Installation view of Grace Tan's 'The fruit of deceit' (2024), as part of SAM’s public art initiative, The Everyday Museum. Image courtesy of Singapore Art Museum

At Block 39 of Tanjong Pagar Distripark, delicate floral garlands, pollination trails and nutmeg fruits embellish an exterior staircase and passageway. Presented as a response to the history of Tanjong Pagar and its evolving identity, the notion of nature as a commodity is foregrounded here against the physical site of the old Keppel Harbour and present-day Tanjong Pagar Distripark—logistical nodes from different eras that facilitate the circulation of materials, goods, ideas, people and capital. Drawing from the artist’s explorations for an earlier commission Sea of flags, The fruit of deceit extends the colour compendium of Tanjong Pagar through the visuals of the nutmeg, alluding to its slighted history in Singapore’s development.

Venue: Level 2, Block 39, Tanjong Pagar
Distripark, Corridor, Staircase and Service Balcony facing port

When: 15 Jan 2024 - 15 Mar 2026,

By: Singapore Art Museum (SAM)