Art SG may have wrapped in January, but Singapore's gallery calendar doesn't pause for breath. As March draws to a close, several exhibitions across the island are in their final weeks — and a few deserve far more attention than they've been getting. Here's where to spend a meaningful hour or two this Sunday.

The National Gallery's ongoing group exhibition Tropical Futures is one of the most intellectually ambitious shows the institution has mounted in recent years. Spanning 14 artists from across Southeast Asia, the exhibition asks what "tropical" means as an aesthetic, ecological, and political category — and refuses to give easy answers. Highlights include a large-scale installation by Indonesian artist Reza Afisina that floods a darkened room with the recorded sounds of disappearing rainforests, and a quietly devastating series of photographic works by Singapore-based Malay photographer Shahril Nizam documenting the kampong sites that became today's HDB estates.

The exhibition runs through April 20, so this is not a now-or-never situation — but given how consistently excellent it is, there's no good reason to keep putting it off. Entry is free with a gallery pass; guided tours run on Sundays at 2pm.

Sullivan+Strumpf Singapore: New Works by Donna Ong

Singapore artist Donna Ong has been one of the most consistently compelling figures in the regional contemporary art scene for two decades, and her new solo exhibition at Sullivan+Strumpf on Tanjong Pagar Road is among her strongest yet. The show centres on a series of cabinet-of-curiosity installations exploring memory, domesticity, and the archaeology of everyday Singaporean life. Ong's work rewards slow looking — resist the urge to move quickly and let the layered objects and their implied narratives accrue. The show closes April 5, so this weekend is one of the last opportunities.

Gillman Barracks: Group Show at Sundaram Tagore

Gillman Barracks remains one of the most pleasant ways to spend a Sunday afternoon in Singapore — the low-slung colonial buildings, the greenery, the relative quiet compared to the CBD. Sundaram Tagore Gallery is currently showing a group exhibition of South and Southeast Asian artists working across painting, textile, and sculpture, with a particular strength in works that engage with ideas of land, territory, and belonging. Admission is free; the gallery is open Tuesdays through Sundays until 7pm.

Practical Notes

  • National Gallery Singapore: 1 St Andrew's Road. Free with gallery pass; $20 day pass for non-members
  • Sullivan+Strumpf: 53 Tanjong Pagar Road. Free entry, closed Sundays — visit Saturday instead
  • Sundaram Tagore Gallery: 9 Lock Road, Gillman Barracks. Free entry, open Sundays

Singapore's art scene operates best when it's not trying to be Art Basel. On an unhurried Sunday, with no particular agenda, the city's galleries offer something genuinely rare: the chance to look closely at things that matter.