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Want to have your own main-character moment? Give museum-hopping a go!
Who says museums have to be dry and stuffy? Whether it’s an outing with your friends or a date, museum outings are a great idea. They offer a unique experience and who doesn’t like feeling like a more cultured, refined version of themselves? Plus you get to support the local arts scene, which deserves more recognition!
Here are 4 museum exhibits you should check out for your museum-hopping trip!
Art Science Museum: MENTAL Colours of Wellbeing
You might have seen this Art Science Museum exhibition popping up on your TikTok feed. With its bright pops of colour and wholesome vibes, it’s not hard to see why MENTAL went viral on TikTok.
Featuring 24 interactive exhibits and large-scale installations, the exhibition aims to challenge the social biases and stigmas surrounding mental health. Treat yourself to a day of self-care and explore the groovy yet thought-provoking exhibits.
Museum Highlights: Wheel
You can’t taste the rainbow but you can walk on it! Aptly named, “Wheel” is an exhibit that features a giant rainbow wheel visitors can walk on. Don’t be fooled by its happy facade, “Wheel” encourages you to do something you dread — exercise.
Exercise has long been proven to improve mental health yet it’s something we avoid. A literal mood-booster, the exhibit encourages you to move and in turn, feel better. It’s a tough pill to swallow but “Wheel” sweetens it.
Museum Highlights: Mirror Ritual
Combining art with technology, “Mirror Ritual” features a mirror that scans your reflection and presents you with an AI-generated poem afterwards. It’s pretty in pink and pretty in teresting (forgive me).
Now that recess week is over and deadlines continue piling up, it’s easy to neglect your mental health. Go to the MENTAL exhibit to get a good break and experience a multicoloured sensory world.
Admission (SG & PR): $18 (Adult), $14 (Child)
Admission (Standard): $21 (Adult), $14 (Child)
Date: 3 Sep 2022 - 26 Feb 2023
Venue: Art Science Museum
Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum: Body Snatchers
While they’re known for their dinosaur fossils, the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) is anything but that. In the spirit of halloween, they have a new exhibition up their sleeves. The stars of the show are downright disgusting but morbidly fascinating. That’s right, it’s parasites!
Lit with a neon glow, Body Snatchers showcases parasites on land, water and air. In the exhibition’s eerie soundscape, you can’t help but feel your skin crawl as you imagine these creatures invading your body. On that terrifying note, here are some of the exhibition’s main highlights.
Museum Highlights: Tapeworms
Making up 70% of our bodies, water is life. It’s also the perfect vessel to transport parasites to their hosts. One of the most common parasites, tapeworms can grow in marine animals. By hatching their eggs in smaller organisms, the infection spreads when larger fishes consume them. If a contaminated fish is not properly prepared and consumed by an unlucky soul, they will be infected with tapeworms too.
But hey, in this rosy pink glow, parasites don’t seem so bad. As long as they stay out of your body.
Museum Highlights: Wall of Leeches
You can also check out the exhibit’s wall of leeches, where Nature’s vampires are neatly lined up for your scrutiny. Headlined after a 1987 horror-comedy, this exhibit features leeches of all sizes. They may be bloodsuckers but they’re nothing compared to your project groupmates! 😀
Once you’re done with this exhibition, you can get rid of the heebie-jeebies by gawking at the magnificent saurapod fossils!
A little tip: Every 30 minutes, there’ll be a mini lightshow at the saurapod section so keep a lookout for that if you plan to head down to the LKCNHM!
Admission (NUS Staff & Students): Free
Admission (SG & PR): $15 (Adult), $8 (Child/Student/Senior Citizen/NSF)
Admission (Standard): $20 (Adult), $12 (Child/Student/Senior Citizen)
House of Dreams: Barbie Exhibition
With over 600 barbie dolls, House of Dreams is Singapore’s biggest barbie display. Since its a temporary exhibition, it’s not really a museum but House of Dreams is still worth visiting ( and it’s free)!
All the dolls showcased in this exhibition belong to Jian Yang, a barbie doll collector who also happens to own more than 12,000 barbies — the second largest collection in the world.
A collaboration between Mattel and Jian Yang, House of Dreams showcases a diverse range of barbies. One of its biggest themes is red carpet fashion, with the collection showcasing intricate high-fashion outfits and dolls that were modelled after supermodels (Oh, how the tables have turned).
From Hogwarts to High School Musical, see if you can spot your favourite movie characters! Yes, they’re all in this together.
Beyond the silver screen, you can also spot some of pop culture’s most iconic personalities.
There are also barbies donning the outfits from local brands like Love, Bonito and Bynd Artisan. Made from upcycled dresses and paper bags from each brand, the doll’s outfits were all handmade by Jian Yang. From the dress’s layering and textures, the attention to detail is clear to see.
To learn a thing or two, you can also join the exhibition’s free workshops on paper coutour and makeup!
House of Dreams displays barbie dolls of all shapes, shades and sizes. With the dolls coming from all walks of life, the diverse collection demonstrates Barbie’s most timeless and enduring quality: you can be anything.
Admission: Free
Venue: ION Art gallery, L4, ION Orchard
Date: 20 Sep 2022 - 21 Oct 2022
Asian Civilisations Museum
Located in an iconic neoclassical style building, the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) is probably one of my favourite museums in Singapore. As its name suggests, ACM’s collection involve asian antiques that feature the rich history and stories from Asian civilisations. They boast one of Asia’s biggest collections, which is divided across three thematic floors — Maritime Trade, Faith & Belief and Materials & Design.
Museum Highlights: Cute Creations
While I expected to be bored by Maritime Trade, I stumbled upon this adorable piece. This cup may be thousands of years old but its cuteness has withstood the test of time.
You certainly wouldn’t expect a container from 300 BC to look like this. A vessel in the shape of a bull, this creation looks intense — intensely cute!
See if you can spot more unexpectedly cute creations when you explore the museum!
Museum Highlights: Ancient Religion
As a lover of mythology and folklore, the sculptures from ancient religions told stories and myths from a time gone by. I found myself deeply engrossed in this gallery as it was culturally diverse and while the sculptures were fascinating; I also fancied the idea of looking like a quiet intellect scrutinising ancient religious art.
Ultimately, what I loved most about ACM is how it lets you sample a rich buffet of Asian history and it’s one that’s bursting with flavours.
Admission (SG & PR): Free
Admission (Standard): $25
Venue: Asian Civilisations Museum
If you couldn't already tell, Singapore's museums are incredibly diverse. Give museum-hopping a go and you’d be surprised by what it has to offer!
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