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What happens when artists with disabilities, technologists, and the community co-create on a blank wall? Singapore’s longest art mural developed by Design Factory@SIT, JTC, and North East Community Development Council transforms the Punggol Digital District into a vibrant canvas of inclusivity.
When SIT moved into the Punggol Digital District (PDD), where technology, education, and community converge, Design Factory@SIT (DF@SIT) saw an opportunity to explore how creative research and emerging technologies could shape meaningful public experiences. That opportunity took physical form with a long corridor wall; an empty canvas waiting for a story.
For master planner and developer JTC, their vision for the wall was a mural that could embody Punggol’s evolving identity. To bring the idea to life, JTC collaborated with DF@SIT and Shaping Hearts, Singapore’s largest inclusive arts festival featuring artists with disabilities. Two Shaping Hearts artists, Simeon Tan Rui En and Ezra Chan Yi, were invited to create the visual foundation for the mural.
Located at Community Promenade in PDD, the 132-metre mural is Singapore’s longest, hand-painted art mural. (Photo: North East CDC)
Simeon, a visual and performing artist known for expressive depictions of robots, animals, and mythology, brought a bold and intuitive style. Ezra, a former UOB Painting of the Year awardee, brought his signature inventive approach to colour, abstraction, and form. Working alongside their caregivers, both artists participated in structured workshops led by DF@SIT that challenged them to respond to themes of technology, connection, and community.
Simeon Tan Rui En (left) and Ezra Chan Yi (right) getting creative through a structured exercise. (Photo: SIT)
These conditional design exercises and participatory sessions created a space for self-expression while ensuring the artists had accessible frameworks to communicate their ideas. The resulting illustrations, filled with layered textures and imaginative shapes, became the creative DNA of the mural.
“Simeon's and Ezra’s voices needed to be authentically represented through true co-creation. Knowing the unique conditions they navigate, we designed our workshops to be safe, supportive spaces where their creativity could emerge on its own terms – without being overshadowed by our perspectives,” shared Associate Professor Jeffrey Koh, Head of the DF@SIT.
Extending the Artwork Through Digital Participation
But more than just artwork to be admired, the team wanted a mural that invited public engagement and participation. They wanted Punggol residents — including those passing by on their daily routines — to become co-creators.
This led to the development of People of PDD, a digital platform by DF@SIT that allows the public to create personalised avatars using shapes and textures drawn directly from Simeon’s and Ezra’s original works. Each avatar is assigned traits inspired by the artists’ thematic prompts, reflecting values such as curiosity, collaboration, and resilience.
Members of the public can be a part of the mural project by creating their own avatars. Just scan the QR code on the benches at the mural. (Photo: SIT)
People of PDD was introduced at community engagement sessions that attracted more than 450 residents, students, and corporate visitors. The initiative was also showcased to Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, Senior Minister of State Sun Xueling, and Mayor Baey Yam Keng at the launch of the mural in mid-November.
QR codes embedded along the mural allow visitors to scan and reveal augmented reality (AR) overlays of community-generated avatars. These animations bring an additional layer of playfulness, turning the walkway into an evolving digital canvas and a live placemaking effort shaped not just by artists, but by the community itself.
Ezra giving the AR effect a go at the mural. (Photo: SIT)
Bringing the Story Together
To bring the artworks on the physical mural to life, DF@SIT worked with Tell Your Children (TYC), a Singapore creative studio known for its contemporary visual storytelling. TYC synthesised Simeon’s and Ezra’s motifs with Punggol’s historical narrative — one that gives a nod to its waterfront heritage and its rise as a leading digital district. SIT students and members of the DF@SIT team were among over 100 volunteers who painted the mural and brought their creativity to the wall.
Students and members of the DF@SIT team stepped forward as volunteers, lending their creativity and energy to the project. (Photo: SIT)
The mural was officially unveiled on 16 November 2025 by Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, joined by leaders from SIT, JTC, and the grassroots community.
Sun Xueling, Senior Minister of State; Dr Janil Puthucheary, Senior Minister of State; Deputy Prime Minister Gam Kim Yong; Mayor Baey Yam Keng, Minister of State; and Ms Jacqueline Poh, Chief Executive Officer, JTC Corporation. (Photo: NE CDC)
Putting Singapore on the International Map
The Our Punggol Story mural now holds the title of Singapore’s Longest Handpainted Mural in the Singapore Book of Records. But the project’s influence goes beyond Singapore’s shores. Earlier this year, DF@SIT presented the People of PDD case study at the International Symposium on Electronic Art (ISEA) in Korea, one of the world’s largest gatherings dedicated to the intersection of art, science, and technology. A peer-reviewed research paper was also published.
"This project explores how inclusive, generative, and conditional art exercises can strengthen collaboration between artists with disabilities and their caregivers, and how digital prototyping can support community engagement over time,” shared A/Prof Jeffrey Koh.
As the Punggol Digital District continues to grow into a hub for innovation, learning, and community life, the Our Punggol Story mural serves as a powerful reminder of what collaborative design can achieve.
