Alkaff Bridge

Nine hundred litres of paint, 55 colours, one footbridge. Her gift to Singapore, in her words.

Alkaff Bridge is worth the detour on any walk along Robertson Quay, and not worth a trip on its own: it takes about a minute to cross. Pair it with STPI, right beside it, and a longer stroll along the river, and you have a free, good-looking morning or evening. It is the only bridge in Singapore that looks as if it has been dipped in a paint box.

Underneath the colour it is sensible infrastructure: a steel truss footbridge of about 55 metres, built from 1997 and opened in 1999 as part of the Urban Redevelopment Authority's riverside promenade, and shaped like a tongkang, the light boats that once carried goods up and down the river. The name nods to the Alkaffs, one of the wealthiest Arab families in early 20th-century Singapore, remembered in the old Alkaff Quay nearby.

The colour came from Filipino painter Pacita Abad, who arrived at the Singapore Tyler Print Institute, now STPI, for a three-month residency in March 2003. By April she wanted to paint the bridge. Approvals took until November, and painting began two days before Christmas. Rope-access specialists did the work with more than 900 litres of industrial paint in 55 colours, donated by Nippon Paint: six sections first in yellow, pink, red, green, blue and orange, then roughly 2,350 hand-placed circle stencils in four designs and four sizes. A design studio turned her sketches into computerised work plans, and the Land Transport Authority, the Singapore Tourism Board and City Developments Limited backed the project.

The "ArtBridge" was inaugurated on 29 January 2004, billed as Singapore's first bridge of art, and Abad hand-painted circles along the railings herself a fortnight later. It was her last major work; she died in December 2004. Her words to the Philippine press that February have become the bridge's caption: "Painting the Alkaff Bridge is my gift to Singapore."

The gift was restored, repainted and relaunched on 12 July 2019 to mark 50 years of diplomatic relations between Singapore and the Philippines, with the two countries' foreign ministers officiating. The Philippine foreign secretary called it "the metaphor for one of Southeast Asia's most abiding friendships", which is a lot to ask of a footbridge, though it carries the weight cheerfully.

How to do it well: come early in the morning for clear light and a quiet deck, or at dusk, when the colours glow against the water and the Robertson Quay restaurants start to fill. Walk it slowly and look down at the circles, then step into STPI to see where the idea began.

Good to know The bridge is a free, open public footpath across the Singapore River at Robertson Quay, and part of the riverside walking route. STPI sits right beside it.

Alkaff Bridge | Robertson Quay, Singapore