Discover 70 inspiring destinations around the globe where great art comes to life in Lonely Planet Art Destinations. From medieval masterpieces to striking street murals, art-loving travellers will find expert insights, breathtaking photography, and must-see attractions in every corner of the world.

Our next stop: Singapore.

ABOUT THE BOOK

From medieval wonders in Morocco to indigenous art in Canada; epic street murals in Malaysia to world-famous masterpieces in France; the destinations featured inside this book all share one thing in common:incredible art. Packed with dazzling capital cities and unexpected hidden gems, this is the ultimate exploration of the top art destinations on the planet.

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SINGAPORE – Creative State

Since it began to develop as a major international port in the early 19th century, Singapore has been a place where art and ideas from widely different cultures have mixed and mingled. Look to the hybrid culture of Peranakans (descendants of immigrants and local Malay people) to see how this has creatively played out in everything from architecture and interior design to fashion.

The island state may be nicknamed the ‘Little Red Dot’, but its promotion of the arts gains it a big red checkmark on any list of art-focused destinations. Alongside the splendid National Gallery, Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) and Singapore Art Museum (SAM) there are scores of smaller galleries and cultural spaces, such as the contemporary art galleries of Gillman Barracks, a former British military encampment transformed into an arts hub.

There’s also plentiful public art. Marc Quinn’s Planet, a 10m-long (33ft) sculpture of a baby, hovers over a field in the space-age Gardens by the Bay, while the nearby ArtScience Museum blooms like a giant concrete flower. Street art brightens the walls of the Kampong Glam, Katong and Chinatown neighbourhoods – in the latter search out Yip Yew Chong’s heritage-inspired murals, including his 44m-long (144ft) piece at the Thian Hock Keng Temple.

© ‘Planet’ by Marc Quinn – Jnzl’s Public Domain Photos

NATIONAL GALLERY SINGAPORE

Home to the world’s largest public collection of Singaporean and Southeast Asian modern art, this splendid gallery occupies a building that once housed the City Hall and Supreme Court.

The permanent collection ranges from historical works –19th-century botanical watercolours and paintings by seminal local artists such as Liu Kang (1911–2004) – to more contemporary pieces like Lee Wen’s art photograph Journey of a Yellow Man No. 11: Multi-Culturalism.

ASIAN CIVILISATIONS MUSEUM (ACM)

Occupying the neoclassical Empress Place Building, completed in 1897, this fine ethnographic and decorative arts museum presents the region’s most comprehensive collection of Pan-Asian treasures. There are three thematic floors – Maritime Trade, Faith and Belief, and Materials and Design. •

Natural planting surrounds the biodomes, skywalks and ‘supertrees’ at the Garden by the Bay