This mural seems pretty new, probably done to commemorate SG50. I’m unable to get any pings online on this mural or the artist(s) responsible for it. The mural depicts scenes of the past in Jalan Besar, which includes New World Amusement Park, heritage shophouses and transportation mode of yesteryears. The mural extends to merge with imagery associated with Singapore’s national day parade, with a strong focus on depicting a strong army.
To me this mural is blatant propaganda, but it’s still nice to see something decorated on the walls of public housing, withstanding the content (Yup, I am partial to graffiti. If it looks good, why not?). Considering the mural is located near the offices of the ruling political party and its partisan grassroots organization, I am not surprised at all at the staunchly nationalistic content in the mural. It’s fascinating how if you were to look at the mural from left to right, what starts off innocently as a reflection of the past heritage of the neighborhood ends up an heroic ode to national solidarity. I’m not sure what sort of genre within propaganda art this mural falls under since it’s such a mishmash of ideas and intent. Regardless I am not surprised if a new genre will be created one day to describe the sort of government sanctioned art seen here. I guess there’s some validity to the tourism slogan “Uniquely Singapore”.
Picture taken with the Fujifilm X-T1 and the XF 23mm f/1.4R.