Apec park opens in Vietnam

The Apec park where the sculpture by Singaporean artist, Tan Wee Lit adorns in Danang, Vietnam, after it was selected as Singapore's contribution to the park. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG
Locals in Da Nang take pictures in front of the sculpture by Singaporean artist Tan Wee Lit, which now adorns a park in Da Nang, Vietnam. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

DA NANG (VIETNAM) - Along the busy Bach Dang Street in Da Nang, Vietnam, a sculpture with six shiny metal discs of different sizes reflects the images of motorbikes zipping by during rush hour and people on their evening stroll.

The piece, by Singaporean artist Tan Wee Lit, is one of 20 sculptures in the newly-opened Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Park.

At the park's inauguration ceremony on Thursday (Nov 9), Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Phan Binh Minh said he hoped it would be "a symbol of Apec's innovation, vigour and spirit of coopertion".

He later joined ministers and heads of delegations attending the Apec Summit, including Singapore Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Defence Maliki Osman, in planting trees for the park.

After a few days of continuous rain in the coastal city brought by Typhoon Damrey, the skies cleared yesterday, in time for the event.

Mr Tan's sculpture, titled Incon-Junction, and made with stainless steel, represents a solitary ring that runs in a continuous loop, between different dimensions.

It is meant to suggest the invisible connection between Apec economies and the strength of their ties, both of which have come under some pressure amid uncertainty surrounding trade policy and political tension in some Apec economies.

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