Singapore, July 2021

Month 18 in Singapore. Somewhere between Circuit Breaker, Phase 2 lockdown, Phase 3, Phase 2 revisited- but with a twist, so maybe it was Phase 2B, and Phase 2 revisited part 2, I lost track of what was open and what was closed.  Commissioned to do a photography book on old businesses in Singapore, I wandered the streets of Jalan Besar looking for the quaint generationally owned businesses one can only find strolling the neighborhoods. Nothing was open. I went back twice, peering through shuttered shophouse windows and streetside eateries. It occurred to me that I couldn’t tell what was closed for the day, what was closed for the month, what was permanently closed, or even what remained. When this all goes away – if this all goes away – when old doors creak open and tarps are rolled down, what will this be left?

This series accompanies my “Empty City” series, which was all monochrome and shot at night. “What Remains” is in color and taken during the day. During the week. In business hours. The stark doorways and facades reveal few clues as to what comes next. The series will be ongoing.

 

 

Steve Golden is a fine art photographer dedicated to capturing ways of life fast-changing in Asia. Arriving in Tokyo with a backpack and $200, he has now been in Asia for 30 years. His first career was in academic publishing, during which time he published several travel articles and images in The Japan Times. Steve then took up a rare opportunity to work as a strategic advisor for Lonely Planet, a path that led him to turning a lifelong passion for photography into a profession. In addition to being published widely in books, magazines, newspapers, online and on broadcast TV, Steve has exhibited and sold fine art prints in galleries across the region. His second book, Faces of Yangon, was published in January 2020, and the work was exhibited in The Leica Gallery at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. He resides in Singapore, and is a staff member at LASALLE College of the Arts.