At the corner of a room in 8Q, stood a simple wooden door which anyone will overlook among the other artworks in the gallery. However, the kind gallery attendant and guard nudged me to open the doors and enter—one of the rare opportunity to “step into” artwork in a museum.
As I opened the double door and entered, I was greeted by a narrow corridor lined with papers along the wall. Feeling a little catastrophic, I was about to step out of the door, but the same attendant encouraged me to venture further. And I did.
At the end of the corridor, stood a shrunken door leading into a dark room. One will not see anything out of the ordinary in this room, apart from the piles of literary references. But once your eyes adjust to the dim lighting, you will notice the difference. I will not indulge what I saw, but let you explore the room yourself.
Titled PAPER Room by Vertical Submarine. The installation resonates around a writer’s frustrations over his failed attempts and his reference to excessive literal pursuits. The artist forces the viewers to revise his passive consumption of art by literally “going through” the meaning and information he encounters.
Outside the Paper Room, I was again ushered by the attendant to peep into a hole on the wall. After a failed attempt searching for the mysterious cavern, the lovely attendant pointed out to one of the alphabets on the giant texts on the wall.
And as I peeped in, a sense of deja-vu greeted me. Again I will not disclose what I saw either. I find it a lot more fun to experience it yourself. So do check out A ROOM WITH A VIEW, another installation by Vertical Submarine at 8Q SAM. Ask the lovely attendant for help if you can’t find the hole in the wall.
PAPER ROOM and A ROOM WITH A VIEW are part of The Singapore Show Future-Proof 2012. Check it out before it makes way for new exhibitions. Last day of The Singapore Show, Future Proof is on the 15th of April.
