Not everyones cup of tea. Not a traditional art gallery. If you enjoy videos of snails being boiled in water for a meal then give it a go. Personally I think there are much better places to see 'art' in Singapore than here.

Gillman Barracks is a beautiful heritage site built on a hill, way back in 1936 when Singapore was still a British colony. It housed the British Army then, complete with married quarters for the officers, sports facilities, cinema and even a swimming pool. The conserved colonial barracks has now transformed into a fabulous art cluster with 10 local and international galleries. The artwork here changes regularly, and combined with the eateries and lovely ambience, it makes a place that can be visited many times over. During the Friends of the Museum tour at the Barracks, we visited 4 galleries. The first gallery was called “Some Deaths Can’t Be Buried” by solo Thai artist Thasnai Sethaseree. This gallery was all about the political disagreements in Thailand, and how Thai culture was hidden and forgotten in the continuous battle for power. Each artwork is made on Buddhist monk robes that are mounted on a frame, representing the hiding of culture, and the loss of peace in order to gain money, power, and influence. One such untitled artwork is a reflection on the killing of 99 Thai citizens by soldiers in 2011 during protests. Thasnai Sethaseree describes his work as “super large, super saturated, super intense, and super overwhelming,” and according to our docent, it “feels like an archeological dig” just to break the artwork down, and identify all the symbols, themes, and deeper meanings. The second art gallery we visited was called “Sullivant + Strumpf” by different artists from Asia and Australia. The concept of this gallery was “elevating and uplifting the status of everyday objects by adding meaning to them”. This was seen throughout the gallery, in the form of a shelf filled with different sized, colored marbles, with the hilarious caption saying “No Point Losing These”, or the subtle painting on tote bags by Kanchana Gupta. From the plates that depict conflict to the aboriginalia printed on playing cards, “Sullivant + Strumpf” can truly be described as a “Museum of Days” and was developed to exchange cultural ideas. This gallery is a must-see when visiting the Gillman Barracks. Thirdly, we visited a gallery by Miya Ando, an artist who focused on the Japanese elements of fleeting identity and ephemeral change. She portrayed this through her art made from all aluminum. She used gradients to represent landscapes, especially the horizon and sky. Her art is soft and subtle, with nuanced hues. Each artwork has been layered many times over to blend each shade carefully. Ando’s art can be described as “entrancing” and “meditative”. This solo gallery is a one-of-a-kind. The last gallery we visited was built where the British army learned to build bridges. In its place, now stands the “FOST Gallery” made by Zul Mahmod. The “FOST Gallery” labeled “No Substance” is about the individuality of humans, and how machines cannot replace us. The gallery is filled with sound art, made from beakers and other science equipment that makes noises at the push of a button. This eccentric art was a great ending to an amazing tour. In summation, we had an extremely informative and interesting experience, thanks to the tour set up by Friends of the Museum. Each of the 4 galleries we visited was detailed well, and the docent was knowledgeable. The tour has inspired me to go back to Gillman Barracks and visit the other 6 galleries. This tour exposes you to a significant part of Singapore history and is definitely recommended for all Friends of the Museum members. Some Interesting quotes by the Friends of the Museum Guide: “Look at the art through a lens, appreciating history, memories, place, space, and time.” “Finding the meaning of each artwork almost feels like an Archeological dig.”

We went to Gilman Barracks because I had been stationed there 52 years previously when I was a Royal Engineer. It is now an arts centre and there was a lot of fascinating local and international art on display. The main problem for us was that it is not well served by the MRT or buses and once there, the singage is poor, much of it is closed and shabby looking. A missed opportunity by the Culture ministry to combine a history/arts venue. The barracks have been occupied by British, Japanese and Singaporean soldiers since 1935 and thet is a story worth telling.