Photographer's take

It is that time of the year when the national flags in households see the light of day, hanging from corridors and window ledges.

Year after year, without fail, my family embraces this exercise of displaying the flag .

Through that, I have learnt that the crescent moon represents a young nation on the ascendancy, and five stars the ideals of democracy, peace, progress, justice and equality.

Beyond that, a synchronised display of flags and well-planned decorations can - and will - accentuate the appearance of an estate, adding to the festivities.

This year, however, I cannot help but notice the lack of flags being displayed in the heartland, compared to 2015 when we celebrated SG50.

That said, the endeavours in dressing up housing blocks such as those in Selegie, Toa Payoh and Woodlands did not go unnoticed.

As I went around Singapore's neighbourhoods to photograph the facades of these blocks, the visual display of national flags, in my opinion, is not mere decoration.

It is a show of pride for this little red dot.

Kevin Lim

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on August 09, 2017, with the headline Photographer's take. Subscribe