Our Cultural Artefacts “Going Global” by Ng Kong Ling (2002-11-03)

Recent media reports of an excellent local collection of bonsai plants finding a home in Shanghai have sparked a series of reactions. Many have expressed a sense of regret and disappointment. But what has been lost cannot be recovered and the discussion has gradually died down.

Over the years, failure to appreciate the value of cultural artefacts which others embrace with open arms has occurred time and again. So it is unlikely that this latest episode will be the last.

This tiny island-state seems to have no place for precious collections. When will it again turn its back on artists or collectors who are potential donors and who have no choice but to look elsewhere? No one knows.

Yes, our cultural artefacts are increasingly “going global” - we may one day end up having to scour all over the world for local relics or artistic works.

Two years ago, more than 50,000 books and some original scripts and letters which belonged to prominent figures in the cultural and media circles here found a home across the Causeway in a library in Johor Baru.

Sharing the same fate is another large volume of works, among them books penned by Singaporeans and Malaysians, titles on Chinese literature, publications by clan associations here, and collections of calligraphy and paintings. They have also settled down in Johor Baru as there was no place here to keep them.

In 1997, valuable screenplays left behind by Singapore writer Chua Boon Hean, who wrote under the pen name Liu Beian, were donated to the Hong Kong movie museum and became one of its important collections.

A few years back, local collector Low Chuck Tiew wanted to donate some priceless paintings to the National Museum, but when they could not reach an agreement, he decided to give the artworks to the Hong Kong Museum of Art which went on to build a gallery to house them.

It is an irony that the official opening of the Esplanade-Theatres On The Bay and the giving of the bonsai plants to the Shanghai Botanical Gardens were reported in the press on the same day. This also offers much food for thought.

On the one hand, we have pumped millions of dollars to attract world-class and grand-scale art performances, yet on the other hand, we have no qualms about letting go of some half-a-century old precious plants of an artist. Singapore has been dubbed as a venue which keeps importing foreign cultural events. But it seems we are doing rather well too in “exporting” our own cultural artefacts!

The pictures of workers pulling up the bonsai plants by the roots while transporting them are in a sense quite shocking. Bonsai is art in a living form, manifesting itself in a dynamic way the culture of rootedness. Yet they can just be uprooted and replanted overseas. One can’t help but lament if we are destined to remain a cultural desert that has no place even for some bonsai plants.

Of course, one can look on the bright side (to console oneself) and even hail the loss of the bonsai as a gesture to “promote culture”, “encourage exchange”and“share resources beyond national boundaries”.

What else can we do other than finding excuses to explain things away?

After all, it is none of our business. The National Arts Council is responsible for promoting the arts; acquisition of artefacts is the task of the National Heritage Board; and exhibition of artistic works comes under the purview of Esplanade-Theatres On The Bay or the various museums.

Bonsai, which one can place somewhere between art, cultural artefacts and plants, can perhaps be referred only to the Chinese Gardens. The wishes of the donor and the resources and competence of a private organisation are not important factors for consideration.

Many old buildings with historic significance have had to make way for our overriding goal to achieve economic growth and rapid urbanisation in the past decades. Now that we’ve realised the importance of keeping the old world charm of some areas which Singaporeans identify strongly with emotionally and an organisation is prepared to do the job, what we should have treasured and preserved have long vanished.

What we have now is perhaps just a “cosmopolitan” city with little feelings for the past and cultural foundation.

The writer is Citta Bella’s Lifestyle Editor. Translated by Yap Gee Poh