#uracentre

The Singapore City Gallery showcases the nation’s planning efforts and its physical transformation with 10 thematic areas and more than 50 audiovisual and interactive displays spanning three storeys. To celebrate the Architectural Heritage Awards 2015, a special exhibition is held at the foyer and I was lucky to take part in a tour of the exhibits conducted by the Director for Conservation Management.

The winners for this year’s Architectural Heritage Awards included 9 & 11 Empress Place (Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall), 1 St Andrew's Road (National Gallery Singapore),12,13 & 17 Rochester Park, and 66 Pheng Geck Avenue (Alkaff Mosque).

Here are some interesting snippets for each award winner:

1. 9 & 11 Empress Place (Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall)

- The plastic backing of the seats in the old theatre were used to decorate the lobby of the newly revamped theatre. In addition, the various metal parts of the old seats were used as various furnishings and sound proofing materials during the restoration of the theatre.

- As Singapore was a former British colony, the chijmes of the clock tower is the same as the one played by Big Ben in London.

- For a long time, the building was missing its crown atop the coffee dome. It was hypothesized that as the building was originally built in memory of Queen Victoria, the crown was removed by the British after Singapore gained independence in 1965. A new stylized crown was made and placed on top of the coffee dome to “complete” the building.

2. 1 St Andrew's Road (National Gallery Singapore) 

- When the building was first built, the mosaic tiles in the floors were originally made of rubber to support the thriving rubber production industry in the early days of Singapore. Unfortunately, the original tiles could no longer be used due to wear and tear, and they were replaced by modern tiles during the restoration.

- Most of the furnishings in the National Gallery Singapore were inherited from its former lives as the Supreme Court Building and City Hall. So take good care of them during your visits!

3. 12,13 & 17 Rochester Park

During the renovation of Rochester Park, landscape designers were specially brought in to design the park to be a natural habitat for modern work and play while retaining the original charm and character of the colonial buildings.

4. 66 Pheng Geck Avenue (Alkaff Mosque)

Surprisingly, it was revealed that Alkaff Mosque was originally grey in colour but it was painted in white and green over the years. After much deliberations, the restoration team decided to respect the expectations of the community and the “living heritage” of the building by preserving its current white and green colour scheme.

I had a great time at the Singapore City Gallery and I highly recommend it to everyone looking to find out more about Singapore and its heritage through the transformation of the city landscape. Admissions is free, and you can contact the gallery for tours of the exhibits for large groups of participants.

To find out more about the gallery, visit https://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/citygallery