Zinkie Aw

To me, heritage is what we inherit from the rest of our community. It’s an intrinsic part of us that we should pass on to the future generations, or they’ll be lost forever. As a photographer, I hold the ability to capture things, moments, sometimes even feelings, and encapsulate its relevance for the future.

Heritage is a natural subject for me, as I’ve always been interested in stories that are hyper-local. By putting together pieces of the puzzle of what represents my community and my roots, I hope to spark conversations in the community about our intangible heritage and culture, and achieve resonance with Singaporeans.

In one of my projects, I focused on something as small as the ‘yao lan’ or sarong cot, which many of us have grown up sleeping in. This unique practice is diminishing along with modernisation, and with the proliferation of fancy cots that arise from creative product designs. Not only does the project help us relive our childhood memories, the body of work also explores themes of family bonding and a sense of collective cultural heritage.

Language is also part of our intangible heritage, stemming from a combination of our different cultures. ‘Singaporelang – What the Singlish’, a photobook and exhibition, and ‘Singlish Mamashop’, an online merchandise brand, are my other heritage projects that focus on the uniqueness of Singlish.

As a subject matter, the Singaporean culture is ever-evolving, colourful and has lots of stories to tell, so much so that it is in itself a theme that keeps on inspiring itself. It’s really fulfilling to find the myriad of ways to express how I feel as a young Singaporean, and even more so when it achieves resonance and rapport with my fellow Singaporeans.

As an artist, I would like to help people realise the little cultural customs they take for granted. To me, it’s not just about our national monuments or history, but rather what makes us flavourful Singaporeans. It’s important to accept how things came to be, but it’s more important to understand how we all make up a bigger unit, of being Singaporean.

I definitely hope to see more of such heritage stories being told, or ideas being explored. Everyone has a voice, so just explore and discover, whether it’s out of fun or curiosity – and most importantly, just start doing! As Mark Twain says in one of my cherished quotes, “the secret of getting ahead is simply getting started".