Tricks Galore at the Trick Eye Museum Singapore

After three weeks of blissful relaxation back home in India (the dratted scale reprimanded me with a 4kg spike in weight 😆), I got back to the grind in mid-January. And I’ve been desperately trying to get back into the groove of blogging ever since. I realized that I have enough material for three restaurant reviews but since my last post was a restaurant review, I didn’t want to be repetitive. I have one recipe draft post ready but I’m strategically saving that for Valentine’s Day. I know that I need to post a salad recipe (or two) but it’s just not happening so I’m going to abandon that pursuit for the time being. I’m neck-deep into Daniel Silva’s Gabriel Allon spy thriller series but it’s hard to pick just one book to review so I thought I’d do an overall series review. That will take time though - I am 7 books down, 12 more to go.

I really wasn’t sure what I was going to blog about until I started scrolling through the approximately 7000 photos on my phone (yes I have THAT many). And then it hit me. This is a post that I wanted to do a while back but had somehow sunk into the perpetually foggy depths of my brain.

But, first of course, a little bit of background….

Singapore is a really small country. It isn’t called “The Little Red Dot” for nothing. I have called Singapore home for the past 14 years and unsurprisingly, have been to almost every nook and cranny of this island nation.

Last year in October, my sister and her family visited us. My sister has been to Singapore several times over the years so she had already seen all of the “touristy” places there is to see. I was scratching my head thinking about where to take her. Since there were three kids in the picture (one hers, two mine), I wanted to go somewhere that would be fun for the kids and preferably indoors so we can escape from the persistent heat and humidity or the inclement weather. It was then that I realized that of the few places in Singapore that we miraculously hadn’t visited yet, one happened the Trick Eye Museum at Sentosa. I had seen pictures on a friend’s Facebook wall around the time the museum opened and had made a mental note to check it out but never got around to doing so.

Trick Eye Museum, the internationally renowned optical art museum from Korea is a unique museum with a large array of 3-dimensional artwork for interactive optical illusions. Trick Eye Museum Singapore has introduced Augmented Reality (AR) features to its exhibits. The AR features bring its art installations and paintings to life thus providing visitors with an immersive experience of thrilling sound, lights and other effects that create realistic illusions. 

The whole intent of the museum is to trick the viewer's eye and stimulate creativity and imagination techniques through one's vision through through the exhibits that are specially designed for photo opportunities. Visitors are recommended to use the ART Mobile app to take video and pictures. 

I generally refrain from posting a lot of my children’s pictures on my blog (mainly for privacy and safety concerns) but I figured, I simply wouldn’t be able do a blog post on this museum without any pictures and since my children happen to be in most of them, I have no choice. I’ve covered almost all the major sightseeing spots in Singapore on my blog and I didn't want to miss out on the Trick Eye Museum....hence, the exception.

If you love taking or being in pictures, this is a good place to visit. The picture taking experience begins even before you enter the museum.

Trick Eye Museum is fun not only for the young but even the young at heart. Once you enter the vividly colourful and eye-catching space, there are more than 80 optical illusion paintings and installations which will boggle your mind and make you do a double take. Be sure your camera is fully charged with plenty of memory space before your visit.

We visited on a weekday morning just around the time the museum opened which turned out to be a blessing because there was hardly any crowd and we didn't feel like we were monopolizing  any of the exhibits, especially the more popular ones. 

You won’t find signs such as ‘Don’t Touch’ or ‘No Flash’. Nobody walking around checking to see what you are up to. The museum encourages visitors to touch and take photos of all displayed works. You can step inside or crawl into the exhibits. Interact with the characters and become the subject of the artwork on display.

The kids went quite mad with excitement (so did I....a wee bit 😆). They were dashing from illusion to illusion not knowing which one to spend more time checking out. 

It was during our time here that I truly discovered that my twin A is a natural poser and revels in being the subject of a photograph whereas twin N is camera-conscious, detests posing and is not remotely interested in getting her picture taken (her daddy’s daughter by all accounts). 

Unsurprisingly, my husband volunteered to be the photographer whilst me, my sister and the camera-friendly kids had a great time pulling silly poses, exaggerated facial expressions and funny gestures. 

Remember to be patient, try to be a good sport and unleash your inner performer – the better your alignment and melodramatic expressions, the more interesting your photos will turn out. You may need to crop the pictures so you get rid of any unwanted background.

We re-took several pictures because we realized that we weren't standing in the right place or we weren't looking in the right direction or else our expressions could use more work. Though I will admit, among us all, my sister wins hands down 😀

The museum is divided into different zones:

World of Masterpieces

This is a zone where you get to discover the hidden secrets of four dimensional spaces. The place displays Media Art, Ames Rooms and Dining Room. You would find tricky paintings and art installations. Here’s a chance to pop out of a random painting hung on the wall or serve your partner’s head on a platter.

Excitement

The Excitement zone is all about evoking a sense excitement in the visitors. The adventurous visual illusions make you look like escaping a giant beast like an anaconda and a piranha or playing with a rare animal like riding a jumbo elephant’s trunk or climbing bamboos with a cute panda. The other thrill inspiring illusions include paragliding or trekking on a snow mountain.

Supernatural

This spooky zone at the Trick Eye Museum in Singapore lets you overcome the supernatural. The illusions of the friendly ghosts lets you become the main lead of the lot and engage in the paranormal activities. See your body floating above the ground level; find yourself laid on a cemetery box while a priest and two men perform exorcism on you; get trapped in an hourglass or dare to cross the narrow wooden bridge illusion built over a deep crack in the Earth.

Fairytale

Even if you are an adult now, the Fairy Tale Zone will bring alive all your childhood fantasies. Sit on the moon; swim like a mermaid; let a wolf-man take you on a vintage bike ride through the woods; dine with a rabbit; take a tour on Aladdin’s magic carpet or dance on the ice like Elsa. Do all that you ever imagined but couldn’t.

This zone also has some of the most romantic settings of the lot so couples can get some dreamy pictures.

Fantasy

Fantasy zone at the Trick Eye Museum is just like a dream land. Here you will see magical realms of fantasy come alive right before your eyes. These picture perfect settings are a dream come true for any visitor. Become a butterfly; cross a tricky bridge build over a waterfall; share a leafy umbrella with a frog or ride a beautiful white flying horse.

Trick World

The Trick World has some of the most loved Trick Eye exhibits on display. It is likely that you will see the highest concentration of people in this zone. Take an ocean ride on the popular mythical Singapore Merlion, perform the most difficult postures of professional ballet dance along with other illusionary dancers; indulge in a horse riding race or challenge a Kung Fu master to a fight. 

This zone of Trick Eye Museum is more artistic than it is illusionary.

A suggestion - wear a pretty pastel colored top/dress if you want a nice ballerina picture. Don't be so atrociously color mismatched like me okay? 😝

Even though the Trick Eye Museum doesn’t appear to be all that big, we spent a good two hours there. We look loads of photos and videos, had a good laugh and the kids also seemed to thoroughly enjoy the experience.

Even though the ticket prices may seem slightly on the higher side, looking back, if these pictures bring a smile to my face years down the line, it is worth it.

After that we were feeling rather hungry and so we headed over to Marché at VivoCity and enjoyed a lovely family lunch. It was a day well spent indeed.

If you are looking for a unique experience, Trick Eye Museum is the perfect place to get creative and wacky with friends and family. Bring your camera, let your imagination run wild and trick away!

Trick Eye Museum

Operating Hours:

Monday - Sunday: 10am – 9pm

(Last Admission: 8pm)

Address:

Resorts World Sentosa 26 Sentosa Gateway #01-43/44 Singapore 098138

Contact:

feedback@trickeye.com

Ticketing information:

Adult (Ages 13 to 59): SGD 25     

Child (Ages 4 to 12): SGD20         

Senior Citizen (Ages 60 and above): SGD20

Tickets are available for both online and on-site purchase at Trick Eye Museum. Check the website for promotions. 

Notes:

• The restrooms are located outside the museum so it would be a good idea to get the kids to empty their bladder before entering the museum
• You can grab something to eat around the area or else take the Sentosa monorail to VivoCity for more options

Cheers,

Megha

This is NOT a sponsored post