The best art exhibitions in Singapore

“I don’t like Ghibli films,” said no one ever. Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration. But for the Ghibli fans, we’ve got great news for you – ArtScience Museum will be presenting The World of Studio Ghibli, showcasing the world of well-loved animation studio, Ghibli, from October 4, 2024 to February 2, 2025.

This will be Studio Ghibli’s first ever showcase in Singapore and also one of the largest editions to date, exploring its iconic animation and storytelling. The World of Studio Ghibli was first presented in Japan back in 2013. It then moved on to South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Bangkok, with each edition slightly different from the last. The upcoming iteration will feature new additions from Studio Ghibli’s latest film The Boy and the Heron.

Step into the world of Kim Lim, where light, space, and rhythm dance in perfect harmony. National Gallery Singapore presents Kim Lim: The Space Between. A Retrospective – the most extensive exhibition of her work yet. With over 150 pieces, including sculptures, prints, and rare archival materials, this show is a deep dive into the art journey of the Singapore-born British sculptor. As the third chapter in the Gallery’s SG Artist series, this is also a great chance to rediscover a visionary artist who shaped 20th century sculpture and printmaking.

Organised into four distinct sections, Kim Lim: The Space Between. A Retrospective traces Lim’s creative evolution across four decades, offering fresh perspectives on her ability to transform simple forms into powerful metaphors.

Ever so often, you chance upon a source of inspiration that prompts you to reflect on yourself and the world around us – for us, it is both the artworks of Teo Eng Seng and the man himself. If you’re curious to find out how so, then your next art date should be to National Gallery’s upcoming exhibition, Teo Eng Seng: We’re Happy. Are You Happy?, running from September 6, 2024 to February 2, 2025.

Remember Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience that showed in Singapore last March? The same people behind that successful show – immersive entertainment company Exhibition Hub and live-entertainment platform Fever – are stacking up another masterpiece once again, bringing back one of CNN’s Top 10 global must-see exhibitions to Singapore since its debut in our city in 2012.

If your idea of a good time involves dabbling in artificial intelligence (AI) and mingling with cutting-edge tech, then September is your month – head down to the ArtScience Museum for In the Ether: A Festival of Technology and Innovation, a technology-centred festival that will take over three floors of the museum.

This event will gather the Avengers of technology – over two dozen technologists, scientists, designers, artists and studios – to hold conversations about the convergence of science, technologies and creativity. This pool of industry experts include Google Creative Lab, Ouchhh Studio, speculative architect and director Liam Young, and digital artists Lynette Wallworth and Ian Cheng.

Amid our planet’s climate chaos, one artist imagines a sea of hope. Opening on September 21, Cesar Jung-Harada: An Ocean City Imagined at ArtScience Museum offers a glimpse into a future where humanity thrives alongside nature.  

In An Ocean City Imagined, Cesar’s ideas take shape through large-scale installations, centred around the ‘International Ocean Station’ – an ambitious speculative design for a floating city referencing Singapore and its nearby geography, inspired by the International Space Station. This futuristic city will show us alternative ways of living after we have fallen victim to the negative effects of climate change.

If your kids are digital natives whose playtime involves devices, prepare to snatch them away from their tech and bring them for a playful romp around town. Centred around elements of play, the National Museum of Singapore’s newest exhibition, Play:Date – Unlocking Cabinets of Play, features over 250 locally and globally recognisable toys spanning the eras. Running from now until January 5, 2025, the free showcase promises to be eye-opening for both children and adults.

If you’ve seen the widely-discussed artwork featuring a banana taped to a wall that sold for over a hundred thousand dollars, then you would know that there are no boundaries in modern art. This inevitably leads us to the pressing question: What exactly is art? With this question in mind, take a trip to the National Gallery’s latest show, Figuring A Scene.

The exhibition is divided into six segments: ‘Shadow’, 'Fruit’, ‘Fire’, ‘Air’, ‘Wax’ and ‘City’. These different points of focus hope to further aid our understanding of the displayed works beyond its historical or societal contexts. 

For example, in the segment ‘Fruit’, the show examines the diverse portrayals of the King of Fruits, Durian, throughout several mediums of art – from sculptures to paintings and photographs. With each medium offering its own unique point of view, visitors can reflect on its status during colonial times and uncover how this fruit has evolved into an iconic symbol of Singapore's national identity.

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At its core, this exhibition is a gathering of Asia’s most prominent artists happening alongside the debut of Tang Contemporary Art. The showcase will highlight acclaimed talents like Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, Thai painter Kitti Narod, street artist Gongkan, and Filipino artist Tiffany Lafuente. Beyond celebrating these remarkable artists, the event also shines a spotlight on the diverse and dynamic artistic offerings of Tang Contemporary Art.

Over 100 years ago in the year 1864, 84 pagodas were hand-carved in Shanghai at the Tushanwan Workshop by Jesuit missionaries. Many of them then went on to influence several other celebrated artists that we have come to know of today, such as watercolourist Xu Yongqing and sculptor Zhang Chongren. Today, these 84 pagodas are now being reunited in Singapore at Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM)’s exhibition Pagoda Odyssey 1915: From Shanghai to San Francisco. 

Ever wondered what the future looks like? Forget time machines – The Copernican Principle is your ticket to ride. Inspired by the groundbreaking ideas of Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, the exhibition curated by Jan Swierkowski brings an innovative blend of art, science, and interactive arcade games to Science Centre Singapore. Get ready to navigate time and space with nine arcade games that feel like a blast from the past and the future at the same time. These games developed by Instytut B61 in collaboration with Tomasz Wlazlak combine 80s aesthetics with futuristic dilemmas like space pollution and AI revolutions, all while questioning the fate of mankind. From creating lunar nature reserves to dodging space junk, it’s a cosmic challenge that’s part nostalgia, part mind-bending fun.

Public task financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland within the grant competition “Public Diplomacy 2024”