Spanning the period from the 1st century AD to 1500 AD, the “Simulation: Voices From The Past” exhibition explores the shared cultural heritage of Southeast Asia. The exhibition, which runs till 30th December 2025 at National Art Gallery, is based on the book “Voices From The Past” written by renowned architect, Dr Lim Teng Ngiom.
The exhibition highlights how Southeast Asia’s shared culture fosters a collective regional identity and traces common threads that have shaped maritime trade networks, artistic lineages, belief systems, and the intangible cultural exchanges that continue to influence modern life.
Located on the ground floor of the National Art Gallery, visitors can discover the maritime journey through ports, religions, kingdoms, architecture, the arts and paintings, and human encounters across the seas.
“The exhibition comprises images on five gigantic lanterns hanging from the ceiling and falling weightless in space to tell us stories from the past bringing together the layered histories of Malaysia and the wider Southeast Asian region once forged by cross-migration, trade, shared belief, and countless cultural encounters,” explains Dr Lim.
Inside the exhibition, visitors are able to view and explore the following:
Hanging lanterns
- Lantern 1: Bas Relief of Aspara Dances found on the walls of Angkor Wat, Borobudur, Prambanan Temple, Vat Phouin Laos, and the ancient kingdom of Champa in Vietnam and temples in Thailand
- Lantern 2: Shadow Play/Wayang Kulit as favourite pastimes in Southeast Asia and China
- Lantern 3: Brave seafarers who rode the winds and waves from the Pacific to the South China Sea
- Lantern 4: Significant and sacred archaeological Temples in Southeast Asia
- Lantern 5: Elephants as Beast of War during ancient mainland Southeast Asia especially Khmer, Cambodia, Vietnam, and the Siamese kingdoms. The Malaccan kingdom likewise used elephants against the Portuguese in 1511 AD
Standing lanterns
Handwritten Javanese manuscripts derived from the 8th century Kawi script Serat Jaya Wulang 1803-1889, collections from the British Library, and ancient stone writings in the form of Sanskrit religious writings found on walls of temples are displayed in the form of standing lanterns.
Wayang Kulit characters
Traditional shadow puppets are celebrated throughout Southeast Asia and China.
The “Simulation: Voices From The Past” exhibition opens from 9am to 5pm daily and will run until 30th December 2025. For more information, visit National Art Gallery’s Instagram and Facebook.
