chasing mén‍

追门‍

A mosaic artwork consisting of 1965 individual images of doors, behind obscured by a semi-transparent version of the chasing men logo.

a heritage-based NFT celebrating the cultural
tapestry of our little red dot

The chasing mén 1965 artwork is a mosaic of photographs comprising 1965 unique doors across Singapore.

Our photographers explored the streets and back alleys of the city in pursuit of doors to illustrate the rich cultural tapestry of Singapore.

team

Chasing men team leads posing in black and white in front of a door house along Petain Road.

chasing mén is an art piece as unique as each door it is composed of, as a labour of love and inclusivity. Our entrepreneurial team worked hard to bring this artwork to life.

learn more about the team
A snippet of the complete chasing men artwork, depicting several images of doors stitched together.

LOCATIONS

- Central

- North East

- North

- East

- West

view all
Multiple bicycles parked in front of a dilapidated door painted in blue.

Team

Chasing men team leads posing in black and white in front of a door house along Petain Road.

chasing mén is an art piece as unique as each door it is composed of, as a labour of love and inclusivity. Our entrepreneurial team worked hard to bring this artwork to life.

learn more about the team

LOCATIONS

Multiple bicycles parked in front of a dilapidated door painted in blue.

- Central

- North East

- North

- East

- West

view all

about the artwork

The word ‘mén’ (门) in Chinese means ‘door.’ Behind every mén is a story to be told, reminding us of the forgotten history beneath our modern concrete jungle landscape. It is these stories that we want to focus on and share through this artwork, so step into a world of heritage through the doors of chasing mén 1965.

The 1,965 images that make up this artwork have been divided into their geographical locations in Singapore, and this is reflected in the artwork itself as the doors are placed within regions (North, Northeast, Central, East and West).

Our team of photographers has travelled 986 kilometres around Singapore to gather images that capture a collective Singaporean identity. Discover stories of historical significance, literary references, artistic endeavours, and depictions of everyday life.

Relive the history of the door-fronts of those who have occupied, visited, and worked there – remnants of their desires, ambitions, hardships, and successes remain. Explore distinctly human elements of life as they culminate in the doors, waiting to be remembered and cherished despite the wearing of the years.

Lonely Black
Near Reflections at Bukit Chandu
A watch tower that stands in the centre with blue industrial buildings in the backdrop.
A watch tower that stands in the centre with blue industrial buildings in the backdrop.
Lookout towers are a remnant of Singapore’s early independence years in the sixties and seventies. Their high vantage point attracted lovebirds and government officials alike to survey the city’s changing landscape. Abandoned towers such as this one in Pasir Panjang are spread all over the island’s coastal lines. Now a favourite of urban explorers, their locked doors promise panoramic views from these lone bastions of yesteryear.
Got U Covered
Outram Park, Kampong Bahru Rd
A blue grilled door with staircase leading up to it, as part of a mural depicting two oversized pink and red cartoon characters.
A blue grilled door with staircase leading up to it, as part of a mural depicting two oversized pink and red cartoon characters.
Street art by Thai graffiti artist Patcharapol Tangruen (a.k.a. Alex Face) frames this unassuming door in Outram Park. Idiosyncratic bunny-human hybrids beckon viewers down the rabbit hole, infusing a sense of whimsy in this street. In a local twist, the playful pair are clothed in a changsan and sarong kebaya.
Post It Office
Geylang Lorong 25
A rusty worn-down looking brown door with many stickers pasted all over its facade, and an empty milk carton hung beside it dangling from a string.
A rusty worn-down looking brown door with many stickers pasted all over its facade, and an empty milk carton hung beside it dangling from a string.
Home to brothels, beer gardens and endless eateries, Geylang is currently famous for its neon-lit nightlife, though it was first recognised as the original settlement of the indigenous Orang Laut. In the daytime, the neighbourhood feels considerably sleepier. Moments of stillness can be observed in scenes like this, where pockmarked doors remain shut until the sun goes down.
Potable Brown
Masjid Hussain Sulaiman, Pasir Panjang Rd
The front doors of a mosque closed shut, with four different mats of varying colours neatly placed in front.
The front doors of a mosque closed shut, with four different mats of varying colours neatly placed in front.
Masjid Hussain Sulaiman has faithfully served the Pasir Panjang community since 1902. Originally built as a surau, an Islamic place of worship popular across the Malay Peninsula, it retains much of its historical architectural form and timber structure. Its striking red doors pop against the more commonly green hues of its roof and windows.
Biscuit White
Joo Chiat, Koon Seng Rd
A pink-rimmed white door is shown decorated with a traditional yellow swing doors in front, with a red lantern hanging like a mistletoe.
A pink-rimmed white door is shown decorated with a traditional yellow swing doors in front, with a red lantern hanging like a mistletoe.
Before this colourful street of shophouses in Joo Chiat found fame among Singaporean Instagrammers, it housed one of the first few Chinese immigrants in Singapore. The Peranakan tiles peeking from beside the doors harken to Koon Seng Road’s illustrious history. Today, a Buddhist meditation centre is tucked away behind these doors.

To respect the unique nature of this artwork, chasing mén 1965 will be available for sale on OpenSea from 9th August 2022. The exclusive sale of the artwork corresponds to the piece's authenticity while encouraging the story behind the artwork to continue to unfold through each unique owner.

Central
North East
North
East
West
A door built into a bright blue brick facade, with a signboard depicting Chinese characters at the top and red strolls of Chinese handwritten phrases along its sides.A submarine-style cabin with metallic facade, with a front-facing door and two chairs placed neatly in front.A worn door brown door with Chinese characters hand-written on its body. The gate to the door is swung open, with cartons of boxes surrounded on its sides. A gate at a pier, shown shut with multiple signboards hung on its teeth, and boats depicted in the backdrop. A bright sunny yellow door with blue grills, with a red broom being hung between the two layers.
A door obscured in a wall facade comprising of multiple grey bricks in varying shades. The door is depicted with overhanging plants protruding on its sides.A blue metallic tray blocks a door entrance, with other household items scattered around, such as a roller chair, stack of pails and stools.A black door on a bright green facade, with a black-and-white striped umbrella overhanging its roof.A pink-rimmed white door is shown decorated with a traditional yellow swing doors in front, with a red lantern hanging like a mistletoe.A pink door is shown behind black grills, with signboards depicting different Chinese sayings on its left, right as well as top.
A door amongst greenlands, as part of a cement wall with barbed fence.A white door that seems to blend with its wall, since they are both made of similar white tiles with a black finish at the bottom. A door belonging to a residential home, with a bright red DIY mailbox hanging on the grill, and several shoes arranged rather neatly in front.A white container-like door with streaks of orange and brown rust all over its facade.A grey door without any handles, which looks just like a plank of wood hanging on the wall.
A heritage-style door sits at the centre of the picture, against a blue wall facade.A door obscured within a colourful mural depicting a big animal's claws. A door obscured within a wall made up of randomly alternating tiles of green and blue.A 2-storey high entrance to a building, with a huge ornament of a shark with its jaws wide opened protruding out of the entrance.A conical shape wooden building featuring a front-facing door.
An old-school looking brown door with Chinese characters engraved in it. On both sides of the door are emerald statues depicting a laughing man holding a weapon upright.A rusty worn-down looking brown door with many stickers pasted all over its facade, and an empty milk carton hung beside it dangling from a string. A white door depicted as part of a huge wall mural. The mural is mostly in red, illustrating a man in a cloak that also covers the head.A staircase leading up to a brown door. Beside it is a huge mural with Chinese characters as well as a cartoon illustration depicting the past, with 4 characters grooming one another in pairs. A shopfront with its shutters down, the shutters being bright green with a quote decorated on it, with several potted plants in its surroundings.

986

KM distance covered

1283

roads covered

24

towns covered

9

photographers

6

photo editors

the bigger picture

The chasing mén 1965 artwork will be released as a heritage-based NFT. This marks the creation and minting of the first NFT to capture Singapore’s heritage as a full-fledged collaborative artwork, resulting in a collage of 1,965 images.

This is the first of many initiatives as part of a newly launched chasing mén, a creative collective focusing on the intersections between art, cultural heritage, and technology.

Over the past few months, the chasing mén team has come together to make our ideas a reality to raise awareness about Singapore’s heritage and culture through a digital art piece accessible to everyone.‍

The chasing mén collective was launched through a partnership between INTERLUNAR and Trampolene. Trampolene, an A*STAR spin-off, is a research & technology non-profit organisation that provides solutioning to bring about change and positive impact to the lives of the underprivileged, disadvantaged and vulnerable. Working with charitable groups through our artistic and technological projects, the goal is to continue to create a positive impact in the creative and technological field.

Portion of the profits from the sale of chasing mén 1965 will thus be donated to Trampolene to support their charitable initiatives to bring about change in the lives of the underprivileged, disadvantaged and vulnerable. 

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