National Gallery Singapore

National Gallery Singapore is the best museum in the city and one of the great museum buildings in Asia. Opened in 2015, it joined two colonial landmarks, the former Supreme Court with its green dome and the former City Hall with its grand colonnade, under a shared canopy of glass and metal, and filled them with the largest public collection of modern art from Singapore and Southeast Asia anywhere. The architecture alone is worth the ticket: you can walk through the restored courtrooms and holding cells of the old Supreme Court, and the City Hall chamber where the Japanese surrender was signed in 1945 and where Singapore's first prime minister was sworn in. The permanent galleries tell two linked stories. One traces Singapore's art from the nineteenth century to today; the other follows art across Southeast Asia, from colonial-era painting to modern movements in Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia, often reflecting the politics of independence. Major special exhibitions rotate through the year, often international in scope, and the gallery has a strong children's programme with a dedicated kids' wing. Up top, the rooftop terrace looks over the Padang, the old cricket ground where National Day parades are held, to Marina Bay Sands and the bay, and it has a restaurant and bar. The gallery is open daily from 10am to 7pm. Non-residents pay for general admission and special exhibitions, and tickets with fast-track entry are available online.

The two buildings set the scene. The Supreme Court, completed in 1939, was the last classical building of the British colonial era in Singapore; City Hall, finished in 1929, was the seat of colonial and then independent government. Their joining was a major engineering and design project, with the architects creating a basement concourse and roof canopy that connect the two while leaving the facades intact. Inside, the former courtrooms have been kept with their wooden panelling and docks, and the rotunda of the old Supreme Court library under the dome is one of the most impressive spaces in the city.

To visit well, allow at least two to three hours. Start with the Singapore gallery for local context, then the Southeast Asia gallery, which is the collection's real strength and a rare chance to see artists who are famous in their own countries but little known outside the region. Look out for works by Raden Saleh, the nineteenth-century Javanese painter whose dramatic canvases open the regional story, and by Singapore pioneers of the Nanyang style, who blended Chinese ink traditions with Western painting. Free guided tours run on many days and are a good way into the collection. The gallery is air-conditioned and has several cafes, a design shop and fine-dining options, making it a natural refuge in the afternoon heat or a storm.

The gallery anchors the Civic District, a walkable area of colonial buildings between the Singapore River and Fort Canning Park. From here it is a short walk to the Asian Civilisations Museum by the river, the Victoria Theatre, St Andrew's Cathedral, the Raffles Hotel and the Esplanade, and across the Jubilee Bridge to the Merlion and Marina Bay. City Hall MRT station is a few minutes away. The rooftop at sunset, with the Marina Bay Sands towers lit across the Padang, is a fine and quieter alternative to the SkyPark.