Art can, arguably, be found anywhere — from the packaging of your favorite snack to the design of a well-worn couch. Art doesn’t have to appear only in frames in galleries and museums, or in heavy coffee table books. It can be in the eye of the beholder, or even just around the corner, in an unexpected street, a mural on a simple wall, a burst of surprising color as you zoom by on a motorbike or behind the wheel of a car.
At least, that’s the premise of a new video series on Instagram documenting the unexpected public art in and around Singapore. The host of the show zooms around on the back of a motorbike and records the murals and other public paintings in different parts of Singapore. The first of the series, which debuted online at the end of November, looks at the art offerings of the walls and streets of Little India.
Available online and made specifically for Instagram, the host first looks at a well-known mural depicting an ever day scene at a barbershop. However, the mural itself is special because it looks to preserve a culture fast in decline in the face of a modern age. A boy laughs as his friend waits to get his own hair cut in a traditional barbershop setting. The mural was painted in the spare time of an accountant who loved art. After he secured the permission to complete the painting, he gave his neighborhood a quaint scene that might have been typical if passing in front of a window of a place of business instead of a solid wall. Everything in this mural is true to life, including the proportions and perspective. At one point, the host of the video series squats down in front of a chair in the mural, and she looks like she, too, belongs in the barbershop scene.
As the first episode progresses, it shows a series of different mural scenes in snapshot, musical montage format. It’s understood that if the viewer follows this particular account on social media, these snapshots would be regularly available, including people posing and interacting with these special murals. Everything from shop scenes to realistic sleeping dogs are on hand for the viewer’s pleasure.
The host of the show also investigates alleyways in Little India, which host graffiti and restored, colorful buildings. Little India will be the site of an approaching art event centered on these pieces of art.
Explore all the forms art can take by enrolling in an art class today via SGArtClass.com. Learn about and participate in everything from mural art to graffiti art, including how to plan out and secure permission for your pieces. You can learn everything from techniques with traditional paint and brushes to how to use airbrushes and spray paints for more modern looks. Take art into the public space by taking an art class today.
To join in on the motorbike journey for art around the nation, go to http://news.asiaone.com/news/lifestyle/discovering-singapores-art-alleys-motorbike.
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