Riding the Henderson Wave (SG50) by Isabella Teng

Isabella Teng

Riding the Henderson Wave (SG50), 2015

large scale painting

2800 x 3200 cm

For Singapore’s 50th national day celebrations, I was commissioned to design and implement a community art project that involved creating a large-scale, 11-storey-high mural, to  be displayed on the facade of a public housing apartment in Telok Blangah.

I settled on the most recognised monument in the area, the Henderson Waves bridge, simplified its design, and included the Vanda Miss Joaquim (national flower) in the foreground. Colours and shapes were deliberately kept simple to be viewed easily from afar, with the idea of using optical colour mixing to achieve the final planned look.

I brought in a team of artists/assistants to prepare the initial canvas ground, and members of the Telok Blangah constituent were invited to join public painting sessions, contributing their own unique voices to this collaborative community piece.