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Singapore Art Museum to undergo major facelift, will close for three years

The Singapore Art Museum will be undergoing a major facelift. (Photo: SAM)
The Singapore Art Museum will be undergoing a major facelift. (Photo: SAM)

The Singapore Art Museum (SAM) will be undergoing a major facelift. The main building has been closed since April 2017, when SAM first announced the revamp, which is slated to be completed only in 2021.

This is the first revamp since it officially opened as Singapore’s first art museum in January 1996. The facelift for the 10,000 sq m SAM building located along Bras Basah Road, is aimed at addressing the growing needs of contemporary art in Singapore and will focus on improving visitor experience, said a SAM spokesperson in response to queries from Yahoo Lifestyle Singapore.

The revamp is likely to cost around $90 million and the Singapore government is prepared to fund up to $80 million, with help from the Cultural Matching Fund. The remaining sum will be raised through sponsorship and donations.

When the revamp is completed, visitors can look forward to the creation of a fully contiguous museum, upgraded facilities and expanded museum-based learning spaces. These include creating double volume spaces for technologically demanding works and large-scale installations, said the SAM spokesperson.

An Instagram post by the Singapore Art Museum last weekend. (PHOTO: @singaporeartmuseum/ Instagram)
An Instagram post by the Singapore Art Museum last weekend. (PHOTO: @singaporeartmuseum/ Instagram)

In an Instagram post last weekend, SAM said that while the main building has been closed for a while, the Glass Hall and courtyards will still be opened for special public events, such as the recent Singapore Night Festival.

Active museum programming will still continue at the other SAM building, located at 8Q on Queen Street, throughout 2017. Other museums, institutions and community spaces will also be used from 2018 onwards.

New exhibitions are set to open in October and November, with details to be released at a later date. These were teased in a separate Instagram post by SAM, which told viewers to look out for news on the upcoming shows.

“Think! Contemporary, Yellow Ribbon Community Art Exhibition, and a few other surprises. Stay tuned!”, the post’s caption said.

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