‘The Art of Stephen Wiltshire’ Review
Article by Nur Naziha Bte Hairudin
The Art of Stephen Wiltshire exhibition is held at the 3rd level of the URA Centre from 3 October 2014 – 28 February 2015. This exhibition will showcase past artworks of British artist and autistic savant, Stephen Wiltshire and also the commissioned artwork of the Panoramic Drawing Cityscape of Singapore.
(Photo credit: Nur Naziha Bte Hairudin)
Take a picture, it will last longer. Not in his case.
While people will go crazy trying to take out their smartphones to take a picture of beautiful scenery in front of them, this man only needs this sketchpad and his mind. Nicknamed the “human camera”, this man is known for his ability to draw detailed cityscapes from memory after viewing them just once.
In July 2014, world renowned British artist and autistic savant Stephen Wiltshire was commissioned by Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) to draw a panoramic view of the Singapore skyline. So what better place to display this one of the kind artwork than at a place where you can also learn about how the Singapore city skyline came to be?
Displayed at the Singapore City Gallery at the Urban Development Authority centre (URA), the artwork is currently being hung right in front of the scale model of the Central Area Model.
Stephen Wiltshire spent five days drawing the city on a 4m-by-1m canvas in full public view at the main atrium of Paragon shopping centre after an hour-long helicopter ride to view Singapore’s skyline. Even after the artwork was done, the buzz was still strong as the public wanted to know where they could see it.
With little knowledge on Stephen Wiltshire, I decided to head to the Singapore City Gallery and after hearing they have dedicated an exhibition space for Stephen’s past works as well. What can I say? It did not disappoint.
The small exhibition space displays past framed artworks by Stephen as his talent brought him around the world and sketch skylines of major cities such as London, New York, Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong. It also showcases Stephen Wiltshire’s story and his career success so far which is perfect for those who want to find out more about this artist.
In each artwork displayed, it is amazing how much heart Stephen put into it. The intricate designs of the buildings and landscapes are so detailed; it is really hard to believe that this was drawn mostly by memory.
After exploring the exhibition and the rest of the Singapore City Gallery, I ventured towards the main attraction and the reason why I came in the first place. The Panoramic Drawing Cityscape of Singapore is conveniently placed near the Central Area Model.
This scale model represents two percent of Singapore and you can also imagine Stephen’s helicopter ride around the area and how he got his inspiration for the drawing.
Accompanying the drawing is also a video of Stephen’s journey in Singapore, the process of his drawing and his first meeting with our president!
This artwork was presented to President Tony Tan Keng Yam on 9 September 2014 as a gift to Singapore for its 50th birthday. The exhibition is currently held at level three of the URA Centre from 3rd October 2014 to 28 February 2015.
Drawing (above) of the Singapore Skyline displayed at the 2nd Level of the URA Centre.
(Photo credit: Singapore City Gallery)