Media Release
For immediate release
Experience the beauty and imagination of Southeast Asian needle-worked art at the Nyonya Needlework: Embroidery and Beadwork in the Peranakan World exhibition
Millions of beads, metres of silk and metallic threads, and hours and hours of handcrafted artistry
Singapore, 21 June 2016 – Your expectations will be shattered when you visit the Peranakan Museum for this special exhibition. The cosmopolitan world and the intriguing history of the Peranakan Chinese is told with every painstaking stitch in close to 200 spectacular, intricately-crafted objects of beads, gold threads, and silk embroideries.
The Peranakan Museum’s special exhibition – Nyonya Needlework: Embroidery and Beadwork in the Peranakan World – displays the traditional Peranakan art of embroidery and beadwork, with many seldom-seen objects from Singapore’s National Collection, attesting to 30 years of dedicated collecting by Singapore’s museums. Singapore now holds the largest collection of nyonya needlework in public hands. This bespoke showcase will also display some of the earliest dated embroidered and beaded objects in the world from the renowned Rijksmuseum and the National Museum of World Cultures in the Netherlands.
John Teo, General Manager of the Peranakan Museum, explains: “This exhibition, which was five years in the making, is the first in the world dedicated to a comprehensive showcase of beaded and embroidered Peranakan works of art. Coupled with important new research about regional styles and techniques, this show will deepen scholarship around this Southeast Asian cross-cultural art form. The Peranakan community, straddling influences from all over, demonstrates great inventiveness and forward-looking thinking in creating and embracing design and stylistic influences in their handcrafted decorative and fashion textiles. The Peranakan Museum is proud to spotlight their bold originality through the museum’s rich collection, built up over more than three decades, and complemented by objects from partner museums and private collectors.”
One of the key highlights is a beaded wedding bed valence from the National Museum of World Cultures in the Netherlands, which is the earliest reliably dated embroidery in the exhibition – made around 1848 in Indonesia. It shows early influence and adaptation from Chinese embroidery. Be enchanted by a European-styled, glass-beaded table cover from the 1900s, with wedding toast verses stitched in English along its borders, and magnificent ankle boots with gold embroidery, of a style worn by women and men at the turn of the 20th century. This extensive display in the exhibition will debunk conventional perceptions of the beloved traditional artistry that we are used to in the Southeast Asia region. It’s not just beaded slippers and wedding purses. Previously unexamined and lesser-known techniques of Nyonya needlework are given a spotlight at this exhibition.
The show is divided into five sections that range from auspicious emblems and symbols, creative hands: makers and methods, and materials, to the diverse styles of Indonesia, Malacca, Singapore, and Penang.
“Nyonya Needlework showcases the pathways of creativity in this Peranakan art form. Although needlework was very much rooted in a traditional context, embroiderers often borrowed and “translated” techniques and designs from other cultures and other media (including batiks, ceramics, and metalwork), introducing novelty and dynamism into the art. The overlaps in regional styles of beadwork and embroidery convey a shared sense of identity; at the same time, their diversity expresses their local connections. We hope visitors will enjoy the refinement and detail in these works, and discover the innovative spirit and craftsmanship, as well as the stories of the Peranakan Chinese embedded in this cross-cultural art form, and be inspired to create their own”, said Dr Cheah Hwei-Fen, lead curator of the exhibition.
Together with Dr Cheah, the museum has produced a profusely illustrated catalogue to accompany the exhibition. The catalogue will be available in August.
Nyonya Needlework: Embroidery and Beadwork in the Peranakan World runs from 24 June 2016 to 26 March 2017 at the Peranakan Museum.
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For media enquiries, kindly contact:
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Ms Khew Shu Ping Senior Account Manager Tate Anzur DID: 6221 8548 Mobile: 9012 6194 Email: shuping.khew@tateanzur.com
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Ms Sharinita Ismail Assistant Director Asian Civilisations Museum DID: 6332 7592 Mobile: 96702037 Email: sharinita_ismail@nhb.gov.sg |
About the Peranakan Museum
The Peranakan Museum explores the culture of Peranakan communities in Southeast Asia. Installed in the former Tao Nan Chinese School, built in 1912, this intimate museum possesses one of the finest and most comprehensive collections of Peranakan objects. Galleries on three floors illustrate the cultural traditions and the distinctive visual arts of the Peranakans.
The Peranakan Museum provides a stimulating and educational experience for all, while representing the living culture of the Peranakan community in the region. The museum is a component of the Asian Civilisations Museum, operating under the National Heritage Board.
About the exhibition
Nyonya Needlework: Embroidery and Beadwork in the Peranakan World
娘惹巧手：土生华人世界的刺绣与珠绣工艺
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Dates |
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24 June 2016 – 26 March 2017 |
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Venue |
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Peranakan Museum 39 Armenian Street, Singapore 179941 |
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Website |
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Enquiries |
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6332 7591 / nhb_pm_vs@nhb.gov.sg |
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Admission charges |
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Individual: $10 Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents: $4 |
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Opening hours |
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Monday to Sunday: 10am – 7pm (to 9pm on Friday) |
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Getting There |
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By MRT – A 10-minute walk from City Hall or Bras Basah MRT stations By Car – Paid parking is available next to the Peranakan Museum By Bus – 7, 14, 16, 36, 77, 106, 111, 124, 128, 131, 147, 162,162M, 166, 167, 171, 174, 175, 190, 700, 700A and 857
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Programme Highlights
Nyonya Needlework Curator Tours
1 July 2016, Friday
7.30pm – 8.30pm
Free with admission to Nyonya Needlework
Join a tour by one of our curators to explore Nyonya Needlework: Embroidery and Beadwork in the Peranakan World. Celebrate this vibrant part of Peranakan Chinese heritage through a spectacular showcase of artworks made with beads, silk, and metallic threads.
Straits Family Sunday: All Sewed Up
14 August 2016, Sunday
1pm – 5pm
Free admission
Metallic threads, glass beads, and nimble fingers. Discover colourful Peranakan creations on display in the Nyonya Needlework special exhibition. Get inspired and create your own fashion statement accessory or go on an exploring tour with the whole family.
Peranakan beadwork with Raymond Wong
3, 10, 17, 24 September 2016, Saturdays
2pm – 5pm
Admission charge: $50 per session
Spend your Saturday afternoons at the Peranakan Museum! Create magical beaded accessories under the direction of Rumah Kim Choo’s Raymond Wong, inspired by our special exhibition, Nyonya Needlework: Beadwork and Embroidery in the Peranakan World.
Visit http://www.peranakanmuseum.org.sg for more exciting talks and programmes.