MEET MARGIE CRONE: The Fascinating World of Being a Docent in Singapore
- Margie Crone
- 1 day ago
- 7 min read
Hello, my name is Margie Crone, and I have guided at Mia since 2002. In January, 1974, after graduating from Ole Miss I arrived in cold, wintry Minnesota to work at 3M as a Chemical Engineer. This was one of the best decisions I have ever made, and it opened a new world of possibilities, possibilities which I never dreamed of. Here’s why…
Margie in Singapore.
Photo: Courtesy of Margie Crone
I grew up in the segregated south in a small Mississippi Delta town, Duncan, which is close to Clarksdale where, in 2001, Morgan Freeman operated a Delta Blues Club. Blues joints were all around where I lived; I never knew about them, and being a young Chinese girl, I was not allowed to go. They were, then, mainly frequented by the black community. Now, these joints have become popular with many delta blues lovers from around the world…I also was not acquainted with art museums. My carefree childhood revolved around studying, riding my bike to the public school gym to play basketball, getting together with my friends or watching TV. I wasn’t even aware that art museums existed. My first exposure to art museums was ~ 1973 in my last year at Ole Miss when I convinced my Dad to lend me money to travel around Europe that summer and study German in Salzburg, Austria. Because of this travel to Europe to visit sites and museums plus the extracurricular cultural classes in Salzburg in art and classical music, my world was no longer just science-based. These subject areas now became of special interest to me.
Arrival in Singapore
From ~1974-2007 my husband Dick and I worked for 3M. From 1994-2000, thanks to Dick’s job, my family was privileged to live in Singapore as a Foreign Service Employee (FSE) family. As Singapore is located 2 degrees from the equator, the climate there is hot and humid. The only time the weather is different is during the rainy season from about November to April when it continues to be hot and humid, but around 4:30 p.m., at a time when people leave work, it rains due to the monsoon! I learned to carry an umbrella for both the hot sun and the rain…
When we first arrived to look for an apartment, I remember stepping outside the hotel and being amazed to see the sidewalks filled with people with black hair and Asian skin, people that looked just like me! While first living there, a friend counseled me to keep my patience and remember… just because they do things differently here, that doesn’t mean it is wrong…it’s just different. As Dick would be traveling the Asia region fifty percent of the time, he asked that I initially not work there to make sure our fifth grade daughter, Alix, adjusted well in this strangely new and exciting environment. This, then, gave me a chance to become involved with Singapore’s “Friends of the Museum”.
Singapore’s “Friends of the Museum” was established by four American women in 1978. Then, it provided study groups and lectures. The first docent training program for Singapore’s History Museum was held in 1980 where, after completing the 7-8 month training, the new docents began guiding tours.
First Involvement with the Singapore History Museum
In 1994 the only museum to train docents was the Singapore History Museum. At that time, rather than joining a docent program, I decided to join the China Study Group and host this group’s gatherings at our condo, which was located near Orchard Boulevard in the heart of the city. Here are two photos of our China Study Group gathering place.
Each person in the study group was to choose a topic for intense individual study to prepare for a one hour, 35 mm. slide presentation to the group. The best presentations for each study group would, then, be selected to present at the “Monday Morning Lecture Series”. I chose to study:
Tibetan Buddhism – 1st year
Tibetan Buddhism Art - 2nd year
Both topics were presented in the museum's "Monday Morning Lecture Series".
Becoming a Docent in Singapore
Singapore History Museum’s Docent Training Staff In 1996 I joined the Singapore History Museum’s Docent Program. To my knowledge there was no paid training staff. Every docent leadership position was a volunteer one which changed annually. Singapore, being a regional Asia business hub, brought many highly educated women here from around the world whose husbands had important corporate jobs either traveling the region or managing corporate regional activities. Needing to find new ways to spend their time, many of these women chose to volunteer and become involved with the museum. A few even chose time-consuming leadership roles, such as 1) Chair of the Friends of the Museum, 2) Chair of the Museum Study Groups, 3) Chair of the Museum Docent Programs and 4) Docent Scheduler.
Trainees gave short gallery talks, wrote research papers and completed a tour paper.
I can remember, after leaving a lecture or attending a walk-through, my British friend, Irené and I would walk to the nearby hawker food stall shelter to enjoy a delicious bowl of chicken rice that cost ~ $2 U.S. dollars.
New Museum Docent Training Opportunities In 1996 The National Heritage Board announced the creation of two new museums: the Singapore Art Museum (SAM) and the Asian Civilizations Museum (ACM). We weren’t able to choose which museum training to join. I was disappointed when I learned I was given SAM, because my knowledge of art was very limited compared to most of the other trainees, who came from Europe …
When I first came to Singapore in 1994 there were two Docent programs at the Singapore History Museum…an English speaking program and a Japanese speaking program. In 2004 they added Mandarin speaking tours. As I participated in the English speaking program, I will highlight it…
History Museum Docent Training My training began in September 24, 1996 and it involved the following:
- Attending 13 lectures once a week and studying from a 4” thick binder of research materials that ranged from learning about Singapore History, the cultural history and arts of China, India, the Malay World, Southeast Asia and Indonesia. The main religions prominent in Singapore that we studied were Taoism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam.
- Lectures were given by the museum curators, professors from The National University of Singapore and local experts.
The permanent collection included:
- A Diorama- depicting the founding of Singapore and its history
- Old prints of birds and flowers native to Singapore
An exhibit that highlights the Peranakan Chinese, a family where the father, ‘Baba’, an early Chinese settler, was married to a local Southeast Asian woman,‘Nyonya’ (Malay, Singapore or Indonesia). These families were loyal to the British and they developed a unique cultural history with its own language, customs and cuisine.
Trainees took trips around Singapore, acquainting themselves with Chinatown, Little India and the Malay area. One of the temples visited is shown here, the Hindu Temple, Sri Mariamman located in Chinatown.
SAM’s Building
In 1994 SAM transformed a classic baroque style building, built in 1887, from the St. Joseph’s Catholic Boy’s School into a 3000 sq. ft. art exhibition space.
SAM Training
As I studied alongside the other SAM docent trainees and began guiding there, I found the choice of being a SAM docent a lucky one. Special exhibitions occurred quite often, and the SAM docents were invited to all the new exhibition openings where we could dress in elegant clothes and enjoy wine and hors d’oeuvres! It was such a great privilege for me to have been in the first graduating class at SAM! I learned a lot about Singapore artists, Southeast Asian art and Western art, and as Singapore artists’ works are the pride of SAM, I can remember readings that highlighted how, in 1952, the Singapore artists made a trip to Bali and Java for 7 weeks, seeking new inspirations. This reminds - me of Gauguin who traveled to Tahiti to paint people and scenery there.
The SAM exhibition I especially remember was the 1997 exhibition called "Quotation Marks: Chinese Contemporary Paintings" May 8-June 22, 1997. Over twenty-five artists from China exhibited their works with some of them participating in a panel to talk about their art. I felt this was a time when contemporary Chinese art was becoming an important mainstay and having this exhibition in Singapore at this time was a first major step in introducing Contemporary Chinese Art globally. Some noted artists in this exhibition were Wan Guangyi, Fang Lijun, Zhang Xiaogang, Shen Fan and Fang Shaohua.
ACM Training
After training at SAM, I could now train at the Asian Civilization Museum, which was housed and restored in the classically-styled Tao Nan School building, built in 1907. In ACM’s permanent collection many galleries are devoted to a celebration of Chinese heritage.
ACM exhibitions that I enjoyed included:
Jewel Power -" Gold Jewel from Tibet and Nepal", July 14, 1999 - October 25, 1999
and "Jewelry from Thailand, Malaysia and SEA"
"Eternal Egypt Highlights from the British Museum", ACM. Feb. 11, 1997 - May 30, 2000
"Masterpieces from the Guggenheim Museum", Oct. 16, 1996 - Feb. 10, 1997
Singapore Museums now
There are 10 museums and heritage institutions as well as 2 outdoor heritage trails where docents can be trained. For more details on this please visit the Singapore Friends of the Museum website: fom.sg
In closing I would like to say that I feel a sense of pride and gratitude that I was able to become a docent in Singapore when the National Heritage Board was laying the groundwork to grow the number of Singapore museums to service both Singapore citizens and tourists visiting from around the world. If you have a chance to visit Singapore and its many museums and sights, make time to try the different kinds of delicious foods offered like the Nyonya Peranakan, Indian, Malay or Chinese dishes. I especially enjoyed going to Jumbo’s Restaurant on the east coast to eat chili crab and pepper crab. Below are additional websites offering further information.
Website Information/Photographs from the following unless otherwise indicated:
Asian Civilization Museum: Spotlight on Jewelry:
Singapore Art Museum: Index of Exhibitions:
History of The Singapore History Museum:
Comments