Disappearing Raffles

Singapore Bicentennial marks the 200th anniversary of the British arriving in Singapore.

The curtain-raiser to the Singapore Bicentennial celebration, we decided to "deface" a national monument and spark a conversation on the arrival of the British and their contributions to the nation. 

A chance to let Singaporeans see their history more accurately, beyond putting the British colonialist on a pedestal, we made Raffles's statue disappeared. Using trick eye techniques, we camouflaged the Raffles statue against the backdrop of the Singapore skyline, hiding him at first glance. 

Raffle's "disappearance" was covered by news channels like Aljazeera, CNA and all of Mediacorp's news channel. Fueled by online speculations, chatter hit fever pitch. Then, we brought Raffles back, along with a few friends -- Sang Nila Utama, Naraina Pillai, Munshi Abdullah, Tan Tock Seng.

The recasting of our colonial past started Singaporeans talking about our history like never before. And perhaps more importantly, led to Singaporeans seeing their identity in a whole new way.