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Queenstown forever: Residents rebuilding community museum to preserve collective memory

2023-09-27 00:00:00.0 海峡时报-新加坡原网页

SINGAPORE – A neon pink sign that reads “Queenstown” in Chinese once stole the attention and hearts of visitors at the former Museum @ My Queenstown – a reminder of old Singapore when neon billboards were common.

The Instagrammable artefact from the defunct Queenstown cinema is currently stored in a warehouse, waiting to light up again when the ground-up community museum gets a new home.

It is architecture graduate Jeremy John Kum’s favourite artefact from the museum, which previously nestled in a shophouse at Block 46-3 Commonwealth Drive. It was closed in July 2022 for the redevelopment of Tanglin Halt under the Housing Board’s Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme.

The communal space, which was launched in 2019, was funded, managed and curated by residents in Queenstown with the help of non-profit heritage group My Community. It featured more than 2,000 photographs, 300 oral histories and 50 artefacts.

Now, Mr Kum, 28, who is part of My Community, is working with residents and volunteers to rebuild the museum at Block 30A Margaret Drive, which will open its doors in 2024.

“Previously, the museum had about 45 sq m of exhibition space. The new one will have 300 sq m, which means we need many more artefacts,” said Mr Kum, who is helping to design the new space.

“It’s a challenge to accommodate the different views of the residents, including uncles and aunties who are very passionate about the project.”

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Mr Jeremy John Kum is working with residents and volunteers to rebuild the museum at Block 30A Margaret Drive, which will open its doors in 2024. PHOTO: COURTESY OF JEREMY JOHN KUM

To date, the team has gathered more than 6,000 items, including photographs and artefacts, showing how people lived, worked, studied, played and even prayed in Queenstown.

It has raised about $200,000 towards the $2 million needed to build and run the museum for three years. Entry to the volunteer-run museum will be free.

The museum is very close to Mr Kum’s heart, as he has been living in Queenstown since he was two years old.

“It’s where I connect with my neighbours and learn the fun facts of my own backyard,” he said.

Queenstown was named after Queen Elizabeth II on Sept 27, 1953, and developed as Singapore’s first satellite town in the 1950s.

In recent years, it has undergone extensive rejuvenation, including the renovation of Queenstown Sports Centre. There is also an upcoming revamp of the Queenstown Public Library. New developments have also been completed, such as the Margaret Drive Hawker Centre and Build-To-Order housing project Sky Residence@Dawson.

The Margaret Drive Hawker Centre is among new developments completed in Queenstown. PHOTO: ST FILE

Mr Kwek Li Yong, 34, co-founder and president of My Community, said a community museum imbues in people a sense of rootedness amid Singapore’s rapid pace of growth and Queenstown’s redevelopment.

“One may lose a sense of stability and comfort in an ever-changing environment,” he said. “A museum is an anchor and a repository of memories. It narrates the stories of the common man and celebrates the little things that make Queenstown special.”

There are about 1,000 volunteers aged 18 to 90, including “uncles and aunties”, who donate small amounts of cash or artefacts to the project, he said.

“When you don’t have a lot of resources, you see the power of the community coming together to make things happen,” he added.

Some organisations in the area, including Queenstown Baptist Church, Tiong Ghee Temple, Sri Muneeswaran Temple and Faith Methodist Church, have also made contributions.

The former Museum @ My Queenstown was funded, managed and curated by residents in Queenstown with the help of My Community. PHOTO: MY COMMUNITY

Even non-Queenstown residents like Mr Leeyau Chun Chuan, a “designpreneur” in his mid-50s, have stepped forward to offer their expertise. The Telok Blangah Crescent resident studied graphic design from 1986 to 1989 at the former Baharuddin Vocational Institute (BVI) in Queenstown.

“I hope the museum will serve as a lighthouse to attract, connect and reunite new and lost memories,” he said. He also hopes it will serve as an inspiration for other estates to begin documenting the distinctive identity of their community.

“In an increasingly individualistic culture, this will help to establish a more integrated, caring and relatable community that we can be proud of.”

Those who wish to contribute to the museum can contact My Community at hello@mycommunity.org.sg