Find Adorable Cat Illustrations At The Malay Heritage Centre

The Malay Heritage Centre (MHC), brings the cat to life in its latest installation, Paw-verbs on the Lawn. Featuring 30 cat illustration standees and 10 common Malay proverb featuring the cat. 

Venue: Malay Heritage Centre, 85 Sultan Gate, Singapore 198501
Date: 10 March - 30 May 2021
Time: 8 am - 9 pm
Fee: Free

"Serta lalu kucing, tikus tidak berdecit" is a Malay proverb that means "when a cat is around, the mouse will not squeak". This is commonly used to describe kids and the arrival of an authoritative figure. 

You will find 10 of these common Malay proverbs featuring the cat in the lawn of the Malay Heritage Centre (MHC) in its latest installation, Paw-verbs on the Lawn. 

Cute Cat Illustrations Standees

In collaboration with Japanese artist Juno of @mofu_sand, MHC brings the cat or kucing to life through 30 of her cat illustrations as standees. These cute standees will be on the lawn of the MHC together with the description of the 10 Malay proverbs. 

The standees will feature the cat in various positions and costumes, providing families with lots of selfie and we-fie opportunities! 

*Note: the area is quite open, so remember sunscreen, water and hats!

Learning Malay Proverbs

Paw-verbs on the Lawn pays tribute to the cat, its place in Malay literary culture and in the hearts of Singaporeans, and also welcomes visitors to the Centre to learn the meaning and significance behind these common Malay proverbs. Some of these proverbs are especially relevant for families! 

• Seperti anjing dan kucing (like a dog with a cat)
  Meaning: A description of two persons who are always quarrelling. Example when the kids are constantly fighting...
• Serta lalu kucing, tikus tidak berdecit (when the cat is around, the mouse will not squeak)
  Meaning: With the arrival of someone who instils fear, those who fear the person will keep silent. When you arrive at the scene of the fight... 
• Malu-malu Kucing (like a shy cat)
  Meaning: A way of saying that a person is pretending to be shy. Like when the kids meet someone for the first time (but is usually not that shy)!

The lawn itself is a pretty fun place to be at. It is open, spacious, bright, cheery, and just great for the little ones to run around!  

Storytelling Sessions

Dates: 20 & 21 March 2021 (Sat & Sun), 22 & 23 May 2021 (Sat & Sun)
Time: 11am & 1pm (two shows per day)
Language: Bilingual (English & Malay)
Tickets: $10

Head on down to the MHC to explore the relationship Nusantara Malays have had with felines across the ages. Go back to the legend of the founding of Singapura in the 14th century, all the way to the current “Islamic reawakening”, and perhaps better understand how the cat has become so endearingly embedded in the Malay language. 

Join distinguished bilingual theatre actor, director and playwright Gene Sha Rudyn as he returns to his Nusantara roots, which are rich in oral traditions, for a special session to share stories of, about or having to do with Cats.

More details will be made available later. 

Find the Paw-verb - Win Prizes

From 16 Mar 2021, families may check out MHC’s weekly ‘Find the Paw-verb!’ post on its Instagram page, which will reveal the silhouette cat sticker for that
week.

Head down to Paw-verbs at MHC's lawn and find the cat standee from the silhouette. Take a selfie and post in online ,tagging @malayheritage and #findpawverbs. Show this to the Visitor Services staff to redeem a free token! 

Token may be used at the gumball capsule machine! Stand a chance to win random gifts, including mofu_sand cat illustration button badges.