Introduction
FY2025 marked a series of significant milestones for Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre (SCCC). We welcomed close to 1.1 million visitors to the Centre in FY2025 – more than doubled the 474,000 visitors we attracted in FY2024 and the highest ever record since the opening in 2017. SCCC also doubled our programme attendance from close to 1.2 million in FY2024 to 2.3 million in FY2025. This remarkable growth reflects the widespread appeal of our programmes and the strong public support for engaging cultural experiences.
Strengthening National Pride
FY2025 was also the year where Singapore celebrated its 60th year of independence, and SCCC commemorated this important anniversary with a series of SG60 programmes. We launched our 60 Prominent Cultural Figures from the Chinese Community exhibition in partnership with Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations (SFCCA) and Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SCCCI).
The exhibition honoured 60 distinguished pioneers and leaders from the local Chinese community, highlighting their achievements across six main fields of academia, commerce, literary arts, media, performing arts and visual arts. We also travelled the exhibition to multiple locations in Singapore for more to learn about the contributions of our Chinese pioneers. The onsite and travelling exhibitions attracted more than 550,000 visitors over a year.
60 Prominent Cultural Figures from the Chinese Community exhibition was on display at both SCCC and Singapore Conference Hall
In collaboration with Siaw-Tao Chinese Seal Carving, Calligraphy and Painting Society, we also presented SG, You’ve Got Mail! exhibition, a heartfelt tribute that featured 60 handcrafted “letters” to Singapore on its 60th birthday in the form of artworks. The exhibition showcased personal reflections, memories and hopes for the nation, expressed through the traditional art forms of ink painting, calligraphy, and seal carving. The exhibition attracted close to 11,000 visitors over a month.
Visitors at Siaw-Tao’s SG, You’ve Got Mail! Exhibition on display at SCCC Concourse
These exhibitions were complemented by SG60 Weekend: A Community Celebrates, a two-day celebration co-organised with Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) and our arts tenants and residents that transformed the Central Business District into a lively cultural destination over a weekend and attracted more than 2,200 visitors. For the first time, our arts tenants/residents opened their studios and creative spaces to the public, offering visitors an intimate glimpse into the artistic process behind their work and an opportunity for them to try out hands-on activities.
SCCC also commemorated Singapore’s 60th year of independence by collaborating with Mediacorp and SPH Chinese Media Group to launch three documentaries: The Collectors which featured local collectors of heritage and cultural memorabilia; Tuesday Report: Encounter Under The Stars which traced the evolution of Singapore’s xinyao movement; and Artists Of An Isle which spotlighted five distinguished local artists comprising calligrapher Lim Tze Peng, dancer Yan Choong Lian, writer You Jin, crosstalk writer and playwright Han Lao Da and vocal artist Joy Chen Yu Shen.
Growing the Arts and Culture Ecosystem
Throughout FY2025, SCCC continued to support our local arts and cultural practitioners and groups as part of our efforts to grow Singapore’s arts and culture ecosystem. SCCC provided support to practitioners and groups in the areas of arts housing, venue partnerships, marketing, commissioning new works and capability development.
SCCC collaborated with 121 partners and provided venue partnerships for 74 events organised by 54 arts groups and cultural organisations. This is the highest number of partnerships we have recorded ever since we introduced our Venue Partnership programme in 2019. SCCC also provided marketing support for local arts and cultural groups through print advertisements, monthly e-newsletters etc., and commissioned a total of 15 new works by local arts and cultural groups which were presented at our signature festivals.
Participants at one of the multicultural drumming workshops conducted by Drum Feng, NADI Singapura and Singapore Dhol Squad.
To develop and deepen the artistic capabilities of local arts practitioners as well as arts and cultural groups, SCCC partnered Drum Feng and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) School of Theatre to co-organise drumming workshops and theatre acting workshops respectively on selected days from Jan to Mar 2026, attracting close to 250 participants.
Through our efforts and those of our partners, we hope to showcase the works of local arts and cultural practitioners and groups, and to deepen their capabilities. In doing so, we hope to increase public appreciation of and participation in local Chinese arts and culture and contribute to building a vibrant arts and culture scene.
Forging International Connections
While SCCC continued to showcase our unique local Chinese culture at home and support local Chinese arts and cultural groups, we also looked beyond our shores to forge meaningful country-to-country relations through international collaborations. In FY2025, we embarked on our first international project to commemorate 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Singapore and France.
In partnership with Embassy of France in Singapore, we presented CITY SingaPOP Artspace Exhibition as part of the 2025 Voilah! France Singapore Festival. The exhibition showcased 70 works by award-winning French visual designer Nicolas Damiens, who transformed local landmarks into City Pop art. Supported by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY), the exhibition portrayed Singapore in a novel and different light and attracted close to 41,000 visitors.
From left: French visual designer Nicolas Damiens, Ambassador of France to Singapore Mr Stephen Marchisio, Permanent Secretary for MCCY Ms Teoh Zsin Woon, and Chairman of SCCC Mr Ng Siew Quan at the launch of CITY SingaPOP Artspace Exhibition.
To commemorate the establishment of 60 years of diplomatic relations between Singapore and Malaysia, as well as Singapore and Thailand, we also collaborated with the High Commission of Malaysia and the Royal Thai Embassy Singapore to showcase our shared kopitiam culture. Titled Brewing Nostalgia: Kopitiams In Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, the special exhibition featured 24 black and white photographs of traditional kopitiams in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand taken by award-winning travel photographer and writer Lester V. Ledesma. Supported by MCCY, the exhibition attracted close to 300,000 visitors.
These international collaborations mark the beginning of an exciting new chapter in SCCC’s development. They demonstrate our growing confidence as a cultural institution capable of forging meaningful partnerships that transcend geographical boundaries while remaining dedicated in our mission to celebrate Chinese arts and culture rooted in Singapore’s multicultural society.
Striving Towards New Heights
SCCC’s efforts throughout the year have yielded fruit and our achievements have reinforced our belief that we are on the right track and encouraged us to strive for new heights. In the coming year, SCCC will continue to curate and present programmes that showcase our unique local Chinese culture and strengthen relations with existing and new stakeholders. SCCC will also continue to support local arts and cultural groups by creating more platforms for everyone to experience local Chinese culture.
In 2026, SCCC will present our first Mandarin-led children’s festival to provide children below the age of 12 the opportunity to engage with local Chinese culture and language through stories, music and play. To showcase more local Chinese festive celebrations, SCCC will also organise our inaugural Zhongyuan Festival where visitors can learn about the festival’s history, customs, practices and cultural significance through traditional and contemporary offerings.
As we look back on our achievements and look forward to the year ahead, I would like to extend my heartfelt appreciation to our Board of Directors for their guidance, to SCCC staff for their hard work and commitment, to our donors for their unwavering support, and to the community who has journeyed with us and who has always been there for us.