Luminous Depths is an interactive multimedia installation in the atrium of the Peranakan Museum in Singapore, while a soprano piece, Nacht und Träume (1825) of Franz Schubert, fills the air. You are welcome to purchase a ceramic object that I’ve created, and bring it with you as you visit the other galleries. On the third floor, you encounter a huge hoop in the middle of the skylight. You are invited to stand on a platform leading to the hoop, and toss the ceramic piece into the light well. Once you stand on the platform, the music stops, leaving you in meditative silence. The music resumes after the crash breaks the silence.
The idea is that with each purchase (5 Singapore dollars), the participants are contributing to the acquisition of a Peranakan object that is agreed upon by the Peranakan community in Singapore. After the conclusion of the exhibition, I also collected some broken shards to be buried as part of the foundation for the new building at Asian Civilizations Museums. Shards were also collected into a wooden box, to be exhibited in the museum with the newly acquired Peranakan piece in hopes that the destruction of my work regenerates something beautiful and meaningful for the Peranakans, the museum and its participants.
The design of the installation was created in collaboration with Desai Chia Architecture.
Soprano: Eric Morely
Piano: Pei-Yao Wang
2003 Peranakan Museum, Singapore