The Artground presents Lost Islands: An Immersive Arts Installation

The Artground, in collaboration with Indonesian artist Rachmi Dewi Pertama, presents Lost Islands, an immersive arts installation that brings the folklore, myths, and legends of Singapore and Indonesia to life. Opening on 19 April 2025, this interactive exhibition transforms The Artground’s Visual Arts Space into a vibrant landscape filled with mythical creatures, hidden stories, and hands-on activities. Designed for young explorers, Lost Islands encourages children to climb, explore, and create while discovering cultural heritage through play and imagination.

The Artground Lost Islands Image credit: The Artground

Set within the Lost Islands installation, The Artground has also collaborated with UOB to introduce the UOB Learning Playzone, where children learn about financial literacy in a fun and engaging way. Through role-play activities like trading in a marketplace and designing their own money, they explore key concepts such as saving, spending, and managing money.

Sensory Storytelling: The Amazing Sarong

Lost Islands batik sensory storytelling experience Image credit: The Artground

On this opening day, as part of Lost Islands, The Artground presents a special batik sensory storytelling experience inspired by Quek Hong Shin’s The Amazing Sarong. Children will step into Nora’s cosy home for a beach-inspired adventure, feeling fabric waves, listening to ocean sounds on a wave drum, and creating their own batik art with cold wax. They will explore the beauty of the batik, experiment with colours and patterns, and take home their unique creations. They will tiptoe, crawl, and run through a sensory landscape of draped sarongs, search for Ibu’s missing cat, and discover fresh flowers along the way!

A Journey Through the Lost Islands

Step into the Lost Islands and embark on a journey through captivating folktales passed down through generations. From 19 April 2025 to 31 March 2026, this immersive installation brings these age-old legends to life with a variety of interactive zones designed for exploration and play.

Lost Island interactive zones Image credit: The Artground

Lost Islands is packed with experiential, interactive zones inspired by Singapore and Indonesia’s rich folklore. Turtle Island lets children climb atop a giant turtle, inspired by the legend of Kusu Island, where a kind turtle transformed into an island to save stranded fishermen.

At the heart of Adventure Story Island stands a towering, two-story book-shaped structure, inviting kids to flip through oversized folktale pages, climb to new heights, and swoop down a slide into a soft foam pool. Hidden dioramas by Rachmi bring each story to life.

Artground Lost Islands Play Image credit: The Artground

For younger explorers, Baby Forest Island offers a cosy, sensory-friendly space inspired by the legend of Sang Nila Utama. Little ones can weave through soft pool noodles resembling river broadleaf cumbungi, relax in cosy tents, or sink into a mini foam pit with soft fish and shell pillows, making it the perfect spot to play and unwind. Nearby, The Mythical Dragon’s Back features a tactile walking path, where kids can feel their way along various textures.

Lost Islands The Artground Image credit: The Artground

The Treasure Map is your guide, helping families explore how to earn and spend money on Lost Islands, make smart choices, and learn the basics of budgeting in a fun and interactive way. Explore hands-on interactive elements at Fishing Boat and enjoy an animation Kusu Island: The Fishermen and the Turtle come to life in this immersive animation presented by the National Library Board in collaboration with Esplanade Offstage. In the Island Theatre, kids can dress up and act out their favourite folktales, letting their creativity soar as they bring stories to life. Don’t miss the “lift-the-flap” game on Adventure Island, which introduces simple vocabulary in both English and Bahasa Indonesia, making learning fun and interactive.

UOB Learning Playzone: A Financial Literacy Arts Experience for Children

The Artground UOB Learning Playzone Image credit: The Artground

As part of Lost Islands, the UOB Learning Playzone transforms the space into a vibrant interactive art hub where children explore financial literacy through creativity and hands-on role-play activities. Aboard the marketplace boat, they get to role-play as store owners and sell gathered food like fish, fruits, and vegetables, using seashells, gold, and silver coins as currency to learn the basics of trade. Each child receives a money card to track earnings and expenses as they take on jobs – fishing, performing, or even crossing the sensory trail. Children can stamp their card when they earn, punch a hole when they spend, and decide whether to save, spend, or donate. A giant treasure map guides families through this journey, showcasing how money moves within Lost Islands. To make giving back fun, a gachapon machine allows kids to exchange their earnings for magnet tokens (food, books, clothes). They can then place these on a charity tracker, which provides a visual representation of the impact of their spending decisions.

Artground Lost Islands hands-on activity Image credit: The Artground

Within the UOB Learning Playzone children can channel their creativity to design island currency notes using recycled materials. This hands-on activity is inspired by Joanna Maneckji, UOB Painting of the Year (POY) artist, who has crafted a new artwork for Lost Islands using her signature collage technique. Kids can explore their artistic side while drawing inspiration from her unique approach to art and design.

Meanwhile, POY artist Leo Liu will create a vibrant mural behind the marketplace boat, transforming the marketplace into a true adventure. Both Joanna and Leo’s works will be unveiled on 5th of May.

A Money Gallery Wall, inspired by Katie Friedman’s The Plastic Rectangle, will showcase children’s drawings illustrating the story’s playful message – money is important, but time together is priceless. This exciting space blends play, creativity, and learning, making financial literacy an engaging experience for kids and families alike.

A Space for Play, Art, and Discovery

Lost Island installations Image credit: The Artground

Designed for children aged 0 to 9 years, Lost Islands continues The Artground’s mission to bridge the worlds of arts and play, providing an interactive space for children and their families to experience storytelling in new and exciting ways. Through imaginative play, sensory experiences, and creative exploration, Lost Islands aims to foster a love for folklore, culture, and the arts in young minds.

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