Amanda’s Friendly Friday Challenge this week is to post a Smoke & Mirrors picture which plays with illusion, reflection or images within image. That’s quite a challenge!
Luckily I found this shot from a while ago. I was sitting by the reflecting pond by Singapore’s ArtScience Museum. The museum is an architectural wonder, shaped like a lotus flower, it has 10 ‘fingers’ anchored by a unique round base in the middle. Each finger contains different gallery spaces with skylights at the ‘fingertips’ to dramatically illuminate the curved interior walls. The building was designed by architect Moshe Safdie and has been called “The Welcoming Hand of Singapore.”
Like most days in Singapore, it was scorching hot. The skies were clear, a brilliant blue, almost cloudless, with absolutely no filter for the noon day sun.
I was hiding in the shadows of the museum, fiddling with my camera, when the first of the runners caught my eye. I assumed they were mad foreigners taking a break from their high flying finance jobs. I guessed foreigners because Marina Bay is the domain of wealthy tourists and ex-pats. And really, no local in their right mind would run in this heat. Yes I know, I was foreigner too. But I was never wealthy and I was never insane enough to run in 33°C (95°F) heat.
Anyways, this photo was the result. The flower is the signature lotus flower and the large spherical mirror reflects the sky and a bit of the museum’s overhang. I think the photo satisfies all the qualifiers for Amanda’s challenge, don’t you? Reflections, images within image and illusions of sanity.
The Sandy Chronicles 
A beautiful view from my neck of the woods, Sandy!
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That’s gorgeous ❤️
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This is brilliant!
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Glad you liked it!
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I love the look of this building, and the inclusion of the lotus flower in your shot really ties everything together 🙂
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Thank you for saying so Sarah!
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Great photo!
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🙂 Thanks!
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You have completed the trifecta, Sandy! Well done. I wondered what the interior of the Museum was like, having admired that building from outside several times. And what a stunning photo. Does the mirror ever get really hot when the sun directly hits it. Thinking of boy scout tricks making fire, here. In Norway, they also have a large mirror on top of the mountain in Telemark reflecting the sun down into a really deep valley. I believe it can pivot.
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The inside of the museum is like any other. I don’t remember anything remarkable outside of the exhibits, which I suppose is appropriate. Have you visited Singapore before Amanda? Lots of your compatriots go there for work & vacation. Seems like I never met so many Aussies until I lived there 🙂
So far as the mirror causing hot spots, I think it was decorative purposes only. There’s no shortage of sun there so I can’t imagine them wanting to focus it anywhere 🙂
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No, Indeed in Singapore they would not need focused sun, at all. I was worried about it burning something as the sun could be so strong there. As for Aussies in Singapore, that is true. It is our major flight hub if we are going to Asia or Europe so almost 80 % ( that is a guess) go via Singapore. They can’t make it to Europe without a stop. Although I prefer to go via Japan these days. Anyway, I have spent about six holidays there or via there: as well as many hours in the airport, and I have to say that on my return from Europe I am a little shell shocked by the sudden onslaught of Aussie accents after being in Europe for a couple of months with the more mellow tones. It is quite grating but I get used to it again. Australians are supposed to be among the most travelled population. Probably because we live so goddam far away from everyone!! Lol. And our economy didn’t crash in the GFC so we were one of the few countries where anyone had money to travel for a while. Now noone can travel.
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It’s funny that you find Aussie accents grating. Actually, I understand. I have similar feelings about Jamaican accents. Depending on where you grow up, the accents can be quite different – city- Jamaicans have ‘light’ accent (think politicians & TV personalities) while country people speak a patois that is quite thick. (I guess it’s like the British who have accents that reflect where they’re from.)
In Toronto, I’m always amused when I overhear second generation Jamaicans speaking. Young things, they are obviously born & brought up in Canada, but they speak with thick, island inflected patois. It’s as if they exaggerated their voice to emphasize their heritage. Back on the island though (at least in my day), their older relatives would have been appalled that they “didn’t speak better, ‘specially since they’re living abroad!” 🙂
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