In a month when Singapore celebrates its 52nd birthday — and just after the Sungei Road Thieves Market shuttered for good — there’s an unmistakable whiff of nostalgia in the air. So if you’d like to continue down the path of reminiscing the old days, here’s a joint exhibition put together by local photographers Chia Aik Beng and Lau Eng Seng, documenting Rochor Centre and the former ‘Little Japan’.
In Mute, Chia presents a look at the erased history of Little Japan, which was the nickname for the area in Bugis from the 1860s to 1945. Documenting his encounters with the elderly Japanese who have memories of the place, he offers his personal take on Little Japan’s red-light district (where Bugis Junction is now), the plight of karayuki-sans (Japanese prostitutes), and his visits to the Japanese cemetery park in Singapore — the first major burial site for the young karayuki-sans.
In Till We Meet Again – What to Keep?, Lau Eng Seng showcases his years of documenting Rochor Centre, the development that’s been on Singaporeans’ hearts and minds since the announcement of its upcoming demolishment. Comprising 567 households, 187 shops and eating places, the 40-year-old estate will soon be torn down to make way for the new North-South Expressway. So to preserve a slice of history, Lau captured the process of residents packing up their lives and moving out of the complex.
Mute by Chia Aik Beng and Till We Meet Again – What to Keep? by Lau Eng Seng are on from Aug 17-27, Tue-Sat noon-7pm, Sun noon-4pm at Objectifs Lower Gallery. Free. Opening reception: Aug 17, 7pm.
