Sneakertopia: Street Culture Exhibition Arrives In Asia For The First Time At ArtScience Museum Singapore

After debuts in Los Angeles and New York, Sneakertopia has made its way to Asia for the first time and landed in ArtScience Museum.

Contrary to what its name suggests, the exhibition has a lot more than just a bunch of sneakers. Sneakertopia features murals, installations, designs and original artworks, all of which illustrate the role of sneakers in pop and street culture as well as its relations with art, entertainment and technology. Of course, there are also over 100 limited-edition sneakers peppered throughout the exhibition's 11 zones.

On a side note, check out the Future World exhibition while you're at ArtScience Museum. They're just added new digital gallery with interactive works including an art piece suspended in the air that you can climb.

Here are some highlights of the Sneakertopia: Step Into Street Culture exhibition:

The first thing you'll see is a storyboard mural of iconic sneakers through the years and local artist tobyato's sneaker stone lions. These statues might look like ordinary lions sitting on shoe boxes from the front, but take a look at the back and you'll see sneaker-themed details like laces and shoe tongues.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

At The Art + Sole Gallery are sneaker-themed art pieces including a giant sneaker made of upcycled elements like fabric, sneaker parts and cardboard packaging including a McDonald's fries cup.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

JJ Lin fans will be stoked to know that they can get up close to his personal collection of sneakers and art.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

At The Dream Room, you'll find a collection of art with illusions and visual tricks including AIR, which looks like a sneaker from one perspective and a jumping man from another.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

There's also a zone with art that’ll appeal to those feminine art heart, DIY / Expression, which features two Singapore-based artists' work including graffiti-inspired abstract art and illustrations of cool girls we'd all want to be like.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

Be sure not to miss the discreet nook that houses The Frugal Pop-Up, a hilarious Frugal-themed HDB flat exhibit that parodies streetwear hype. It also bears an intentional resemblance to the brand Supreme with the same font and a similar plain, solid colour background design.

Supreme originally began as a small skate shop and has since catapulted into a huge brand with expensive products. As a reference (and maybe a little shade) to their evolution, the "HDB flat" has ordinary objects covered in fake money and marked with highly inflated price tags.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

Don't forget to peek behind any black curtain too! One of them reveals an infinity sneaker closet and another is a video exhibition with 3D-animated characters reflecting off mirrored walls to create an infinite illusion.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

Perhaps the most Insta- & TikTok-worthy exhibit is the Giant Skateboard sculpture created by one of the founders of Sneaktopia. Unlike with the rest of the artwork in the exhibition, visitors are allowed to climb up on this sculpture. The skateboard can accommodate up to four people at once and children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

One more thing you're allowed to touch is the 3D printing prototype for the Monstera Stomper shoes by ALIVEFORM. These wearable works of art are made entirely from 3D printing and are available for purchase at the gift shop.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

Other items you'll find at the gift shop are street style staples from skateboards to t-shirts with artwork from the exhibition. Limited-edition resin art toys of the A Myna Rebellion and sneaker stone lions artwork will also be on sale.

Photo from GirlStyle Singapore

This is just a tiny peek at the Sneakertopia exhibition and there's a lot more to see including a sneaker-themed throne, giant movie posters with sneaker references, and a pair of sneakers customised with McDonald's BTS meal packaging.

If all that sounds good, you can look forward to Sneakertopia's opening in Singapore on 25 Feb 2023. Tickets are priced at $18 (Adult) and $14 (Child) for Singapore residents and $21 (Adult) and $16 (Child)for tourists.

Sneakertopia: Step Into Street Culture
Location: ArtScience Museum, 6 Bayfront Avenue, Singapore 018974
Opening hours: 10am – 7pm daily
Book tickets: marinabaysands.com

More new museums & exhibitions in Singapore:

• Peranakan Museum Reopens With 9 Refreshed Galleries Across Three Floors
• Changi Chapel & Museum has an installation of giant red poppies
• Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience Is Coming To Singapore, The 360-Degree Exhibition's First Stop In Southeast Asia