Welcome to the revised new Future World exhibition galleries of the Art Science Museum in Singapore. The Art Science Museum is a renowned institution that combines art, science, and technology to create immersive and interactive experiences. The Future World display is no different. We previously visited Future World over a year ago when it first opened at the museum. Lets see what exciting items and changes are installed since Nov 2022. The new and revised Future World exhibition awaits us.
New Future World Art Science Museum Revisited
The Future World exhibition is known for its interactive nature, setting itself apart from traditional museums with exhibits behind glass. During our past visit, we were captivated by the diverse range of exhibits, from exploring the fascinating creatures of the Deep sea to delving into the milestones of Marvel movie studios. The exhibition had a strong focus on engaging children and families, making it an ideal destination for a family outing.
City in A Garden
The galleries of Future World are divided into three main sections, namely “City in A Garden,” “Sanctuary,” and “Space.” You start off from the entrance right into the “City in A Garden” installation by teamLab. You step into a vast dark room, surrounded by projections of blooming and withering flowers, symbolizing the four seasons. There is also a hint of aroma therapy at work here.
Also, the room filled with scents to go with the flora display. The next gallery highlighted environmental awareness, featuring a video called “100 Years Sea” that depicted the consequences of rising sea levels due to climate change.
Moving forward, you will reach the Sanctuary sector where the virtual aquarium resides, which remained largely unchanged since our last visit. This area is one of the crowd favourites. Also, one of the highlights here is the Fruit Field slide, where you can climb and enjoy a playful experience. Animated projections of fruit are cast onto the slides as you go down, though the projections were off on my visit. That did not stop guests and those young at heart to enjoy the slides.
Interactive animated projections
Additionally, there are various audio-visual elements here in a separate room section. It allow you to interact with projection screens, touch screens, and motion walls. One particularly intriguing interactive exhibit was the “Sketch Piston – Playing Music and A Table Where Little People Live“. Here you can reenact miniature characters formed a community and interacted with each other.
Previously, there was an enclosed Sanctuary chill room called with floor-to-ceiling projection screens and a city animation area. However, it had undergone updates, transforming into an open space with a large interactive wall. This wall featured motion sensors that moved colourful spot-like flowers as visitors walked through it, creating a mesmerizing experience. Another noteworthy installation was the “Giant Connecting Block Town“. Here, you can physically place blocks to direct and manipulate virtual traffic routes, indicated by animated arrows.
New aerial playground display
Moving on further into the Future world galleries, you arrive at the highlight of the Sanctuary exhibition sector: The Virtual Sketch Aquarium and Sketch Town. These interactive installations allow you to bring your own drawings to life.
You can find booths with colouring paper and canyons you can have a go at creating your own marine creature or city vehicle. You can digitalise them at the scanning booths here. After scanning them in, you can witness them swimming in a virtual aquarium or becoming part of a bustling town.
However, some elements, such as the open play area with giant lit Swiss gym balls and the virtual hopscotch course were missing this time around due to the refurbishment. In place, here, you can find a new playground called “Aerial Climbing Through A Flock of Coloured Birds“.
It is both a visually pleasing artwork glowing in bright colours under the UV lights while being a play area itself. Also, it is worth noting that you must be at least 1.20 meters in height and wear covered shoes to fully enjoy this piece. However, compared to the previous Future World displays, this new installation may not cater to kids of all ages.
Reboot of the sketch town
This display looks more dumbed down to the previous city. Personally, I preferred the busier city set from the previous iteration. The animated city within this section had a stronger emphasis on aircraft, with passenger jets taking center stage as they flew over the streets. A giant whale also take center stage in the new town, blowing out colourful rainbows.
You will also notice the stark removal of the interactive nature wall. Back then here, you can interact with rotating animal projections towards the end of the gallery. Now the area is occupied by a scanning table manned by staff for you to upload your coloured art pieces to the wall.
Wrapping up
Wrapping up, you stroll through the existing Space exhibition, which starts to show its age with notable wear. This area is characterized by its crystal wall-like appearance made with LED strips. The final section was the Space sector, featuring the iconic LED Crystal Forest. Here, you can take a short and Instagram-worthy walk through a wall composed of LED light strips and mirrors. It creates an illusion of an endless space.
However, the experience in the Crystal Forest Space can vary depending on the crowds present. Some groups may be less aware of the crowd and end up hogging the narrow choke point for photos. It would be beneficial to have an alternative path through this LED wall area to ensure a smoother flow of visitors.
All in all, that concludes our revisit of the new Future World at the Art Science Museum. Still, if you are looking to learn something new or take away a deeper understanding from this exhibition, you may want to consider visiting another gallery, such as Sneakertopia, which offers a different perspective and subject matter.
In summary, our exploration of the newly revised Future World exhibition at the Art Science Museum. It was an engaging and interactive experience. Spending around 1-2 hours here is sufficient to fully appreciate the installations and immerse oneself in the fusion of art and science. It is one to check out in town.
