I Spy

A girl wearing the omnipresent red "ArtLover" t-shirt, the characteristic unofficial uniform of Biennale employees, is sitting on the grey bench outside in "our" courtyard.

And she's smoking a cigarette.

Like the rest of "them", she's probably unaware that the interns can spy on her from the other side of the darkened windows.

I'm not being a girl scout.

Naaaaah, really, I would never tell on our visitors.

But anyway, as I was saying....

Like the rest of "them" - that is, of the Singapore Pavilion visitors - I would say that about 95% of the people that enter and roam around these three spaces immediately assume and stick by the assumption that the space provided by the Singapore Pavilion is merely a place to do the following activities:

1) "Oh, look, a place to relieve the call of nature! Quick, steal some toilet-paper!"
2) collect a "souvenier" from the exhibit, ie. not unlike the situation where tourists to Greece often try to "take" home materials or statues from ancient buildings. Here, instead, we've come to the conclusion that in someone's cheap ignorant attempt to collect a souvenier, the ladies tap handle broke.
3) "Finally, a picnic spot!" and visitors gleefully flock to the benches in the courtyard
4) "Who needs a hostel in the daytime? We can just sleep on the benches in the toilets! Yay!"
5) Breast-feeding area
6) have animated arguments with their spouses in the courtyard as they presume no one is looking
7) Criticise the helpful interns for not being able to provide maps or detailed information about the other parts of the Biennale
8) Certain visitors randomly exercise nationalistic tendencies by criticising the interns for not being able to communicate in the language of the visitor's choice - although this office speaks English, Italian, French, Czech, Malay, some Mandarin, some German and some Russian, it is obviously still not adequate. We have thought of resolving this problem by putting up a sign outside that stipulates the languages spoken here.

Example 1

For about the 20th time, someone walked in with a huffy-puffy attitude.

Visitor: "Bon-jourrrrr!"

Nat: "Buongiorno! Hello!"

Visitor: "Parlez-vous francais?"

Nat: "Oh no, sorry. But I do speak Italian."

Visitor: (incredulously) "You don't speak French????"

Nat: "No. I'm afraid I don't. Could I perhaps explain to you in English or Italian?"

Visitor: "Oh. (long pause) You don't speak French. Hm."

Pause with the visitor ho-humming.

Nat: (still patient and forever smiling) "Well, I do speak Italian, Czech, Malay, some German, some Russian, any of these, whichever you would like...! :) "

Visitor: "No, no, fine. English will have to do then."

And the visitor spoke perfect English!

Oh well. A study in social interaction, I reiterate to myself. And in fact, there is a quite a glimpse in to the social reality of fragmentation between different nations and the active enforcement of their languages.....I mean, it's an art exhibition! People should just chill out and have fun, enjoy the different cultures and their interpretations of art especially at the country pavilions! I think that next time I will offer such visitors a Tiger beer. A summer drink to chill out to!

Conclusion

Anyway, back to my initial point. People walk in and out, and based on the comments I happen to hear from visitors, they have been fooled! In the sense, that - is this part of what is supposed to happen at the exhibit? I mean, people don't seem to be thinking much or at all about the space judging on their comments. They're just happy to have a nice toilet and a drinking fountain outside. But in some sense, it surprises me. People are here to attend an international art exhibition, and although they see and pass the sign outside the main entrance that clearly says Singapore Pavilion, and this including the sign in the courtyard and the unusual toilets seem to escape them. They stumble into information room demanding information on the clubbing scene in Venice, where to buy vaporetto tickets and so on....and I feel like saying "We seem ridiculous to you that we don't have the information that you want, but really! Don't you see, the joke is on you!" They've paid their money for the Biennale, and if there is nothing material to see or to grasp or twist or break, there is truly nothing for such visitors.

Sigh.

Nat