Love Me Love Me Not at the Singapore History Museum

Posted by shaun wong under Exhibitions
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It was indeed a nice nostalgic trip, as we explored the icons and identities of Singapore at this exhibition.

I was greeted at the entrance by a series of videos which showcased a series of short clips titled ‘The Way We Were’. Comissioned for NDP 2005 and produced by Temasek Polytechnic, these clips comprised a montage of video images of 1950s-60s Singapore interspersed with narrative captions. My favourites among these clips include Chinatown, Life on a farm and Kelongs.

When I was asking for directions to the exhibition space, the kindly staff commented, “There over, there, like emporium like that.”

Emporium, now that’s a word that was used prevalently to describe shopping centres in the 80s, before the likes of megaplexes like Ngee Ann City and Suntec City today.

So it seemed that nostalgia was clearly on the cards for the day.

The exhibition proper is made up of five main themes which showcases the kitschy side of Singaporean culture we’ve all come to know and love.

Love Me Love My Stuff
Love Me Build Me
Love Me Obey Me
Love Me Make Me Rich
Love Me Visit Me

Love Me Love My Stuff = Singaporeans who take collecting as a serious hobby

The collectibles in question?

Two things came to mind.

1. My heartiest congratulations to Mdm Pang Kim Fah, Ms Merlin Ng and Mrs Maylyn Bollow on getting to showcase their collections in a national museum.

2. How cool is it to have your own beloved collection showcased in a national museum?

The 21 inch wedding Hello Kitties were a sight definitely eye-catching, while the Hello Kitty curtain holder and plush doll speakers were a bit baffling…

There was a stark reminder of how crazy Singaporeans can get over collectibles mounted on a panel. Remember the McDonald’s outlet’s glass panel collapsing? Yup, that incident. Did I think they were crazy? No. As a toy collector myself, I know how bad it can get. I seen collectors stop short of murder to get the stuff they want. Really.

I identified with the pride they must experience be able to showcase their collections to a wide audience, being a collector myself.

Love Me Build Me = Singapore’s Iconic buildings

This section of the exhibition features prominent Singaporean buildings and their origins, including the Supreme Court, Singapore Swimming Club, the National Theatre and Tangs Plaza. The interactive activity gets visitors to construct their own interpretation of their own iconic building of Singapore.

Love Me Obey Me = Singapore’s National Campaigns

The cheesiness of Singapore National Campaign mascots Singa the Lion and Teamy the Bee induced a strong bout of goosepimples. Used in courtesy and productivity campaigns in the past, these mascots certainly made the messages more consumer-friendly then. The videos of the ‘vintage’ productivity campaigns were a hoot! I was particularly tickled by Come On Singapore, where chefs, hotel staff, welders, factory workers, and a Phua Chu Kang mechanic lookalike were headbanging to the lyrics, “We have a plan! We have a plan!”

While wandering along the Courtesy corridor, where reproductions of previous courtesy campaign banners lined the walls, my ears picked up lyrics which were worded to the melody of pop songs. For example, the chorus of “C’mon everyone, let’s join our hands, cos we’ll build our own paradise, where there’s courtesy, that’s my kind of world.” was sung to the certain pop group’s song titled ‘Sleeping Child’. Brutal.

Love Me Make Me Rich = Singaporeans’ Lucky Charms

I was overwhelmed by the wall of Japanese Fortune Cats (Maneki Neko) of alternating white and gold.

Fortune icons and lucky charms of the various races and religions in Singapore are featured here. The highlight of this section for me was the Hokkien narrative an unseen taxi driver, who cruised through the streets of Singapore, with an exceptionally wide array of lucky charms adorning his dashboard.

Love Me Visit Me = Singapore’s Places of Interest

The last section of the exhibition closed with must-see places in Singapore. And of course, there’s no better way for tourists to get here than via Singapore’s very own airlines, where lovely Singapore Girls abound. I especially liked the Bruce Springsteen-esque vocals from the 1987 Singapore Airlines ad, which was part of the video compilation of the evolution of the Singapore Girl.

The finishing touch to the exhibition came in the form of a low table laden with Singapore memorabilla, a personalised postcard to the reader and an album full of postcards of heritage and tourist sites.

On my way out, I said goodbye to the largest collection of Merlion souvenirs I’ve ever laid eyes upon