The Cacophony of Katong
Sound of Art and i12 Katong has worked together to present a holistic arts encounter for the residents of Katong ranging from the entrance sculpture that boldly beckons shoppers within to the paintings dotted all around the mall. We wanted to present a visual and artistic feast for the senses.
How it began
We approached PLUS, an interdisciplinary design studio as they are masters of context and storytelling. And so, we asked them to embrace the different messiness of Katong and its Peranakan heritage, its exciting culinary scene, and the many cultural activities that are taking place over here. PLUS was also briefed to think about how they could use sustainable and durable materials that had a life span that could go beyond just the sculptures and be used for other creative activities beyond.
Looking at the sculpture and seeing how it can capture the idea of sustainability using the materials, paper was thus chosen as the material because it was a renewable resource. PLUS designed a series of paper modules that are folded into truncated octahedrons. These paper modules are able to be tessellated into any desired shape so we see them as a representation of the movement and activities of people in a 3-dimensional format.
Ultimately, ‘The Cacophony of Katong’ sculpture aims to manifest the daily proceedings of the neighbourhood into an art piece for the public.
In doing so, we hope to instil a bit of community pride as well as a sense of belonging for the Katong residents.
So, we didn’t want to prescribe a new identity for Katong but to embrace it in its contradictions and messiness with the raw forms and dynamism reflected in the paper tessellations of the modules.
Sound of Art aims to make art accessible to all and so, the dynamic and open-form nature of the sculpture is open to interpretation.
“There is an infinite number of shapes that emerge from the sculpture as you just envision how this encapsulates the Katong spirit”
(Watch the full video of the process behind ‘The Cacophony of Katong’)