Appreciating and Understanding Art @ Singapore Pinacothèque De Paris

Appreciating and Understanding @ Singapore Pinacothèque De Paris

Do you love art? Have you heard of this place - Pinacothèque De Paris? Read on to find out what this place is all about. 

While my children and I love creating art, we love learning about art work as well. Previously, I have only introduced some famous art pieces to the children. I told the children the story behind each art piece and they love the art and its history.

We also have plans to travel to the different parts of the world to see the masterpieces of some famous artists such as Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock. 

But now, with the opening of Pinacothèque De Paris in Singapore, we need not travel the world to see the masterpieces. This private fine arts museum is newly opened in Singapore in May 2015.

Located in Fort Canning Park, it is just a short walk from carpark B. As it was our first visit to the place, we did not expect much. Little did we know that we are going to have an awesome afternoon, appreciating art and have fun creating our very own art pieces. 

The first thing that caught Natalie's attention was this interactive art wall. 

The child can learn about the art piece and its history by simply tabbing on the icons. This interactive wall invites the child to learn about the art pieces in a fun and engaging way.

 Even as an adult, I learnt something new. I didn't know that Cleopatra was Greek. I'm sure my children would spend a long time at this interactive wall during our next visit. 

The Collections Gallery

In the collection gallery, there are 40 rarely seen masterpieces on permanent display. What I found most special about this gallery is that the exhibition is curated not by geography, nor by artists but by theme/similarity between the masterpieces. 

For example, can you figure out why the 2 art pieces below are placed side by side? Can you see its similarities and differences? The whole experience is so unique for me. Being History trained, I often have to teach my students to analyze the similarities and differences between 2 sources. And now, I can apply what I have been trained for, on these art pieces. Quite exciting for me. 

Portrait of Mario Dircksdr. Bagaert 1670
Artist: Gerbrand van den EECKHOUT

Suzanne with Sunflowers 1890
Artist: Claude Monet

Moreover, the gallery is very spacious and it makes viewing very comfortable for the visitors. 

Going on the tour makes the whole experience very meaningful as the tour guide would tell us about the history of each art piece and highlights the different aspects of the art pieces to us. The guide engages the children by questioning them about what they can observe from the masterpieces before telling them more about they have pointed out and more about the art pieces. Therefore, it was truly an afternoon of art and history.

Visual images of early Singapore and Fort Canning can be viewed along this corridor (as seen below).
  

Interesting enough, while in university, I learnt that one of the main reason why the British picked Fort Canning to be the Government Hill is because it overlooks both the Singapore River and Chinatown at the same time. In this case, the British felt that they could see what the activities of the Chinese in Chinatown and at the Singapore River. Thus, giving them more control over the area.

Point of View of Singapore River and Chinatown from Government Hill. 

There is also a features gallery where there will be rotating feature exhibitions. The current exhibition-  " The Myth of Cleopatra" will be here until 4 October 2015.  

 The Art Academy

The art academy is the museum's educational nexus. Keen artists can attend its programme at the art studio. The art studio is very spacious. 

Natalie has never attend any art lesson because I wanted her to develop her own style and let her creativity run. I am always very concerned that by attending art lessons, it may kill her creativity as some teachers may tend to teach too much and Natalie may just end up copying the art. However, at Pinacothèque De Paris Art Academy, teacher Michelle was extraordinary. She didn't "teach" them art at all. The term "teach" here means to demonstrate and then to get the kids to follow. Instead, she encouraged their creativity by simply giving them the tools and materials and told them to go explore. I was seriously pleasantly surprised. 

The different brushes available for the children to use. 

Different materials (coloured sand, crystals, paints) for the children to explore.

Nobody told the children what to paint. The instruction was " go ahead and explore". Amazing. 

After experimenting with all the different kinds of brushes, Natalie decided to explore with her fingers. From her expression, you can surely tell that she had fun. 

 Next, they were told to tear up some coloured papers and to make a face out of it. They are allowed to use the paintings that they have done previously. 

 This is Natalie's final product. After finishing her art piece, Natalie went to ask teacher Michelle: " How many faces can you see?" 

Well, how many can you see?

The next thing, Natalie turned her art work to portrait and then, to our surprise, there is a face of women with a dolphin hat. Well, she didn't plan for her art work to have such effect from the beginning. As she went along, she discovered this. 

A photography with teacher Michelle. 

La Boutique Pinacothèque

Before leaving the museum, we visited La Boutique where many interesting art materials, books and even toys are on sale. Parents can purchase art materials (such as paint a suncatcher)  for their children to play/paint on the spot while parents shop in peace. 

Children can seat at this table to play/paint with their purchased art material.

It was truly an ecstatic experience at Pinacothèque De Paris. At Pinacothèque De Paris, you can appreciate masterpieces and at the same time, create your very own art. 

Quote " Raising Our Successful Children" to enjoy special discount. 

1. 20% off individual sessions 

(cannot be combined with early bird special and 10-week package)

Want to try out a session at the art academy? Quote "Raising Our Successful Children" and pay only 

• $38.40 (U.P $48) for a studio experience
•  $54.40 (U.P. $68) for Lectures

If you are signing up for a child and you are the accompanying adult, you only need to pay for the participant. 

2. 20% off Family Package Session 

(cannot be combined with early bird special and 10-week package)

•  Special Studio classes for families or for parents with young children can be customised and arranged (for a minimum of four participants) on application.

• $48 per pax, 90min, with customised time slot and activities.

The promotion is valid for all sessions before 13 October 2015.

Each class sign up will include an all-day access ticket to visit Singapore Pinacothèque de Paris, which can be used within 3 months of purchased session.

For more information, 
visit Singapore Pinacothèque De Paris(official Website)  
or email them at learn@pinacotheque.com.sg 

Don't miss the promotion. Check it out today and plan your visit to Singapore Pinacothèque de Paris. 


Visitor Information: 

Address: 5 Cox Terrace, Singapore 179620 ( Inside Fort Canning, Carpark B)

Telephone: +65 6883 1588

I hope you will enjoy your trip there as much as I did. 

Read about Bumble Bee Mum's experience at Pinacothèque de Paris. Her little one (2 yr old) enjoyed himself as much as my 8 year old. The programme is suitable for children of all ages. 


So, visit today and remember to quote " Raising Our Successful Children". 

SingaPlorers (SG50) - The Card Game on Singapore's Nation Building

SingaPlorers, the card game on Singapore's Nation Building was launched on 11 July 2015. 

It was really an honor to have: 

Ms Low Yen Ling 

(Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Social and Family Development & Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth and Mayor, South West District)

Dr Chua Chee Lay

Senior Adviser

Harry Susilo Institute for Ethnics in a Global Economy

School of Management, Boston University, US

Mr Ng Boon Seng

Director(Integration)/Co-ordinator(Inter-Ethnic Engagement) [ People's Association]

to launch the SingaPlorers game for us. 

Being the Chief Game Architect of the game, I conceptualised the game, researched and developed the content and the activity booklet that came along with it. However, this game will not be possible without the support of Seedling Hut and its owner, Ms Woo Li Fong and Ms Rachel Kou. They put in alot of effort and time to produce this game. I am thankful to have met these two beautiful ladies and to have this opportunity to work with them on this project. It is truly my honor. 

SingaPlorers as a game is first of its kind as its main objective is to model Singapore’s nation building story from 1965 to 2015 where Singaporeans united together as one,  overcome the challenges over time and in the process learn about notable personalities who contributed to Singapore’s early growth, the roots of historical places and national icons and also key events that demonstrated how Singaporeans have rallied together to harness opportunities and overcome challenges.

It is a cooperative game where the players have to play cards to support each other in overcoming the challenges that Singapore faces. In playing the game, the players will experience working cooperatively, negotiating or even sometimes have to make small sacrifices to overcome the constant challenges and work together towards achieving peace and progress in Singapore.

The game will focus on these 4 main challenges:

1. Building a national identity and fostering social cohesion
2. Safeguarding our homeland through defence and security
3. Declining and aging population
4. Limited resources

SingaPlorers aims to help players to understand that the success behind Singapore is a result of the constant work and cooperation of all Singaporeans. Also, in playing SingaPlorers, players will see the cause and effects of events or policies Singapore have adopted. Players will learn about Singapore’s past, present and challenges we face in a fun and engaging way. Players might also experience the effects of uncooperative play and find out for themselves what would happen to Singapore as a result.

This game gives visual and kinaesthetic learners a golden opportunity to learn about Singapore’s history within a short playing time span. This is a powerful teaching tool as the game supports self-directed learning in the aspect of Character and Citizenship Education. 

Personally, I strongly believe that our young must learn and know about Singapore. They must know the interconnections within the society. 

I have taught many students during my teaching career. But to me, my contribution is not enough. Even though I've made a decision to be a stay-at-home-mum for now to look after my children, it doesn't mean that I stop contributing. I want to continue contributing and making an impact. 

My family is very honoured to be invited by Ms Low for a photograph.

I have been looking for opportunity to contribute. The opportunity finally came when a friend rang me up one day and ask if I was interested to develop a game as part of the SG50 effort. Without hesitation, I agreed. Today, I am honored and proud to present the game - SingaPlorers( official website). In addition, I've designed an activity booklet together with the game so that children can learn more about the history, cultures and challenges of Singapore. For young children who are unable to play the game, there are many suitable and fun activities in the booklet for them to learn through play. The booklet will be made available soon. The game can be  downloaded, free online for a limited period. So download it now. I hope that through this project, many more people from all ages can learn about Singapore through this interactive, fun and engaging game. 


Click here to download. 

Many people trying out the game during the launch. 

Reading the content seriously and the facilitator explaining the card content.  

The children had fun playing the game. 

It is a great opportunity for people of different background and races to sit together and discuss how to overcome the challenges Singapore faces together. 

Even the elderly wanted to have a go at the game and they have a lot of stories to tell because most of them have lived through the events on the cards.

Ms Low Yen Ling, together with Dr Chua Chee Lay playing the game together.

Lastly, I sincerely encourage parents and educators to use this set of resources to play with their children/students and learn with them about the history, culture and the challenges face by Singapore and how we can overcome them together as Singaporeans. Let's do our part to help our children to 

Know the past,

Cherish the present,

Create the future.

Play with your family today.

This game is useful for children taking Primary School Social Studies, Lower Secondary History and Upper Secondary Social Studies. 

Sample of Challenge Cards: 

Sample of Resource Cards:

Email me at hoqianwen@gmail.com for training purposes/ development of games or how to play SingaPlorers. 

The passing of our Founding Father, Mr Lee Kuan Yew

It was an emotional week for Singapore in March 2015 with the passing of our founding father, Mr Lee Kuan Yew. Although my children were only 3, 6 and 8, it was important for them to know about this historical event. I sat them down, talk to them about this person named Mr Lee Kuan Yew and about his contribution to Singapore. Next, I ask how they can show appreciation of what he has done and the children's reply was simple - they want to draw for him. Hence, the following drawings were produced. 

In the art piece above, the children wanted to show how Mr Lee Kuan Yew transformed Singapore from a third to a first world country. Eventually, they inviting their grandparents to write their words of gratitude on it before presenting it to Mr Lee Kuan Yew as a tribute at the Community Tribute Centre. In the end, I finished the art piece with the words " Our 3 generations thank you."

In addition, for the 2 older children, they wanted to use words to express their thoughts. 

By Emmanuel

By Natalie

Like many other Singaporeans, we went to the Parliament House together with our children. We queued for some time and eventually as the queue was too long, we decided to just pay our respect outside the Parliament House. To us, it is important that our children see for themselves the deep respect Singaporeans have for Mr Lee. The mountain of people and their patience to queue for hours just to pay respect to our founding father will become a memorable experience. For once, the silent Singapore  majority came together and through their actions proved that they greatly appreciate what Mr Lee Kuan Yew has done for us. 

Finally, we bid Mr Lee Kuan Yew goodbye. 

 Our children may not understand it now, but they will, in the future. 


Lastly, I wrote a letter to my children so that one day, they can read this and understand. 

You are 3,6 and 8 this year. You may know the name Mr Lee Kuan Yew but you don't know what it means. You are happily watching television and living your day as normal as any other day. totally oblivious to the passing of our founding father. Little do you know, the person who made it possible for you to live your life in peace and security, now lies peaceful and may rest at last. He worked hard all his life to build this country, Singapore. All the housing you see, the cleanliness of the streets, the roads, the gardens, the MRT, the healthcare, your education and the peace and security - all these will not be without him. He is our founding father, our first Prime Minister - Mr Lee Kuan Yew. When we got ousted from Malaysia, people think Singapore won't make it, but we did. We did not only survive, we are prospering and shining on international stage. 50 years ago, he cried for our country. Now our nation cries for him. He built a nation where we are proud to be called Singaporeans. He built a country where we call our home. 

His passing marks a beginning to a new era. Now, let us play our part to continue his work. I will play my part as a mother to raise you up and equip you with the skills to overcome challenges for Singapore in the future, for you are our future leaders. I'm sure all mothers would do the same for their children. As for your father, he plays another great role in soceity where he commits his life to educating 17, 18 years old and help them develop their full potential so that they can take their place in Singapore. 

Mr Lee Kuan Yew had said: " I have no regrets.. I have done all I can.."

Yes, I agree, he has done his part in laying the strong foundation for us. Let us now play our part to continue building this nation. and always remember:

" Because he lived, we can have tomorrow." 

 So appreciate his life contribution, cherish what we have presently and build a better tomorrow.

Written on 23 March 2015 

9.36pm