“In school, we learn about the history of Singapore as Singaporeans. Sometimes, we take it as just something on paper and we don’t really absorb it,” noted NHB’s director of international and museum relations Goh Chour Thong.
“Most of us grew up not realising these things (wartime landmarks) are actually hidden in plain sight. And there are many physical vestiges of the war that still remain,” he added.
There will also be events at some museums. For instance, at the National Museum, participants at a Makan With Seniors segment will be paired up or grouped together to talk about second-generation war memories and the legacy of World War II in Singapore over a meal.
A separate initiative, Peacetime Kitchen, will allow visitors to taste and learn wartime recipes.
The Singapore Art Museum will give participants a chance to hear from artists Ho Tzu Nyen and Ma Jung-Yeon, the duo behind Hotel Aporia, an installation at Tanjong Pagar Distripark that confronts the complex ideological and historical backdrops that plagued the 1940s.
Mr Goh said that while many Singaporeans who lived through the war have died, there remain stories to be told.
“Part of the reason we run this programme is to introduce everyone to these sites, to bring them (and let them) understand the stories,” he said.