Plug for International Museum Day 2012

A sign that I have not been keeping up with happenings in our heritage institutions, I was somehow taken aback to receive not one, but two emails from one external public relations company of NHB which reminded me that International Museum Day (IMD) is just around the corner this weekend. Do mark this date down, if you are an avid museum-goer, or if you are simply waiting for a free lunch from NHB, because IMD is an open house day for the 7 NHB museums, so visitors get to enjoy free admission to the exhibits.

I was told, from the email, that free admission on IMD applies to more than 10 museums. Though not explicitly stated, we have a rough idea of the museums from the list of participating museums and galleries.

Asian Civilisations Museum, Infocomm Experience Centre (iExperience), Memories at Old Ford Factory, National Museum of Singapore, National Library Board, Peranakan Museum, Police Heritage Centre, Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, Reflections at Bukit Chandu, Singapore Art Museum, Singapore Philatelic Museum, Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, The Changi Museum and YOG Gallery @ Sports Museum.

Some, like the Changi Museum and RMBR, are free admission all year round. There is one gallery, the Police Heritage Centre at the New Phoenix Park Police HQ, which I read visits are by appointment only. It will be interesting to find out how the centre handles visitors who foolishly turn up without any security clearance appointment this Saturday when opening hours are officially 10am to 1pm. Just joking. From this official website for sg museums, it appears that they have removed Police Heritage Centre from the list.

Official poster of IMD 2012. They have it in other languages too. See a brief of participating museums worldwide and their activities, including a perversion of Singapore to 'Singapour' here.

Since the purpose of this plug is to share what is in the email, I will paste the content verbatim here. Basically it has to do with an event at SAM @ 8Q this IMD which they call Ping Pong Go-Round.

The game of Ping Pong Go-Round (photo credit: Lee Wen Ping Pong Go-Round).

Saturday, 19 May 2012 is International Museum Day and we have a special treat in store for the young and young at heart!

From 5pm to 7pm at SAM @ 8Q, members of the public are invited to come play table tennis with some of Singapore’s most promising table-tennis athletes!

Singaporean contemporary artist Lee Wen has created an artwork entitled Ping Pong Go-Round where Sports and Art come together in the spirit of fun, creativity and community bonding.

Table tennis or Ping Pong is an Olympic sport that has been in existence for more than a century. A game with a minimum of two players, Ping Pong can be thought of as a dialogue between two players on opposite sides. Ping Pong Go-Round is an extension of this dialogue, inspired by commonly found large conference tables in offices of corporations and public institutions. By constructing a circular playing surface, Lee offers a different perception of its limitations and opens multiple possibilities for a broader dialogue. As opposed to its traditional, rectangular Ping Pong table, Ping Pong Go-Round is a donut-shaped table and enables a player to engage in a game (or dialogue) with as many players as possible, regardless of gender and age.

Come and pit your skills against the boys and girls from the Singapore Table Tennis Association ‘s Youth Development Squad as they take on a table that they themselves have never experienced before!

Ping Pong Go-Round with Table-Tennis Athletes from our Youth Development Squad
Date: 19 May 2012 (Sat)
Time: 5pm to 7pm
Venue: SAM @ 8Q
Ticketing info: Free admission
URL: http://www.museums.com.sg