Singapore Design Week: The Unexpected Wonders of Pann Lim’s Museum

Published on September 22, 2025 | by DSGN arcHive

Curator Pann Lim shares how Singapore succeeded without natural resources at the Unnatural History Museum, Singapore Design Week

Ever wondered how a small nation without natural resources thrives through sheer creativity and innovation? The Unnatural History Museum of Singapore, part of Singapore Design Week 2025, offers a playful yet thought-provoking answer. Set within the atrium of the National Design Centre, this unique exhibition transforms the familiar into the unexpected—showcasing a six-metre “fossil” of the Merlion, robotic creatures, hybrid flora, and man-made landscapes. Each installation is designed to surprise, spark conversations, and make visitors see Singapore’s design culture in a completely new light.

More than just a collection of curiosities, the exhibition is a celebration of design and ingenuity that have shaped Singapore’s evolution. It highlights how creativity drives progress today and offers a glimpse into the nation’s design future. During Singapore Design Week 2025, we explored this imaginative space and were captivated by its clever mix of education and wonder. Even better, we caught up with Pann Lim, the visionary curator behind the exhibition—read on for his insights and the stories that bring these extraordinary creations to life.

About Pann Lim

Pann Lim is the co-founder and creative director of Kinetic Singapore, an independent creative agency celebrated for its award-winning work. Renowned for fusing design, advertising, and storytelling in unexpected ways, Pann has built a reputation for creating experiences that are as imaginative as they are thought-provoking. With many accolades to his name, he continues to shape Singapore’s creative landscape with a distinctive, visionary touch.

Inside Singapore’s Unnatural History Museum

1. You’ve called this a “museum of the unexpected”. What was the most unexpected part of the journey for you while curating it?

Pann: Once we developed the concept, we started researching to identify the exhibits we wanted to showcase. We were particularly surprised by the many different and innovative ways people in Singapore have created to solve problems over the years. We were also amazed that some of these works, like the Cyborg Cockroaches and Bee Drones, were actually partly the result of our universities. These schools are not just educational in the traditional sense, but they have also done active research, partnering with other establishments and agencies to create real solutions.

Beyond institutions, it was also surprising to learn how individuals in Singapore have devised their own solutions for the nation. For example, we have urban farmer Shannon Lim’s Crab Condo highlights how we can strengthen food security right at home through innovative design. Similarly, Ng Sze Kiat of local mycological design studio Bewilder, has developed mycelium structures that not only shift perceptions of fungi matters, but also highlight how we might build our infrastructures in a more sustainable and eco-friendly way.

2. Singapore’s story is often told through statistics and milestones. Here, you’ve reframed it through hybrid flora, robotic fauna and imagined fossils. What does this alternative lens reveal that the usual narrative misses?

Pann: This alternative lens reveals how design has helped to shape Singapore’s extraordinary rise from Third World to First in the last 60 years. Moreover this remarkable journey was achieved without the luxury of natural resources. Instead, Singapore relied on imaginative and creative ways that enabled the nation to survive and thrive. As our former Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong once said, “Singapore is a Nation by Design. Nothing we have today is natural or happened by itself”.

This statement became the linchpin of the Unnatural History Museum of Singapore. Nothing Singapore has achieved was by chance. With this edition of Singapore Design Week, themed “Nation by Design”, it felt fitting to reflect on these so-called “unnatural solutions.” Through this perspective, we highlight how design innovation has always been a fundamental building block in Singapore’s history.

3. The Merlion fossil is both mythical and monumental. Why did you choose to centre the nation’s identity around this “artefact”, and what layers of meaning did you hope people would uncover?

Pann: Part lion, part fish, and entirely by design, the Merlion originated as a tourism logo and has evolved into a definitive national icon. In a way, it mirrors the Singapore story by itself, too; one that’s by design. By giving it a cheeky “fossilised” twist, we wanted visitors to see it afresh and consider how our designs and unusual ideas, like the Merlion, have become a very real part of our nation’s story, much like the rest of the exhibition.

4. Some exhibits blur the line between science fact and science fiction, such as cyborg cockroaches. Was this an intentional provocation, or a natural outcome of curating Singapore’s resourcefulness?

Pann: The exhibits were curated such that visitors can see the parodying of a conventional natural history museum. We deliberately showcased works that had some form of connection to a natural history museum, like bugs, human/humanoid evolution, anatomy, habitats and landscapes — albeit with an unnatural twist — so the juxtaposition becomes clearer and more interesting.

5. You’ve spoken about resourcefulness being at the heart of Singapore’s progress. How did you decide what to include—and perhaps just as importantly, what to leave out—in telling this story?

Pann: We first identified works that were developed here and learnt more about the stories behind each of them, and we then dove deeper to see whether these works could be exhibited in such a way that could amplify the satirical take of a natural history museum that we were trying to play up. There were also logistical considerations, like whether the collaborators were comfortable lending their prototypes for display, or the time to reproduce their works.

6. If you had to pick one artefact as your personal ‘fossil of choice’, which would it be and why?

Pann: Tough choice! But I think it’ll have to be the Merlion. This is the first physical depiction of the Merlion’s skeleton here, and like we shared in our reply to question 3, this logo-turned-statue has become such an emblematic Singapore design, we hope it’ll continue to inspire people to be curious and creative, even if they’re faced with constraints.

7. If The Unnatural History Museum were to be rediscovered a hundred years from now, what do you hope future generations would think it says about Singapore today?

Pann: I hope future generations will see a nation that was able to think outside the box, despite all odds, and that design isn’t just about aesthetics, but also a tool that can shape their future, however unusual it may be.

And that’s a wrap! A huge thank you to Pann Lim for sharing these invaluable insights. Curious to see this one-of-a-kind showcase for yourself? Scroll down for all the details.

When: Until 26 Oct 2025, 9am – 9pm
Where: National Design Centre, 111 Middle Road, Atrium, Level 1, Singapore 188969
Admission: Free

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