National Design Centre Singapore

Statements about what is design.

Unfortunately I was not in town for that week, but as soon as I was back in Singapore, I went to 111 Middle Road to have a look outside and in.

The 120 year old building has a rich history: former St. Anthony’s Convent, after that Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and finally, until 2009, Chinese Opera Institute.
And now: National Design Centre.

Neighbouring church.

The building consists of three Pre-war Art Deco blocks and one Post-war Modern block and has been beautifully renovated.

The building is clean, light and spacey inside. Fortunately some original details have been preserved, giving extra character to the centre.

When you enter the building, you first come across pop-up shop Kapok, a cultural and lifestyle store. When I asked, I was told that it was already decided that the store had gone from temporary pop-up to a permanent part of the National Design Centre. There is also a cafe added to the store.

Strolling around the ground floor, we came across several exhibitions and displays, showcasing work of young designers and design students.

House style designs, publicity campaign styles and graphic design.

All in all it is an interesting place, definitely worth a visit. I am sure I will return, whenever another interesting exhibition is on. Or a movie screening.

Left over tree-art from Design Week. Apparently there had been many more tree benches, but I missed those;-(.

From Bugis MRT or Bras Basah MRT it is just a short walk to 111 Middle Road. The centre is opened daily from 9 am till 9 pm.

Did you visit the centre already? What do you think of it?

Would you visit a centre like this? Are you interested in design?