walk walk

Posted by Victor Khong

(Extended until March 2027)

walk walk (2023) is a public art work commissioned by Singapore Art Museum (SAM) sited at the Kampong Bahru Bus Terminal (KBBT) in western Singapore. The art work consists of three parts, a 27-minute video screening in a room that has been converted into a mini-cinema onsite and two word-sculptures in the bus drivers’ canteen and boarding hall.

The work was installed for two years in April 2023, and it has been extended for another two years, staying at KBBT until March 2027, making the video arguably the longest running film in Singapore. 

[A word-sculpture on the beams of the Kampong Bahru Bus Terminal - Photo courtesy of Singapore Art Museum]
Caption: The word-sculpture on the beams of the Kampong Bahru Bus Terminal animates as visitors walk across the boarding berths – Photo courtesy of Singapore Art Museum

While public art commissions have a long history in MRT stations, this is the first public art work commissioned for a bus terminal.  For this work, we transformed a working bus terminal, a node in the public transport system, into a place to think about walking, its connection to freedom and how a simple gesture like walking can be used to create space, literally and figuratively.

The video uses interviews, archival clips and documentation footage to profile a range of women from Singapore who discuss the role of walking in their lives.

walk walk at KBBT is available for viewing 10am – 6.30pm daily, for two years, for free. The 27 min video screens five times daily,

walk walk ??
29 Apr 2023 – 9 Mar 2025 (2 years)
Kampong Bahru Bus Terminal
Daily (including public holidays) 10am – 6.30pm
Screening times 10am, 12pm, 2pm, 4pm, 6pm (the video is 27min)
Admission is Free
Public parking beside the KBBT
#walkwalkKBBT
Pin Pin conducts artist tours every two months, Sign up here for the next one 

This work took shape after many conversations with and through the effort many

SAM Curator
Selene Yap

Writer
Jason Wee

Researcher
Lisa Lee

Identity & Design
KK Ong

Consultant
Lo Mun Hou

SBST Team
Cai Rong Tai

SAM Team
Sherlyn Wong, Teo Loo Bing

Fabrication Team
Spacelogic

Special Thanks

June Yap / Shabbir Hussain Mustafa / Wang Ruobing / Seah Sze Yunn / Heman Chong / Marc Gloede / Jasmine Ng / Takeshi Hata / Michael Kam / Patwardhan Dhruva Ramon Jitendra / Cinegear / Deklen Seng / Sandra Chiu / Joanne Leow / Lian Tsui Yee / Lo Mun Hou

======================================================

For the Video
Amanda Heng
Koh Siam Tian
Janet Tan
Peggy Fong
Angela Tan
Sherlynn Toh
Wendy Wong

Written and Directed by
Tan Pin Pin

Produced by
Angelina Marilyn Bok

Director of Photography
Shen Tian

Location Sound Recordist
Susanna Soon, See Tong Wai

Editor
Mirabelle Ang

Sound Mix & Design
Amelia Sai

Colourist
Eugene Seah

Chinese Subtitles
Kew Lin


Festivals Shown (Updated August 2025)

Woman Make Waves International Film Festival (World Premiere)

Singapore International Film Festival

Freedom Film Festival

Asymmetry Art Foundation

Seoul International Women’s Film Festival

Bangkok Asean Film Festival

Qiantai Artspace (??)

Singapore Shorts (2025)

————————-
 
Walk Walk
By Yong Shu Hoong
For Tan Pin Pin
—
walk
don’t run, but
walk and watch
where you’re going
not at the floor
but also above
where words of an artist
adorn overhead beams
of this underused
bus terminal:
walk
walk
walk to…
the staff canteen
where neon-lit characters
in Chinese advise all to:
slowly slowly walk (or
drive, for bus captains
on their breaks)
or (to anyone) to take it
easy, though
it’s never easy
to make art
in a public space where (a
security guard reminds)
the eyes of CCTV
are watching
while we’re walking
while we’re watching
as long as we don’t engage
too much, as long as
someone else is watching
closely our walk or watch
just before the short film
in the makeshift
screening room starts
right on the dot.
 
Caption of photos
Amanda Heng writes out the Heart Sutra as part of meditation practice
Angela Tan, Peggy Fong, Sherlyn Fong and Janet Lim make time to walk together every Thursday at 6am
Wendy Wong prepares for her walk into her Clementi neighbourhood
Curator Selene Yap leads a public at the opening on 28 April 2023
Outside the screening room which was a ticket office