Museums, heritage venues draw record 3.2 million visitors

SINGAPORE — Museums and heritage institutions drew a record number of visitors last year thanks to free museum admission for Singaporeans and Permanent Residents.

The latest Singapore Cultural Statistics report from the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth revealed total visitorship hit an all-time high of 3.2 million in 2013, up from 2.8 million the year before. It was attributed to the free admission policy implemented in May last year. Longer, major exhibitions like the four-month-long Singapore Biennale, which began in October last year, also ensured a consistent stream of visitors.

Meanwhile, community arts continued to be popular: The second edition of PAssionArts Movement by the People’s Association experienced a boom in attendance, with 100,000 residents taking part last year, up from 85,000 in 2012. It comprised 14,000 arts and culture events spread across 86 venues island-wide.

Younger people are also becoming more open to exploring a career in the arts, with a growing number of students in arts courses. The number of enrollees in full-time tertiary arts courses, such as in LASALLE College of the Arts and Nanyang Academy Of Fine Arts, rose from 4,492 in 2012 to 5,409 last year. Pre-tertiary School of The Arts also saw enrolment rise to 1,070 from 934 the year before.

Studying at SOTA has been an eye-opener for 18-year-old Year 6 theatre student Sharifah Selma Jafar Alkaff. “I was 12 years old when I auditioned for SOTA and did not think of theatre as one of my career options. However, studying here has developed my passion and appreciation for this art form. The opportunity to perform in plays has also helped me to learn about acting as a craft. I cannot imagine my life without it now,” she said.

The report also echoed findings regarding the drop in the number of ticketed performing arts activities by the recent National Population Survey on the Arts, which was released last week by the National Arts Council. It dropped to 3,006 last year, from 3,497 in 2012. Cited as reasons were the numerous and popular commercial arts shows at Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa that buoyed number of activities in 2011 and 2012 as well as the temporary hiatus of the Singapore International Festival of Arts last year.

There was an increase, however, in attendance for non-ticketed arts and culture events, most notably heritage events. Numbers rose from 5.1 million in 2012 to 5.7 million, due in large part to National Heritage Board’s popular annual big festivals such as the Singapore Night Festival and the Singapore HeritageFest.

Libraries were also a magnet for people, thanks to a rise in activities, such as performances and roadshows — from 8,514 in 2012 to 13,849 last year. 

Due mainly to the redevelopment of the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, and the ongoing development of the National Gallery Singapore — both key arts infrastructure spaces — government funding also rose from S$541.4 million in 2012 to S$677.3 million last year.

With SG50 just around the corner, one could expect even more arts and culture events to come.

Said Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong in a statement: “As we celebrate our Golden Jubilee, there will be more opportunities for Singaporeans to enjoy the arts through events like the SG Dance Day, Concerts in the Park, the Jubilee Walk, and a variety of trails and exhibitions.”

“We will continue to focus on offering exhibitions and programmes that people can relate to and identify with. We believe that museums and heritage events should be both educational and enjoyable, therefore, in 2015, our festivals and programmes will be taking on a new twist. For example, the Singapore HeritageFest will be twice as big next year, spreading across five weekends. At the same time, we will continue our close collaborations with communities on events such as the opening of the much anticipated Indian Heritage Centre,” said Tan Boon Hui, NHB Group Director of Programmes.