I have been meaning to check out this exhibition at the Singapore National Museum since last week but only managed to get myself moving and off to the museum today. This is the second time in past year or so that I’ve stepped into the place (the first was to check out the ‘Greek Masterpieces from the Louvre‘ exhibition). Now I’m not exactly a very arty-farty person and I’ve always had this thought that people who visit museums must know something about the exhibits that they’re visiting so that they can look at the descriptions and nod knowingly. So I’ve always felt like a fraud the few times that I’ve been in museums and that one of these days someone in the museum will come up to me and escort me out just because I’ve no idea what I’m supposed to be thinking or appreciating.
But still, I found myself standing at the entrance to the exhibition, the orange and blue wall beckoning me with the words “Come-In“. Armed with my camera in hand, I stepped through the doorway into a world made by everyday objects. There was swivel chair that four people could sit on – which I thought was quite funny if it was used as a musical chair, whereby you do not walk around the chair but instead swivel it – another was this turnstile/security gate system that was made out of modules that you can switch around to create the ‘security door’ of your needs. This was quite nifty I must say.
Besides the (semi?) normal exhibits, the others ranged from whimsical – a really funky boat installation complete with a man made from fabric, boat mast covered in fabric and various German bric-brac – to those that encourage you to think much deeper into the meaning of the installation. Like the one in the photo below:
This was one of the main exhibits in the show, it was used as the promotion image (which made me curious to come to the exhibition). Titled “Hermann’s Doner Inn” by Claus Fottinger, the installation is actually set up to look like a mini-bar complete with stools, a counter, beer, TV, speakers etc. However there was a darker theme… the TV was showing clips taken from Hollywood movies that depicted violence, plus the all-too-familiar Golden Arches. Overlay that with photos of various food stores in Germany, you kinda wonder if the main message is that our current culture is filled with too much violence and commercial greed that old school, homely establishments are slowly being edged out?
Another one that made me stop and think is the one in the image that’s on the top of this post – “Do Not Disturb” by Erik Schmit. I especially like this particular piece because it’s so dramatic, the camoflage paint overlaid with the silver letters in stencil font on top of what seems to be a picture of a garden scene. Inviting colours yet screaming at you to stay away with the text, it was hard for me to step away and stop looking at it.
It wasn’t a very big exhibition and even though I only spent around half an hour in the gallery, I quite enjoyed the trip and it brought me back to my university days where art and discourse figured strongly in my thoughts. A good exhibition to take a look at if you have some time during the weekends (instead of going shopping at the mall) as it showcases different perspectives of people that live halfway around the world from us.
“Come-in: Interior Design as a Contemporary Art Medium in Germany” is on now till 12 April 2009 at the Exhibition Gallery 2 & The Canyon in the Singapore National Museum. Admission is free, 10am – 6pm daily.
Great design I must say. Looks really good. Germans appearently know how to design
Good post.