Museum guests in Singapore have reportedly had issue protecting their palms off a wall set up consisting of dozens of mounted eggplants. The art work, “Still Life” (1992/2025) by Suzann Victor, is a part of the continued exhibition Singapore Tales: Pathways and Detours in Artwork on the Nationwide Gallery Singapore (NGS).
The Strait Instances reported earlier this month that guests had allegedly taken fruits from the 200-eggplant set up; it’s unclear what number of have been eliminated. The museum has denied experiences that there have been “continuous incidents,” however a spokesperson informed Hyperallergic that signage reminding guests to not contact the artworks has been put in in all exhibitions and shows.
“We’ve observed that many visitors enjoy engaging with Still Life by taking photos and experiencing it up close, and we hope this interest continues in a respectful way,” the spokesperson mentioned, including that the establishment is asking for public “cooperation in preserving the artwork.”
The set up is a part of the continued present, Singapore Tales: Pathways and Detours in Artwork on the Nationwide Gallery Singapore.
Victor informed Hyperallergic in an electronic mail that she is “aware of recent reports that Still Life was tampered with or removed during its display at the National Gallery.”
Victor, who represented the nation within the forty ninth iteration of the Venice Biennale, mentioned that the set up’s integration of natural supplies “invites close engagement and close observation of its transition from freshness to decay over the duration of its display.”
“I have observed the look of disbelief registered on the faces of visitors, upon first laying sight on the work at NGS, and people even shouting ‘Are they real?’ during the install,” the artist mentioned.
“They simply could not resist going up close to touch the glossy, smooth skin of the eggplants. Even sniffing them,” she continued. “More intriguingly, it is as though they were seeing eggplants for the first time. As though these were some alien life form that has been ensconced on the wall for all to witness.”
The museum has put in signage that reminds guests to not contact the work.
Initially exhibited within the 1992 exhibition Physique Fields, many years earlier than the eggplant grew to become a suggestive emoji, “Still Life” proposes a feminist examination of gendered social areas and the long-term unsustainability of patriarchal energy constructions.
As a result of the decay of the eggplants is an integral factor of the set up, the fruits are intermittently changed all through their show.
Victor mentioned that she and NGS knew that the work’s presentation in a public area with numerous foot site visitors would contain explicit challenges. Nonetheless, they’d not anticipated anybody to the touch the work to the extent of damaging it or taking components of it. The artist mentioned she appreciates the museum’s efforts to guard the work and the workers’s diligence.
“However, the reality is that with public works, there are always limits to how much control can be exerted,” Victor continued. “These challenges highlight the delicate balance between preservation and the unpredictable nature of public engagement, which is, in itself, part of the ongoing conversation the work invites.”
