Talking Points
KAMPONG SPIRIT
To see the magic that ensues when art meets real life, head to Kampong Gelam and experience Southeast Asia’s first official graffiti Hall of Fame—a term urban artists use to refer to a walled space where they can paint freely. Except here, the walls refer to the 5m-high metal barriers of the construction sites for the North-South Corridor (slated for completion in 2026), which play canvas to the works of 17 Singapore-based artists, offering close to 240m of vibrant photo opportunities along Bali Lane and Ophir Road. Visitors can choose to take in the sights while in a vintage Vespa sidecar or whilst on a self-guided audio tour. For more information, visit hof.visitkamponggelam.com.sg.
WOVEN TALES
The next time you’re at Asian Civilisations Museum, be sure to pop over to its Fashion and Textiles Gallery, where Asian histories, cultures and identities are explored through fashion and textiles from the 18th to the 20th century, from Chinese painted silks to Indian printed cottons and Javanese batiks. This ongoing exhibition, titled “Fashionable in Asia”, comprises three main sections: Competing Threads, Batik Resistance and Creativity on the Pesisir. The first traces the history of fashion design and textile production in Asia, while the latter two chart the rise and evolution of batik.
From the worlds of Art, Culture, Travel and Design
PENN THIS DOWN
From 9 September till 22 December, Milan’s Cardi Gallery, in collaboration with The Irving Penn Foundation, is hosting “Irving Penn”, an exhibition that showcases the seminal photographer’s oeuvre from the 1940s to 1990s. Displaying all chapters of his artistic career, it counterpoints Penn’s world-famed fashion photography and celebrity portraits with his exploration of cultures and communities that exist on the fringes of modernised society. As befitting of an exhibition in Milan, the first floor of the gallery is dedicated to works relating to Italy. Visit cardigallery.com for more information.
RETRO CLICQ
Raise a flute for feel-good nostalgia with Veuve Clicquot’s latest Clicquot Tape releases. Housing the brand’s iconic Yellow Label cuvée are three new audio cassette-inspired boxes— complete with screws and teethed reels to seal the deal. Made of upcycled cellulose waste, they are 100 percent recyclable and compostable, and come with a QR code that leads to curated Spotify playlists to set the mood. Available at Market Place at Raffles City Shopping Centre and Tanglin Mall, and Cold Storage at Great World City, Jelita Shopping Centre, Plaza Singapura and Takashimaya.
PLATED SUMMER
Italian Piennolo tomatoes, Amalfi lemons and Sicilian green almonds are just some of the ingredients to expect from Buona Terra’s new menu, which is available till end September. Recalling long summer days spent by a lake in his home region of Lombardy, Resident Chef Denis Lucchi recreates the contemporary Italian restaurant’s signature Mozambique Langoustine with a tartare of Carmello tomatoes and Italian strawberries dusted with liquorice powder and finished with a light sea urchin sauce. The Kinmedai sees a meeting of cuisines with the deep-water fish grilled over binchotan (a special Japanese charcoal) and served with a flavour-packed fish and nduja (a spicy pork sausage from southern Italy) broth. And for comfort on a plate, turn to the elegant fusilli with French Bouchot mussels, heirloom tomato confit, and a potato and extra virgin olive oil emulsion topped with burnt lemon powder.
ANIMAL INSTINCTS
Walk on the wild side with chic animal-themed décor items that add personality and quirk to your living space.