Asian Civilisations Museum to unveil its riverfront entrance next month
SINGAPORE — Get ready to celebrate late into the night when the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) unveils its new look with an all-night showcase on Nov 14.
SINGAPORE — Get ready to celebrate late into the night when the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) unveils its new look with an all-night showcase on Nov 14.
Featuring a mix of concerts, museum tours and other free events, 24Hours@ACM will celebrate the completion of the first phase of the museum’s revamp, which will include an additional riverfront entrance and a newly constructed three-level wing.
The new riverfront space will include the Khoo Teck Puat Gallery, which will be dedicated to the museum’s Tang Shipwreck collection. It will also include two new restaurants: The casual-dining spot Prive Cafe@ACM, which opens on Oct 20, and fine-dining restaurant Empress At The ACM, which opens on Nov 14.
“We wanted to take advantage of our position,” said museum director Dr Alan Chong, who added that the open area fronting the Singapore River will be used for festivals and other special programmes.
The new three-storey Kwek Hong Png Wing will focus on objects and artefacts pertaining to Chinese scholars located on the second level, while its first level will be dedicated to contemporary art commissions.
The first work up is artist Eng Tow’s Grains Of Thought, a huge two-piece sculpture inspired by both the image of a rice grain and the museum’s porcelain artefacts and dark wood environs. The third level, which will house Chinese ceramic works, is scheduled to open in March next year, together with the re-opening of one of the museum’s permanent galleries.
The third and final phase, which is scheduled to be completed in 2017, will see the opening of more refurbished permanent galleries, as well as a new main lobby at the museum’s original entrance.
Meanwhile, as a teaser of sorts, a selection of new acquisitions and other highlights from the museum’s Islamic and South Asian art collections are currently on display at the its foyer.
The ongoing revamp, to the tune of S$25 million, is the second of three big museum facelifts and openings this year. It follows the opening of the National Museum of Singapore’s revamped permanent galleries last month, while the much-awaited National Gallery Singapore is scheduled to open on Nov 24.
Dr Chong described the ACM’s revamp as a “work-in-progress”. Aside from the additional spaces, its permanent galleries will be getting a thematic makeover. He also said that while the museum had previously presented Asian cultures — such as the Chinese, Indian, Malay and Islamic worlds — as distinct and separate from each other, the post-revamp permanent galleries will be examining how these cultures connect.
“It will take apart the idea that China is a single entity and displayed as a single culture, for example, and the same with Malay culture.”
One gallery, for instance, will look at the trading cultures across the board, while another will focus on religion and various beliefs. Aside from the permanent galleries, next year’s line-up of special exhibitions will include one dealing with Christianity in Asia and another on Asian port cities.
Prior to its 24-hour event next month, the museum also has other free special events lined up, including its annual River Nights showcase on Oct 23, 24, 30 and 31, and a Halloween-themed event on Oct 31. A red carpet fund-raising event for the museum will also be held on Nov 21.