2018 is shaping up to be a fantastic year for Marvel. Two epic movies were released to staggering global success (Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War), and two more are slated for release later in the year (Ant-Man and The Wasp and Venom). Avengers: Infinity War even topped the Singapore box office with a $16 million gross. The cherry on top of the Marvel cake—this year also marks 10 years the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has been in existence, since Robert Downey Jr’s Tony Stark first captured all our hearts in 2008’s Iron Man.
Such greatness calls for celebration, no? Well, fans will be pleased to know that the justly deserved jubilee comes in the form of ArtScience’s Museum’s latest exhibition, Marvel Studios: Ten Years of Heroes. Presented by The Walt Disney Company Southeast Asia, the exhibition happening Jun 9-Sep 30 is part of a three-year collaboration between Disney and the Singapore Tourism Board. That means you can look forward to more fun thematic events in the year (but that’s a story for another day).
For the exhibition, look forward to ten themed sections—each one dedicated to a beloved superhero from the MCU, so you can relive key moments from all 19 Marvel movies. But it’s not just a mindless walk-through of realistic props and life-sized figurines. Disney has teamed up with exhibition developers Beast Kingdom Co. to put on an engaging, interactive experience exploring the art, science and technology behind the superhero stories that have become so integral to our pop culture today.
A projection mapped crash course on Iron Man’s armors. Photo credit: Marina Bay Sands.
For example, the Iron Man gallery shines a spotlight, literally, on Tony Stark’s evolution of armors, via a captivating projection mapping loop on Iron Man’s suit; while his Wakanda-equivalent Shuri gets her own wall of Afrofuturism tech in the Black Panther section. Not forgetting the art in ArtScience, the galleries also dig deep into the cultural backgrounds and mythologies that first led to many of the origin stories. The MCU’s Infinity Stones may be a bitch to find, but they’re actually not that far from reality—the exhibition curates a collection of real precious stones from Southeast Asia, each with its own cultural stories and healing properties. They probably won’t be able to help you destroy the universe, but they sure would make pretty paperweights.
Additionally, Thor gets his roots looked at in a brief introduction to Norse mythologies. Did you know the word Thursday first originated from ‘Thor’s Day’? Neither did we; but it’s almost as if Thirsty Thursdays were coined with Chris Hemsworth in mind.
Lucky us, the Thor statue retains its striking Hemsworthness.
And because it’s ultimately still a Marvel exhibition, other interactive features, courtesy of SPACElogic Pte Ltd, keep the experience light-hearted and fun—like the motion-sensor, dancing Baby Groot you can para para along with, or Doctor Strange’s animated panels that let you create a “portal” to the outside of Marina Bay Sands.
All in all, it’s a compact show, with just enough substance to get fans excited and newbies intrigued about the Universe (in fact, consider it an experiential crash course on the confusing world of the MCU). If there’s one thing we took away from the exhibition, it’s that we can’t wait to (re)binge all 19 movies.
Marvel Studios: Ten Years of Heroes runs from Jun 9-Sep 30 at the ArtScience Museum. Tickets are $16 and available here; more information here.
