the whole is greater than the sum of its parts

Mulling over the prompt for One Word Sunday: Patchwork hosted by Debbie at TravelWithIntent, I contemplated things that are made up of miscellaneous or incongruous parts, a hodgepodge perhaps, and yet these bits make up a coherent whole. And if you consider the Aristotelian idea of synergy, we could end up with a great deal more, and perhaps even better, than what we started with.

Patchwork quilts came to mind quickly, also patchwork skirts (I did own one decades ago – I hear they might be coming back into fashion). Then I remembered a piece of art I was saw last February 2019 at the National Museum of Singapore.

Unhomed Belongings: co-presented by Lucy Liu (USA) and Shubigi Rao (Singapore).

The artwork that I am recalling is called 72 by Lucy Liu. I was taken not only by the immense size of this work (it took up a whole wall in the exhibition room), but also by the ebb & flow of each component which told a story each one their own, and together, rang out a symphonic production.

I miss experiences like these. Standing in front of a piece of art, allowing it to speak to me, experiencing it in its quietness or intensity.

It will be a while before museums open their doors in Singapore. So, as a stopgap measure, the girls and I will attend an online discussion called Contemplating Culture at Home, hosted by the Asians Civilisations Museum. We will find out how the museum has been affected in these extraordinary times and how we might engage with the art at this museum in the months to come.