
William Farquhar Collection of Natural Drawings is one of the first paintings you will see when you enter the gallery. It sends a message that Singapore’s art history commenced with the arrival of British’s colonialization. Perhaps in view of the revisionist and post-colonialism tide, some viewers may be uncomfortable with this starting point. Regardless, this is an interesting artwork to view.
- These beautiful art works are commissioned to document the botany of Malacca and Singapore.
- They were drawn by a group of Macau artists.
- These drawings were auctioned off at Sotheby’s London and acquired by Singaporean businessman Goh Geok Kim for a value of SGD3 million. He then donated it to the National Museum of Singapore.