The Peranakan Museum opened its doors on February 17 after nearly four years of renovations. The renowned heritage museum has received a mega-upgrade and celebrated its launch this past weekend with a street party featuring outdoor performances, Peranakan food and workshops.
THE PERANAKAN MUSEUM
The upgraded museum exhibits an all-new interior with nine permanent galleries, spotlighting different aspects of Peranakan culture, and educating visitors on what Peranakan is. Exploring multi-faceted diversity of Peranakan Asian communities, the museum is inclusive of different cultural expressions on Peranakan identity.
With more than 800 artefacts and set pieces to admire – from old to new objects – the iconic museum explores Peranakan identities using three different themes spanning three floors. These are Origins, Home and Style.
ORIGINS
The first floor features a gallery dedicated to the theme of Origins. It exhibits a visual collection of hand-coloured photographs and photo walls, showcasing past to present-day Peranakans, as well as a variety of video interviews with people exploring what it means to be Peranakan.
HOME
On Level 2, visitors will see a range of objects relating to family and community life, customs, foods, languages and beliefs in the largest gallery in the museum. For instance, there are floor-to-ceiling displays of the rarest Peranakan nyonyaware, alongside a traditional long dining table installation – which are both interesting to see.
STYLE
The third floor exhibits a world of textiles and fashion. From menswear to women’s bags and accessories, footwear and more…a wide range of fashion showcases the diversity of Peranakan style over centuries. While certain galleries are dedicated to the making of batik and needlework crafts. With more than 130 objects on contemporary fashion, such as batik cheongsam and beaded slippers from famous film productions, and more than 180 jewellery pieces…you won’t be bored.
Plus, you can’t miss interactive exhibitions such as commissioned contemporary artworks by Sam Lo and Lavender Chang. Coming Home by Sam Lo takes inspiration from tensions between modern and traditional Peranakan culture, representing Lo’s search for identity. While Lavender Chang’s Sheltered Dreams on Level 2 features HBD living rooms, capturing the passage of time and everyday life.
The Peranakan Museum is the perfect place to get educated. Tickets begin at $12 for tourists while residents and children six and under go free. Book your tickets here.
39 Armenian St, Singapore 179941