Let’s Imagine the World Together: Art in Southeast Asia runs at National Gallery Singapore from 5 November 2026 to 26 September 2027. Go to the Level 4 Gallery in the City Hall Wing. You need General Admission, which is free for Singapore citizens and permanent residents. Standard General Admission is S$20 before applicable concessions.
The exhibition brings together works by artists including Raden Saleh, Juan Luna and Basoeki Abdullah, with activities that give first-time visitors a way to look closely. A family can pick up an Imagination Bag, examine a tactile interpretation of Raden Saleh’s Forest Fire, and contribute to a shared landscape. You can also spend the whole visit with a few works and a contemplative audio guide.
- 5 November 2026 to 26 September 2027.
- Level 4 Gallery, City Hall Wing, National Gallery Singapore.
- General Admission is free for Singapore citizens and permanent residents. Standard General Admission is S$20 before applicable concessions.
- Look for the Imagination Bag, audio experiences, co-creation wall and Imagination Lounge.
- Nearest MRT listed by the Gallery is City Hall (NS25/EW13).
Plan your visit
Admission at a glance · Start planning · Common questions
Read the guide by section
- Tickets and General Admission
- Getting to the Level 4 Gallery
- What the exhibition explores
- Imagination Bag, audio guide and co-creation wall
- A 35-minute, one-hour or longer visit
- Other featured works to look for
- Use the brochure, translations and access advisory
- A small project to continue after the visit
- Look at a setting as carefully as a sitter
- Frequently asked questions
Admission at a glance
| Ticket type | Who it applies to | Price or verification |
|---|---|---|
| General Admission | Singapore citizens and PRs | Free. Prepare NRIC or SingPass for verification. |
| Standard General Admission | Other nationalities | S$20 before applicable concessions. |
| Other free admission categories | Check eligibility | The Gallery lists children six and under, locally based students and teachers, Gallery Insiders, and persons with disabilities with one caregiver. |
Tickets and General Admission
Start with the exhibition page. It identifies General Admission as the ticket for this show. National Gallery Singapore’s visitor information lists this category as free for Singapore citizens and permanent residents, and S$20 at the standard rate for other nationalities. The Gallery asks local visitors to have NRIC or SingPass available for verification.
The Gallery also lists free categories that include children aged six and under, students and teachers currently based in Singapore, Gallery Insiders, and persons with disabilities with one caregiver. Other eligible visitors can receive a S$5 concession on the applicable rate. Check the Gallery’s current admission page for your category and bring the documentation it asks to see.
Free admission still involves getting or redeeming an admission ticket. The Gallery directs visitors to self-service kiosks or Visitor Services Counters. If you are travelling with people whose admission categories differ, allow enough time to sort out the tickets together. This is especially helpful when a mixed group arrives by separate trains and plans to meet on Level 4.
General Admission and the December Pop exhibition
If you are deciding between two exhibitions, check each exhibition’s own ticket category. Let’s Imagine the World Together uses General Admission. Pop after Pop: Art around Us, which opens on 11 December, uses a Special Exhibition or All Access ticket and timed entry. Both are at National Gallery Singapore, and their ticket rules answer different visitor needs.
If your group wants to see both, choose the timed show first and plan the rest of the day around that entry. Check exactly what the ticket you intend to buy includes. Someone who wants an unhurried look at Southeast Asian art can make the Level 4 exhibition the main outing and leave the ticketed special exhibition for a different day.
Getting to the Level 4 Gallery
National Gallery Singapore is at 1 St Andrew’s Road, and its visitor information identifies City Hall MRT as the closest station. The Art Connector from near Exit B leads towards the Coleman Street entrance. The Gallery’s accessibility directions describe using the station lift at Exit D and making your way to the start of the connector near Exit B.
Once you enter, ask for the Level 4 Gallery in the City Hall Wing. National Gallery Singapore occupies the former City Hall and Supreme Court buildings. The two wings connect, but their room names and floor numbers can be easy to mix up when you are following signs for several exhibitions. Give companions the complete destination so everyone looks for the same room.
The venue’s normal opening hours are 10am to 7pm daily, and it lists 6.30pm as the end of general admission and ticket sales. For a late-afternoon visit, give yourself enough time to obtain a ticket and find the exhibition. If you want to try the activities and see several works, arrive with more time than the last-admission rule allows.
Access needs and a comfortable meeting point
If an accessible route matters, look at the Gallery’s official guide before leaving and ask staff about the lift closest to your destination. When arriving with someone who wants a shorter walk, make the entrance or Visitor Services Counter the meeting point. You can then reach Level 4 together rather than asking anyone to navigate two wings alone.
Some rooms can feel cool. A light layer can help a child or older visitor stay comfortable. Take a break if the group has stopped noticing the art, then decide whether you want to return to a favourite work or call it a day. The exhibition works as a focused visit even if you have other plans in the Civic District.
What the exhibition explores
The exhibition asks what art can tell us about people, places and everyday life in Southeast Asia. It brings older and newer viewpoints into the same visit through portraits, landscapes and ways of responding to the works. A first-time visitor can begin with something visible, like where a figure looks or how a painter places a person in a room, then read the context.
A portrait can invite several kinds of looking. A child may focus on clothing or expression. An adult might notice the sitter’s posture and how the artist places them in front of the viewer. Another person may notice what the artist leaves outside the frame. These observations can coexist. The label helps give them a setting and allows you to revisit the first impression.
A landscape changes the scale of the question. Instead of asking how a person has been presented, ask what place the painter gives us and where the viewer seems to stand. Look at the relationship between the foreground and distance. See whether the work feels open, crowded, calm or unsettled and point to the detail that gives you that impression.
Start with Raden Saleh’s Portrait of Betsy Teengs
The Gallery features Portrait of Betsy Teengs, painted by Raden Saleh in 1855. Begin by looking for the most sharply defined area of the image. Then consider the way the figure sits or stands in relation to that part of the composition. It is a quick way to move beyond “I like it” into something you can show to the person next to you.
Read the label and notice what it establishes about the sitter, date or artist. A detail such as clothing can raise questions, but the picture alone may not answer all of them. Ask which parts of your interpretation came from looking and which came from reading. That distinction is useful for older students who are learning how to support a claim with evidence.
Explore Forest Fire through more than one sense
The exhibition page invites visitors to explore Boschbrand (Forest Fire) through tactile details, audio description and a projected image. Use the elements the Gallery has designated for touching. Try the audio alongside the image, or experience one first and compare what you notice when you add another.
The tactile and audio features can be part of anyone’s visit. Audio can draw attention to a relationship you would miss when looking quickly. Texture can bring a shape forward for discussion. For a mixed group, let each person choose the way they want to explore the work, then compare the details they found.
Notice how the portraits and environments connect
Pick one portrait and one work concerned with an environment. Ask where the people belong in each, even if no one is immediately visible in the second. A track, building, cultivated patch or other sign can suggest activity beyond the frame. A person may be a main subject in one work and present indirectly in another.
This comparison is especially useful for a visitor who knows little about Southeast Asian art. You have an observation you can make before looking up terms or dates. When you read the labels, use them to find the context that helps most. After that, return to the image and see whether the new information changes what seems important.
Imagination Bag, audio guide and co-creation wall
The Gallery lists an Imagination Bag with prompts, props and activities. Ask where to collect one when you arrive. A child can choose a single prompt and carry it through two works, while an adult looks for an example that gives a different answer. Using one or two prompts in depth can be more enjoyable than trying to work through everything in order.
The contemplative audio guide offers a slower approach centred on one work. Leave some quiet time for it. Compare your first look with your second after hearing the guide. You may have noticed the subject quickly but missed a smaller decision about placement, colour or material. A few minutes spent with one work can reset the pace of the whole visit.
The co-creation wall lets visitors add colours and shapes to a shared landscape. Look at what is already there before you add something. A child might choose to continue an existing line or build a feature in an open space. Ask what changed in the landscape after their contribution. It is a concrete way to see how making something together differs from drawing alone.
The Imagination Lounge offers a place to read and reflect. A group can use it as a break after seeing several works, or as the last stop before leaving. If a child is tired, one book or a short conversation about the work they remember may be a more comfortable finish than another full circuit of the exhibition.
A 35-minute, one-hour or longer visit
For about 35 minutes, choose a portrait, the Forest Fire interpretation and a brief pause to compare them. Give the route one question, such as “Which detail changed what you thought the artwork was about?” Allow additional time for entry and movement between the station, the counter and the exhibition.
For an hour, combine one way of looking, one hands-on activity and one quieter moment. Start with a prompt from the bag, take time with two or three works, then visit the wall or lounge. If a child becomes absorbed in one area, let that be the heart of the visit. The timing is an estimate, and you can adjust it to suit the pace of your group.
For a longer afternoon, add another City Hall Wing stop or take a break before going elsewhere in the Gallery. Check each exhibition’s admission and current hours. An extra room works best when you have a question that connects it to what you already saw. For example, compare how two artists use a setting to suggest where someone belongs.
A route for a family with different ages
Give a younger child a detail to find and an older child a decision to explain. The first can look for a colour repeated in a picture. The second can explain why the repeated colour might guide the eye. After seeing the artwork, let each choose one thing to show the others. That arrangement gives adults room to look too.
For a child who wants to draw, use the Gallery’s prompts or make a quick outline where permitted. Pick one shape from a picture and record it without trying to copy the whole work. Afterwards, ask the child to add a new element from a place they know. They can see how an observed detail becomes the starting point for their own picture.
A route for adults and independent visitors
Start with the audio guide or choose a work that takes time to read. Spend a few minutes in front of it before consulting the label. Then walk to one other work that you think shares a concern, even if it comes from a different time or uses a different material. Describe the link in a sentence you would be able to say to a friend.
If you are visiting on your own, choose where to pause based on what has caught your attention. A solo visit makes it easy to return to the first work after seeing the room around it. You may recognise a detail you had no reason to notice before. That is a useful way to spend extra time without extending the visit to every room.
Other featured works to look for
The Gallery’s selection includes Juan Luna’s España y Filipinas, Saya Chone’s Royal Family, Fua Haribhitak’s Face, Lim Hak Tai’s Fire and Nhek Dim’s Village Scene. You can use the labels as a map for your own interests. The title that sounds most straightforward may lead to a work that becomes more complicated as you look.
Compare the tall format of Juan Luna’s painting with a portrait
The Gallery lists España y Filipinas as an 1884 oil painting, much taller than it is wide. Before reading the label, look at how that format changes the direction of your eyes. Where are the figures in relation to the whole canvas? What can you see near the top that you might miss if you concentrate on faces? Then use the label to give your observation a historical context.
Place that experience beside your response to Raden Saleh’s portrait. One useful question is how each work makes its subjects occupy space. Compare the height, background and distance from which the image feels easiest to read. A family can let one person describe what they notice from farther away while another points to a detail visible up close.
Compare two works whose titles mention fire
If Forest Fire has caught your attention, look for Lim Hak Tai’s Fire, listed as a 1956 acrylic on board. The two works share a word in their titles, which gives you a starting point for looking. Notice how each suggests heat, movement or danger. You may have found the first through sound or touch. For the second, start with the visible image and think about which way of exploring each work helps you most.
Ask a child to choose a single colour or mark that makes them think of movement. An older visitor can ask why the artist has made part of the composition easier or harder to distinguish. Then see what happens if you read the label before looking at the whole work a second time. You are comparing what the artist shows and what a title or description adds.
Look at different kinds of portrait and image
Fua Haribhitak’s Face and Saya Chone’s Royal Family give you two starting points for thinking about how people appear in art. The first title gives you a focus on a face. The second suggests a relationship among people. Look for a detail that tells you what each artist wants you to see first. If there is someone in the group who has not visited an art museum before, let them describe the scene in their own words before you discuss it.
The Gallery also features Tan Lip Seng’s Artwork 7: Z, dated 1970 and reprinted in 2017. Pay attention to how the displayed scale changes your way of looking after you have seen a large painting. A work does not need a large surface to direct attention precisely. Compare the time you spend finding the first detail with the time you spend seeing how the whole image holds together.
Use the brochure, translations and access advisory
The exhibition page offers a downloadable brochure and exhibition content in Chinese, Malay and Tamil. There is also a downloadable access advisory. These can be useful if visitors in the same group read different languages or want to prepare for the room before travelling. Keep the relevant file available on your phone and use it for the parts of the exhibition that interest you.
An accompanying adult can use the brochure to choose a simple prompt ahead of time. Read enough to know which works you want to look for, then let the visitor take the lead. A person who would like to know about sensory or physical access can use the advisory and ask the Gallery about their particular needs before choosing a date.
If you visit during SANTAI on 21 November
The exhibition page connects the show to SANTAI: IN PROGRESS, a one-day anniversary programme. If you are visiting on 21 November, you can use one activity at the festival to start a conversation about the exhibition. A drawing activity might lead you to notice how artists plan a composition. A performance might lead you to think about the places and stories carried in an artwork.
SANTAI has its own venue and programme times. The main festival terrace is in the Supreme Court Wing on Level 4M, while the exhibition is at Level 4 Gallery in the City Hall Wing. Decide which is the main reason you are visiting and allow time to move between the two. Check the individual conditions if you want a formal sketching session as well.
A small project to continue after the visit
Choose one work and write two or three sentences about it without looking up its title. Describe what you can see, including one detail you would be able to point to. Then add the name of the artist, the date and one piece of context from the Gallery. Compare the two descriptions. The first captures your attention in the room. The second gives that attention a setting.
A child can do the same thing with two pictures. Draw a shape or scene recalled from the exhibition, then draw a detail from a place familiar to them. Put both on the same page and explain what connects them. The connection could be colour, the position of a person or a path from one part of the image to another. This makes the idea of imagining a world together concrete without requiring a long written exercise.
Look at a setting as carefully as a sitter
Nhek Dim’s Village Scene gives you a starting point for considering how a painter presents everyday space. Choose one part of the scene that tells you how near or far you are from the action. Notice what would change if the viewpoint moved up or down. A child can imagine where they would stand if they were visiting the place in the picture. Ask them what they can see that supports their choice.
Set that beside Saya Chone’s Royal Family, which the Gallery lists as gouache on cloth. One title directs attention to a place, while the other names a group. That gives you a comparison before reading the labels. Ask whether the place tells you something about people or whether the people tell you something about a setting. Different visitors may start with different details and still make sense of the same picture.
Read a title in a second language where available
The Gallery’s downloadable exhibition content gives multilingual groups a way to prepare together. Read a short passage in a preferred language before looking at a work. A child who has more than one home language can try describing a colour, gesture or place twice and see which detail each version makes easier to say. Keep the exercise short enough that most of the visit is still spent looking and talking.
A reader can also use a translated text simply to make the visit more comfortable. Let each person choose how much background they want. Someone may read at the lounge while another wants to revisit a painting. Choose a time and a place to meet after looking independently.
Frequently asked questions
Is Let’s Imagine the World Together free?
The exhibition uses General Admission. It is free for Singapore citizens and PRs and certain other categories. The Gallery lists S$20 as standard General Admission for other nationalities before applicable concessions.
What floor is it on?
Go to Level 4 Gallery in the City Hall Wing. City Hall MRT and the Coleman Street entrance are useful starting points.
Is the exhibition suitable for children?
The Gallery lists it as suitable for all. Families can try the Imagination Bag, tactile and audio elements, co-creation wall and lounge, choosing how much to do.
When does the exhibition close?
The Gallery lists Sunday 26 September 2027 as the end date. Check the exhibition page if you plan to go near the end of the run.
How much time should I set aside?
Around an hour in the exhibition is a practical first visit. Add time to obtain admission and get to Level 4. Spend longer if the audio, reading or making activities are central to your plans.
Can I visit Pop after Pop on the same day?
Yes, if your date and tickets line up. It opens 11 December 2026 and has separate timed-entry and ticket requirements. Start with its booking if you want to fit both exhibitions into one visit.
Official information and further reading
- Official exhibition page and booking
- National Gallery Singapore opening hours and ticket prices
- Gallery accessibility and arrival routes
- December Pop after Pop exhibition guide
- SANTAI makers’ market and sketching guide
The header shows the National Gallery Singapore façade from the eduKateSG photo collection.