In the spirit of the festive season, a heritage institution is adding some pop culture appeal to draw the masses.
Starting today, catch Iron Man and Captain America in opera costumes and Ronald McDonald and Colonel Sanders depicted in the style of ancient Chinese art at an outdoor exhibition and other festivities at the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall in the lead up to Lunar New Year on Feb. 1.
Blessings Come A-Knocking, an outdoor installation that runs through July, is a collaboration between the institution and Hong Kong artist Ng Tik Ka, aka Tik Ka From East, who combines contemporary pop and traditional elements.
The Eat Good West features a robed Ronald McDonald receiving burgers from a masked Hamburgler, and Colonel Sanders riding a giant rooster while carrying a bucket of his fried chicken. The Big War, on the other hand, shows Iron Man and Captain America decked out in traditional opera costumes.
Visitors can bring the works to life by scanning QR codes to move the characters to any background through Augmented Reality.
The exhibition is part of the hall’s 11th edition of the annual Wan Qing Festival of Spring which will run until Feb. 13 with more than 40 other digital and physical programs such as a special exhibition showcasing decorative woodblock prints known as Nian Hua, lion dance and festive drumming workshops, heritage trails, guided temple tours, lantern and red packet-making activities and online programs including a livestream of their annual lion dance performance and a traditional face-changing show.
While most of the activities are free, some are ticketed. More information can be found online.
The hall was built in 1901 and now commemorates the founding father of the Republic of China Sun Yat Sen and his contributions and activities in Southeast Asia as well as his impact in the 1911 Chinese Revolution on Singapore.
