[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/appreciating-singapores-hawker-centres-through-a-photographers-lens\/#NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/appreciating-singapores-hawker-centres-through-a-photographers-lens\/","headline":"Appreciating Singapore’s hawker centres through a photographer’s lens","name":"Appreciating Singapore’s hawker centres through a photographer’s lens","description":"Singapore\u2019s hawker culture is unique to the country, and because of its outstanding characteristics was added to the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on 16 Dec 2020. Some of the older hawker centres boast a more homely aesthetic, while the newer ones cooked up a more contemporary flavour.\u00a0 Taman Jurong Market […]","datePublished":"2021-07-02","dateModified":"2022-04-15","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/Atalia%20Chua\/#Person","name":"Atalia Chua","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/Atalia%20Chua\/","identifier":339,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a83f1814f9ae936340d5c9530df0dcd78295c85ee63b72b84945716f843d62d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a83f1814f9ae936340d5c9530df0dcd78295c85ee63b72b84945716f843d62d2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"TheHomeGround Asia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","width":640,"height":640}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1625196578403_Feature_image_East_Coast_Lagoon_Hawker_Centre_1280x626.jpg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1625196578403_Feature_image_East_Coast_Lagoon_Hawker_Centre_1280x626.jpg","height":626,"width":1280},"url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/appreciating-singapores-hawker-centres-through-a-photographers-lens\/","about":["Community","Food","Singapore"],"wordCount":1087,"articleBody":"Singapore\u2019s hawker culture is unique to the country, and because of its outstanding characteristics was added to the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on 16 Dec 2020. Some of the older hawker centres boast a more homely aesthetic, while the newer ones cooked up a more contemporary flavour.\u00a0Taman Jurong Market & Food Centre: Breezy, al fresco dining in the westOf the 10 heritage hawker centres showcased in the National Heritage Board\u2019s (NHB) digital photography series, lies a snugly nestled food centre in western Singapore.\u00a0Taman Jurong Food Centre was partially built in 1972, and was then called Yung Sheng Food Centre. It was one of the first hawker centres to allow mobile hawkers to set up their stalls at a permanent location, and was affectionately coined 60 Stalls, due to the wide range of offerings.Tables of various sizes cater to small or big families to enjoy bonding time. (Photo by Lee Yik Keat)Incorporating Market I and two other hawker centres, the food centre was redeveloped into Taman Jurong Market & Food Centre, in 2005. The centre was built with residents in the west as its primary focus. For example, tables of different sizes accommodate small or larger families.\u00a0Al fresco dining allows diners to enjoy the outdoors. (Photo by Lee Yik Keat)The architecture boasts a courtyard at the heart of the hawker centre, which infuses al fresco dining in the mix. The design enhances ventilation and gives diners a more breezy experience, as they enjoy their meals comfortably, while bonding with loved ones.\u00a0Lee Yik Keat, a 23-year-old, self-taught, urban photographer based in Singapore, shares with TheHomeGround Asia that his inspiration behind the images was to show that \u201cbeauty can be found in everyday life\u201d. If one looks closely at all the \u201clittle things we miss\u201d in the architecture of the hawker centre, he thinks that visitors would learn from and appreciate the story in its design.\u00a0Unique umbrella shelters shielding diners from the sun. (Photo by Lee Yik Keat)\u201cThe umbrellas are something small but [add a considerate touch,] and the escalator must have been so revolutionary [for its time],\u201d quips Mr Lee. \u201cAll these add depth to the images and show a unique side of Taman Jurong.\u201dEast Coast Lagoon Food Village: Balinese-style, beachside food rendezvousDo you know that Singapore’s beloved beachside hawker centre was initially called East Coast Lagoon Food Rendezvous? It took on this sassy name after an upgrade in 1992.\u00a0Beautiful butterfly-shaped roofs make this food village stand out. (Photo by Fabian Ong)But let us return to when this popular heritage hawker centre first came to be. The East Coast Lagoon Food Village was built on land reclaimed from the sea in the 1960s. A hawker centre first began construction in April 1977 and was completed in late 1978. The architectural concept was to make it an extension of the sea and swimming lagoon. Hawkers whipped up their delicious food under 10 butterfly-shaped roofs, while diners enjoyed the fruits of their labour under 40 pyramid-shaped shelters.\u00a0A Balinese-style structure exudes a resort-like atmosphere at the East Coast Lagoon Food Village, after a facelift was completed in 2004. (Photo by Fabian Ong)After several upgrading projects in 1988, 1992 and 2002, the food centre was renamed East Coast Lagoon Food Village upon its completion, in 2004. After this last facelift, the architecture of the hawker centre was designed to resemble a Balinese-style structure to exude a resort-feel.\u00a0Pink delicate frangipani flowers add vibrancy and life around the food centre. (Photo by Fabian Ong)Architecture-trained photographer Fabian Ong, who captured the food village in the series, shares that nature\u2019s embellishments were what caught his eye and add character to the place. \u201cThe pink frangipani found inside East Coast Lagoon Hawker Centre glows vibrantly under the early morning sunlight. As it is not open at this time, people don\u2019t normally have a chance to see such a sight,\u201d he says.\u00a0Kampung Admiralty Hawker Centre: Modern and integrated ‘Vertical Kampung’A ‘Vertical Kampung’ houses commercial, housing and healthcare services. (Photo by Khoo Guo Jie)This modern 900-capacity hawker centre was Singapore\u2019s first integrated public development. Dubbed a \u2018Vertical Kampung\u2019, the establishment has commercial, housing for seniors and healthcare services to make it a convenient one-stop place for residents.\u00a0Director at WOHA Architects Pearl Chee was the architect behind the modern hawker centre. She tells TheHomeGround Asia that it was designed as the “community dining room” of the development and “activates” the Community Plaza, which is the \u2018community living room\u2019. \u00a0Ms Chee also shares that the stalls \u201cevoke a casual kampung atmosphere\u201d through the use of pavilions. Greenery is also incorporated to enhance the atmosphere. Besides that, the hawker centre provides \u201ceffective cross-ventilation\u201d due to a \u201chigh \u2018uncluttered\u2019 ceiling\u201d and exposure on all four sides.\u00a0Social spaces were also included in the development to foster community bonding and encourage active aging. As such, the \u201cmix of fixed and loose tables and seats give the space more flexibility”, allowing the furniture to be stored if necessary to make space for ad-hoc community programmes, such as a healthy cooking demonstration,\u201d she explains. Ms Chee adds that it is also designed to be \u201can accessible environment for elderly people, with wide corridors and aisles.\u201d\u00a0Social spaces foster community bonding and encourage active aging. (Photo by Khoo Guo Jie)Khoo Guo Jie, a Singapore-based photographer whose works have been featured in various magazine editorials, believes that every image can tell a story. \u201cMy inspiration [for the concept] comes directly from the kampung community, [which promotes] socialising,\u201d he explains. Modern aesthetics highlight a beautiful layout at Kampung Admiralty. (Photo by Khoo Guo Jie)Mr Khoo has strived to showcase the \u201cbeautiful landscape within the space\u201d, which accentuates the modern aesthetics of the architecture.\u00a0Hawker culture continues to give a taste of Uniquely SingaporeSingapore’s hawker culture truly encapsulates a unique characteristic of the city state. (Photo by Fabian Ong)Maybe the fusion of international cuisines available, ranging from South Asian to Eastern European, at hawker centres has nurtured the insatiable foodie in all Singaporeans. But it would be hard to imagine a life without the nation\u2019s favourite pastime \u2013 eating. Although the pandemic has periodically stopped residents\u00a0 from eating at hawker centres, or has restricted the number of people who can eat together, Covid-19 has perhaps made the country more appreciative of these community dining rooms, with Singaporeans rallying to keep hawkers afloat.\u00a0Join the conversations on TheHomeGround Asia’s Facebook and Instagram, and get the latest updates via Telegram."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Destinations","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Singapore","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/\/singapore\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Appreciating Singapore’s hawker centres through a photographer’s lens","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/appreciating-singapores-hawker-centres-through-a-photographers-lens\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]