LASALLE X Project Broken Barges: The Digital Shorelines

Project Broken Barges is a ground-up heritage initiative dedicated to documenting the unwritten history of Seletar. The project was initiated by Rustam Shariq Mujtaba, while he was exploring his family’s history in Kampong Tongkang Pechah, he discovered that much of Seletar’s oral history in Old Singapore was undocumented. By collecting oral stories from residents who once lived and worked there, the organisation aims to preserve the community’s collective memory in a way that is accessible and relevant for the public and future generations.

While they successfully document the oral stories online, there remains a disconnect between the digital narratives and the Seletar community that the organisation seeks to reach on-site. To bridge this gap, the arts project proposes a site-specific phygital (physical and digital) map installation at Fernvale Community Centre in Sengkang, featuring a curated AR experience from the organisation's existing archival materials. This approach not only introduces residents to Old Seletar’s history but also encourages them to contribute their own untold stories, supporting their mission to preserve local heritage. By transforming oral histories into an interactive educational experience, the installation also raises awareness of the organisation’s work.

"Project Broken Barges had an amazing opportunity to collaborate with LASALLE Arts Management students to explore artistic depictions of community heritage. A dynamic group that was comfortable navigating real world ambiguities, we were fortunate to partner this team that rose up to this challenge remarkably, eager to experiment with newer concepts.

Their approach to the research was thoughtful and methodical, actively listening to the needs and requirements of this project to draft the sandbox that the project requires. Through iterative engagements, the team did properly intuit and answer the various processes within digital development. This professionalism was truly wonderful to experience and work with.

Developing a curatorial plan, this approach may seem simple, however the ambiguity in the field of community heritage and experimental digital art approaches made it a great research deep dive that PBB enjoyed. We are extremely proud of these students, they operated as a team and delivered quality outputs that Broken Barges can draw from for our execution. We hope to explore further partnership with LASALLE on future projects, as this collaboration has proven to be valuable not only for PBB but for the innovative reimaginations of community heritage.”

By Rustam Shariq Mujtaba, Founder of Project Broken Barges

• Angela Kristie Rustham - Project Lead, Research and Writing
• Amila Khairana Binte Abdul Rahmat - Visual Design Lead, Video Editor, Research and Writing
• Glenn Chua Boon Kang - Soundscape Design, Research and Writing
• Leong En Qi Hannah - Visual Design, Research and Writing
• Nur Fildzah Binte Sazali - Visual Design, Research and Writing

To produce an AR curatorial report for Project Broken Barges' installation at Fernvale Community Centre that can serve as an actionable framework for the organisation to implement the curatorial plan and installation independently.

Requirements of the installation include:

• A mobile installation; a collapsible, easy-to-store physical setup that allows the organisation's small team to implement across different Community Centres in Singapore.
• A map to visually pinpoint selected anecdotal narratives across Seletar.
• Engagement with an intergenerational target audience: both younger and older Seletar residents.

The AR Curatorial report provides a thematic structure and interpretive framework, detailing the selection and sequencing of narratives from Project Broken Barges' archive. It specifies integrating physical displays with digital and immersive AR elements to create a mixed-media experience. The document also outlines interactive storytelling strategies, technical requirements, and a spatial layout for installation at Fernvale Community Centre, ensuring the exhibition is both educationally robust and visually compelling for a diverse public audience.

The AR Curatorial Report also includes:

1. A visual mockup of the installation's physical setup.
2. A visual mockup of the AR content curation, including environment, characters, and how it's being presented in an isometric format.
3. A video mockup of the WebAR user experience.
4. Project budget and timeline.
5. Briefs of design material mockups and specifications, for the map illustration artist, 3D modelling artist, soundscape designer, AR developer, and informational booklet designer, where the organisation can reference when liaising with the stakeholders mentioned.