Artist and photographer Sean Cham reveals a different side of Singapore in a personal project to mark the country’s 50th birthday.
PHOTO SEAN CHAM
ast year, Singaporean Sean Cham learned that his grandmother’s HDB flat in Bukit Merah, where he had spent the first two years of his life, was to be demolished and redeveloped.
He decided to start a photography project, called Yesteryears, which showcases 50 places historically or culturally significant to Singapore.
Cham, 21, an undergraduate at Yale- NUS College, took photos of abandoned or forgotten places around Singapore, including the former Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and the former Bidadari Cemetery.
To allow viewers to better relate to each location, he inserted images of himself in each photograph.
Cham says the project has given him a better appreciation of what Singapore has today and how far it has come since its founding in 1819.
He adds: “I hope that Singaporeans will be more appreciative of what we have achieved and more aware of the struggles and sacrifices of our forefathers.
I also hope to show that there’s more to the Singapore story beyond the gleaming skyscrapers and meticulously planted trees.”
TO VIEW THE PHOTOS. VISIT WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/YESYERYEARSPROJECT