imaginarium: A Vovage of Big Ideas
{Media Invite}
We were invited to preview the Singapore Art Museum’s (SAM) new exhibit — Imaginarium, an annual contemporary art exhibition for children.
This is the fifth year that the museum has organized this event. The theme of Imaginarium stemmed from the crescent moon on the Singapore flag, “a symbol of a young nation on the rise with the capacity to dream big and think large. ”
We were slightly delayed at the Airport where we attended the launch of The Naturally New Zealand event. However, we were just in time to see the youngest member of the BAND OF DOODLERS doodle on the white wall of the museum observed by the Guest of Honour, Dr. Lily Neo, MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC.
And what do you know, it is my 9-year-old daughter’s classmate, Charmaine! What a lovely surprise! Here is the final product of her doodle for the “opening ceremony”. Isn’t it great?
There are lots fun interactive and immersive artworks to see and hands-on activities for the kids to try. Here is a list of them:
1) Imagin-a-doodle
Don’t race up the stairs! As you climb the stairs to the different levels of the museum, dawdle on each floor to check out the vividly animated scenes of the doodles by members of the Band of Doodlers. Let your imagination run as the sketched characters take you into fantasy worlds of folklores, tales and stories real, or imagined.
It’s a great place to play your own version of “Where’s Wally?” or “Spot the Character” with the kids.
2. Greenroom II: Interstellar Overdrive
My kids really this interactive exhibit, recommended for kids over 8 years old. There are four stations for the visitors to experience. Each experience comes with a bicycle which the visitors need to get on and pedal to see the artwork. For example, this one below which my son is on. The stereo is powered by my son’s pedalling of the bicycle. He had to pedal at a consistent speed to generate music.
“This work prompts us to think of how our future cities might be powered, and how this might change our lives,” said the artist Vincent Twardzik Ching.
Then, there is this one which my daughter is on. As s pedals, we can see the constellation of stars across screen. The stars disappear as soon as she stops pedalling.
There is another one that makes reference to the solar energy and one other that alludes to cooperation to achieve balance and harmony. Your older kids will like this one.
3. Kiko’s Scecrets
This is another exhibit which my kids like. The Artist KumKum Fernando invites you to broaden your minds by entering the magical worlds hidden within three secret boxes and beyond. My daughter immediately zoomed in on this puzzle wall. There are boxes in front of this wall filled with puzzle pieces. You have to try and place the piece in its correct space on the wall. Some pieces are quite similar in shapes and sizes. It is a fun wall to occupy your little ones’ hands and helps with their spatial development too.
My son heads out to explore the three secret boxes. In the first box, he found windows which opened to these!
In a second box, he discovered eggs!
And in the third box, also possibly the kids favourite because it glows in the dark!
View these art pieces through the kaleidoscope provided. It gives you different perspectives.
4. Dream House
This exhibition reminded us a little of the Candied Witch House in the Hansel and Greta story. Artist Lee JeeYoung presents these sweet treats as symbols of a child’s wishes and desires. She filled the house with candies and invites visitors to take and ‘plant’ in a garden.
Apart from great photographic opportunities and the hanging of sweets on the tree, there wasn’t much to do for the kids. You are limited to hang two sweets in the garden.
5. Let’s Make! Studio
This space served as a nice rest-stop after all the other exhibitions. My daughter wanted to try the weaving. My son wasn’t too interested in the exhibition, so he retired to the back of the room where a yellow reading area was situated to read.
Artist Izziyana Suhaimi idea of this exhibition was to invite visitors to create small objects using textiles through weaving, embroidery and pom poms, which overtime becomes a collective tapestry of dreams weaving together a shared future. Kids who love arts and crafts will enjoy this exhibition.
6. We Built This Estate!
This is a fun room for your toddlers and preschoolers to run around in. This world invites children to be architects, builders and master-planners of their own housing estate and city skyline. Located on the first floor, there is even a “parking” station for your prams.
7. The Original Selfie Machine
Before Selfies on the mobile phones, there was the old-fashioned bulky machine that takes our photos for $2 and spits out a strip of photos like this:
We got ours from SAM for just $2, you get a black-and-white and coloured strip. They are great for memories. The original Selfie Machine is located on the first floor near the entrance/exit. As we were leaving, we saw a photo booth set up just for the day. So, we took more photos to commemorate this awesome preview.
Thank you CRIB for the invitation to the preview. CRIB is a social enterprise that empowers women to become successful entrepreneurs through networking, matchmaking and business incubation.
imaginarium — A Vovage of Big Ideas
Date:
14 March — 19 July 2015
Venue:
8Q at SAM
Opening Hours:
Mondays to Sundays — 10am to 7pm │Fridays — 10am to 9pm
Admission:
FREE for Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents,
$10 for Foreign Visitors
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Till our next post, love yourself, love one another.
