A guide to the National Gallery of Singapore

With so many museums and galleries to check out in Singapore, it can often be hard to choose which ones to visit. If you’ve only got time to see one, make it the National Gallery of Singapore. While its only been open since 2015, the Gallery contains one of the world’s largest collections of South East Asian art. What makes a visit to the National Gallery more significant though is its location. The Gallery occupies the old Singapore City Hall and Supreme Court, two of the most significant buildings in the city’s Colonial District. A visit to the Gallery is just as much about exploring these iconic structures as it is checking out the artworks within and its amazing just to see how the two distinct buildings have now been converted into an interconnected set of gallery wings.

The Basics:

• Where? 1 St Andrew’s Road, Singapore 178957
• When? Open daily: 10AM – 7PM Saturday – Thursday, 10AM – 9PM Fridays.
• How much? Free entry to Singapore residents, general admission for non-Singaporeans is $20 SGD.
• How to get there? The Gallery is a short walk from the Marina through the Colonial District. The closest MRT station is City Hall.
• Website: https://www.nationalgallery.sg/

Arriving at the National Gallery

The National Gallery of Singapore covers an area of 64,000 square metres, and making your way around can be a little confusing. When you come through the main entrance off St Andrew’s Road, you’ll be in the Pedang Atrium. This central lobby of sorts connects the City Hall and Supreme Court buildings, with bridges high above the Atrium linking the two wings of the museum on levels 3 and 4. The exterior walls of both buildings are preserved inside the Atrium and you can get a sense of the size of the structures as you stand between them.

From the Atrium, you’ll need to head down the elevator to the basement level on the City Hall side of the building. Here you’ll find the ticketing counter, where you can purchase your admission. You can also purchase tickets for special exhibits here. Once you’re admitted, you’re able to roam as you wish, but you might want to consider downloading an audio tour from the Gallery’s App. I found the ‘Building History Highlights’ tour to be incredibly insightful regarding the history of the structures you’ll be roaming around. As I said, the Gallery layout can be a bit confusing, so a tour can help orient yourself to make the most of your visit.

The amount of time you’ll want to spend at the National Gallery will vary depending on how much of an art enthusiast you are. Personally, I found an hour to be enough time to see the main sights and learn about the history behind the buildings that make up the National Gallery.

Not sure how to fit in a trip to the Gallery in your plans to Singapore? Check out my 3-day Singapore itinerary HERE.

Exploring City Hall

Start out your visit with City Hall, which makes up the Gallery’s northern wing. Designed by Samuel Meadows and Alexander Gordon, construction of City Hall finished in 1929 and the building served as the office of the Municipal Council of Singapore, the governing authority that provided amenities to the colony. Several key events in Singaporean history took place here, such as the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II and the proclamation of Singapore’s independence by the country’s first Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew in 1959.

The main foyer of City Hall contains an impressive marble staircase which leads up into the City Hall Chamber. Serving as the government meeting room, the Chamber was designed to be the grandest of all rooms in City Hall. Unfortunately, the Chamber was closed during my visit to the Gallery for renovation, so I wasn’t able to see it for myself.

While you’re making your way through City Hall, make sure you head up to level 6 and outside onto the Padang Deck. Named after the huge field opposite the Gallery, on this observation deck you’ll be rewarded with sweeping views across the Colonial District and out towards the Marina. If you’re in the mood for a drink, you can also stop by the Aura Sky Lounge while you’re up here.

The Artwork – DBS Singapore Gallery

The DBS Singapore Gallery is the main art exhibit in the City Hall wing. Located on level 2 of the building, here you’ll find the permanent collection entitled ‘Siapa Nama Kamu’ (Malay for ‘What is your name?’). This exhibit showcases an overview of Singaporean art from the 19th century to the present day. With almost 400 works on display, highlights include Xu Beichong’s Portrait of Lim Loh (1927) and Chua Mia Tee’s National Language Class (1959). I was really impressed by Tang Da Wu’s Tiger’s Whip, a mixed media work comprised of a tiger adaptation pushing a chair. The range of works in this part of the Gallery explore the practices and transformations of Singapore art.

Also forming part of the DBS collection is the Liu Kang Gallery. Commemorating the aforementioned artist’s contributions to modern art in Singapore, the late Kang’s wife donated over 1,000 works from his collection, marking the largest donation of a single artist’s work to the National Gallery.

Exploring the Supreme Court Building

The Supreme Court Building houses the second half of the National Gallery. This marvellous building served as the Supreme Court of Singapore until 2005, when it was relocated to larger premises nearby. This led to the old building being re-adapted to its current purpose.

To get to the Supreme Court wing from City Hall, cross the lower link bridge on level 3 to enter through the Chief Justice’s Office. This room, as well as the surrounding chambers and court rooms now make up the UOB South East Asia Gallery, the second permanent exhibition of the National Gallery. As you explore the chambers, you’ll notice the consistent design between the wood panelled chambers of the Chief Justice and the actual Court rooms.

While many of the court rooms have been redesigned to make way for the art on display, courtrooms 1 and 3 are preserved in a way that you can see the court as it appeared during its heyday. Numerous cases were decided in the courts of this building, including the Maria Hertogh case and the trial of Adrian Lim (learn more about them on the audio tour!). As you look around, take a moment to view the court from the perspective of the judge’s tribune. Also, look for the Prisoner’s Dock in Court Room 3 where you can see the trapdoor leading to the holding cells downstairs, through which defendants were brought to face their judgment.

Beyond the Court Rooms

There’s more to see than just the court rooms in this building. Surrounded by the tiled hallways from which the Courts branch off, is the circular Rotunda, which once served as the Supreme Court’s library, housing over 20,000 publications. You can get a closer look at the impressive dome above by heading up to the viewing chamber on level 5.

You should also make your way down to the Supreme Court Foyer on level 1 (yep, there’s a lot of back and forth around here!). This is the site of the Foundation Stone of the building, laid on 1 April 1937, which holds an interesting story in itself. While the stone sits directly underneath the main dome of the building, the stone holds its own secrets below. A time capsule was buried underneath and is set to be opened in the year 3000. Keeping with this theme, there’s a mini-capsule exhibit nearby where you can sit inside a makeshift room containing furniture and devices of the past.

The Artwork – UOB South East Asia Gallery

Housing the permanent exhibition entitled ‘Between Dreams & Declarations’, this collection examines the art and artistic context of the wider South East Asian region beyond Singapore since the 19th Century. Themes explored here focus on the constant changes to artistic expression in a way that balanced local traditions with modernity as time passed.

Exploring the artwork laid out around the court rooms, the imagery here serves as a meeting point of colonial powers and the major civilisations and religions of areas such as Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Significant pieces you can find here include Raden Saleh’s Boschbrand, Nguyen Gia Tri’s Landscape of Vietnam and Dancing Mutants by Hernando R Ocampo. Heading to the upper levels, don’t miss The Pleasure of Being, Crying, Dying and Eating recreation by Montien Boonma.

The Rest

While the above guide is probably going to keep you occupied if you only plan to spend an hour or so at the National Gallery, there’s a lot more to see here if you want to do so. The Gallery also hosts a series of temporary exhibits. While these are located all around both wings of the Gallery, major exhibits are usually found in the SingTel Gallery on the third floor of the City Hall wing. Some special exhibits will be included in your admission, so check them out if you have time, but others will require a separate ticket to be purchased. If you’re a big art lover, you’d be best to check the Gallery’s website prior to your trip and see if there’s anything you’re interested in seeing.

All up, I think you should make a quick visit to the National Gallery of Singapore when exploring the Marina and nearby Colonial District. I’m not an expert by any means, but I enjoyed my visit here, particularly due to the significance of the buildings that make up the Gallery. Set aside an hour or so and take the audio tour on the history of the building and I think you’ll have a good time. You might just see some interesting pieces of artwork along the way.