painting after Renoir so impressive I had to take a shot!

I really like the idea of viewing art within a mall, but I had one problem with this year’s installation. Most of the artworks were located within the Vision Tunnels, so I had to crane my neck to see them and it didn’t make for the best viewing experience. Reuben’s and Dalí’s paintings were best positioned at the ends of the tunnels and I could view them from a comfortable distance. I’d prefer it if all the artworks could be easily viewed without obstruction. It is interesting though how all the artworks are suspended from the ceiling without occupying any floor space and potentially disrupting shoppers! Probably only in Hong Kong would space be utilized so fully.

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Using sculptures as Singapore’s preferred form of public art is, to me, actually a great idea given Singapore’s wide spaces and greenery and its buildings’ shiny facades. The sculptures are mostly located in Singapore’s business and shopping areas, so they are planted perfectly along a tourist’s route! :D

| Cover picture: David Gerstein, Momentum, 2007, Raffles Quay |

So I decided to take a city tour, and see the sculptures on display. I started off my sculpture hunting with David Gerstein’s sculpture (above). I’d been driven past it so many times on numerous joyrides so it’s definitely familiar.

While looking for a spot to take a good shot, I discovered so many other sculptures at Raffles Place! I’d never found a reason to go into the business district, so the range of sculptures in the area were all completely new to me.

Yang Ying-Feng, Progress & Advancement, commissioned and presented by Lien Ying Chow on 8.8.1988

A sculpture tracking Singapore’s kampong past to the modern skyscaper views we have today.

Anish Kapoor, Ocean Financial Centre

Ocean Financial Centre

Jaume Plensa, Soul, 2011, painted stainless steel

An open sculpture of a seated figure with his knees brought to his chest and his arms wrapped around his legs. I’m not too keen on the sitting position, but I do love the Chinese characters, English and Malay letters and the Tamil words that make up the figure. It well represents Singapore’s linguistic diversity, and is very effective in catching your attention.

This is located at the back of Ocean Financial Centre, and you can see David Gerstein’s Momentum across the road from here.

Past the large green space at Raffles Place, there is Ocean Financial Centre. Beyond its sculptures around the building, it has a gorgeous triangle-paneled roof and also boasts a Guinness World Record for the world’s Largest Vertical Garden.

Golden Shoe

This is an exception, but this long colorful mural of people shopping and dining was too good not to share.

Salvador Dalí, Homage to Newton, 1985, bronze with dark patina, UOB Plaza

Seeing a work of Dalí on the street was an absolutely delightful surprise! He was an important player of the Surrealism movement that started in the 1920s. I’m not familiar with the period, but to summarize it simply, it played with ideas relating to the subconscious and the mind. To know more, do check out this essay on Surrealism at Met Museum.

Putting that aside, this sculpture pays homage to Sir Isaac Newton’s discovery of the law of gravity. The story goes that an apple fell on Newton’s head while he was sitting under an apple tree and then, Eureka! He discovered gravity. The falling apple is represented by the ball hanging from the right hand of the figure.

I like the detail of the ball in the figure’s chest though, because it looks like it represents the figure’s CG (center of gravity), HA!

One Raffles Place

Royal Group Building

Royal One Philip

Henry Moore, Large Reclining Figure, 1984, OCBC Centre

Fernando Botero, Bird, 1932, bronze, UOB Plaza

I don’t think I’m the only one who has walked along the streets of Clarke Quay and wondered what this large bird is doing smack dab beside the river. Turns out it’s part of UOB Plaza, and the bird is meant to signify peace and serenity. I find it funny how I never guessed it was Botero’s work either, as it’s in keeping with Botero’s voluptuous artworks. Bird has been around since 1990.

Auguste Rodin, The Thinker, 1902, OUE Bayfront

I’ve seen this for a while now and really, The Thinker is one of those artworks that is known everywhere. I was really excited this time to see it again because I’d just learned a bit about Rodin’s works in a class last semester, and also learned that The Thinker was made by Rodin himself. (I’d never heard of Rodin, but I knew of The Thinker, HAHAHA.)

Rodin was a sculptor of the Symbolism period that started in the 1880s. I don’t understand and/or like Symbolism and/or Symbolist artists in general, but Rodin is the exception for me. Rodin is brilliant at imbuing his sculpted figures with character and emotion, and showing the figures’ bodily tension using only the single material of bronze. This is something I always miss, but take a look again, and you’ll notice that The Thinker‘s right arm is bent on his left knee. His entire body also looks like it’s going in on itself, and he’s balancing on a small slab of stone, much too small to seat his large figure. In real life, it would be way uncomfortable.

Another thing is that Rodin liked to leave his sculptures looking unrefined. You can see how he worked the sculpture with his hands especially on the stone seat, and the figure definitely doesn’t look “perfect.” This could be said to be related to Symbolist themes, but I’m not good at talking about Symbolism, so do check out this essay on Symbolism at Met Museum.

Merlion Park

There’s a park called Merlion Park with a mini Merlion right behind the actual Merlion. This is so hilarious!

Roy Lichtenstein, Six Brushstrokes, 1997, aluminium, Roy Lichtenstein Sculpture Plaza, Millenia Walk

I’ve seen these sculptures so many times, but I never knew these were by Roy Lichtenstein of Pop Art fame! These last few works of Lichtenstein’s combine Chinese calligraphic techniques with Western artistic themes. I don’t really see it, to be honest; I always just thought they were colorful and fun.

ASEAN Sculpture Garden, Fort Canning Park

These sculptures are part of the ASEAN Sculpture Garden in Singapore’s iconic Fort Canning Park but I got scared away from exploring more because of mosquitoes. -.-

Green space opposite UE Square

Furama Riverfront Hotel

Ion Orchard

Kumari Nahappan, Nutmeg & Mace, 2009, bronze, Ion Orchard

Fun fact: Ion Orchard’s site used to be a nutmeg plantation!

Ion Orchard

Ion Orchard

Wei Chi Jing De, 1975, Hilton Hotel

Qiu Shu Bao, 1975, Hilton Hotel

These figures were generals of Emperor Tang Tai Zong in the Tang dynasty (618 CE) who were thought to possess special powers. They are seen as guardians of doorways in popular Chinese belief.

Anthony Poon, Sense Surround #4, 2006, painted aluminium, St. Regis Hotel

Li Chen, Dragon-Riding Bodhisattva, 2001, St. Regis Hotel

Dr. Ng Eng Teng, Mother & Child, beside Forum The Shopping Mall

Gramercy Park sales gallery, before Tomlinson Road

Gillman Barracks

Alocassia Apartments

Yayoi Kusama, Let’s Go to a Paradise of Glorious Tulips, 2009, mixed media, Orchard Central rooftop

I never thought I would see a piece by Yayoi Kusama, known for her polka-dotted works, for the first time in Singapore!

Victor Tan Wee Tar, The Stair, The Clouds and The Sky, 2009, stainless steel wires and rods, Orchard Central rooftop

Anish Kapoor, Sky Mirror, 2010, stainless steel, collection of Marina Bay Sands, lily pond outside of ArtScience Museum

UPDATE: Freshly viewed sculpture along the beautiful stretch outside the ArtScience Museum! Sky Mirror aptly reflects the sky, and a bit of the lotus design of ArtScience Museum.

There are so many sculptures on the streets of Singapore and I still have a few in mind that I haven’t got round to visiting yet. The biggest surprise for me was discovering artworks by renowned modern artists and popular contemporary artists that had long been sitting on the streets waiting to be discovered.

I will update this post when I do see more! In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed this post and have fun hunting them down for yourself if you’re in Singapore! ;)

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