Cats and the arts have always been close to my heart. I could hardly contain my excitement when I was invited to have a sneak peek of Singapore’s first cat museum, Lion City Kitty™ – the Cat Museum, Muses & Mansion, a new social and art initiative dedicated to the kitties of Singapore and the artworks inspired by them.
The museum is housed in a heritage shophouse along Purvis Street, right in the heart of Singapore’s civic and cultural district. Jessica Seet, the founder who set up the museum from scratch, conceptualised the space not just to appeal to cat lovers, but also to reach out to those who have usually kept a distance from community cats.
(Photo credit: Carlyn Law / Cats Of The World Photo Exhibition)
Visitors can start the museum tour at the Cat Museum on the second floor, where they will learn about cats from around the world, appreciate the beauty of cats through the eyes of artists and photographers, and discover interesting histories and stories behind our very own Singapore cats.
The museum also collaborates with the Cat Welfare Society (CWS) of Singapore and play hosts to cats which are up for adoption. You can visit them at the Muses on the third floor where visitors could interact with the cats in a home-like setting and learn from the friendly CWS volunteers.
At the Mansion on the fourth floor, you could meet the resident cats which inspired it all, including Harry the Cross-Eyed-Kitty who is also the mascot of the initiative. Don’t miss the Wall of Famous Cats along the staircase as you leave the museum. I hope to see Singapore cats get onto this wall and do our country proud.
The museum features a growing collection of cat-inspired artworks, photographs and cat crafts items from all over the world. 80% of the artworks are for sale and prices range from $20 to $5000 for the commissioned piece by Paul Koh of Catmasutra.
(Photo credit: Carlyn Law / Cats Of The World Photo Exhibition)
The museum is looking to expand their collection and hopes that more artists will be inspired to contribute their works to this meaningful initiative. There are plans to collaborate with artists to run community art projects where participants can draw, paint or photograph cats and create art forms around them. Proceeds from the artworks can go towards improving the welfare of community cats in Singapore.
“Time spent with cats is never wasted”, says Sigmund Freud, and here at the Cat Museum you are welcome to waste as much time as you would like. So come with a sketch book, a camera or anything you like to work with and get creative surrounding yourself with cats when the museum officially opens its doors on 9 January 2015.
Lion City Kitty™ – the Cat Museum, Muses & Mansion
8 Purvis Street, #02-02, Singapore 188587
Opening hours: Friday to Sunday, 2pm to 9 pm
Entrance fee: S$9 (free for kids aged 6 & below)
Payment mode: Cash only
If you are interested to find out about collaboration opportunities, email [email protected]
Text / Photo: Polly Yeung unless otherwise stated
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by Polly Yeung (Singapore)
Editor’s Note: Polly Yeung is an architect by training. She loves photographing cats and all things beautiful, and is a loving mother to her rescued cat #DandytheWhite.
