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Changi Murals

The Changi Murals are World War II relics, in the form of five large wall paintings, created between 1942 and 1943. Depicting five events from the Bible's New Testament, these outstanding pieces of Christian artwork were done by Stanley Warren of the Royal Artillery, a British Bombardier who was taken prisoner during the Japanese Occupation. These murals were originally located in Roberts Barracks Block 151 at the Changi Military Base, the former Changi Royal Air Force (RAF) base. A replica of the Changi Murals is exhibited in the relocated Changi Chapel and Museum at 1000 Upper Changi Road North.

The murals represent Stanley Warren's symbols of his own faith and gratitude to be alive. The five Changi Murals and their captions include:

(1) The Nativity : "Peace on earth to men of goodwill".
Work on this first panel began on 6 October 1942 and it was completed by Christmas of 1942.

(2) The Ascension : "Go and teach the nations, I am with you".
The second mural panel depicts the beginnings of Evangelism.

(3) The Crucifixion : "Father forgive them, they know not what they do".
This third artwork depicts the 'descent from the cross'.

(4) The Last Supper : "This is my blood of the New Testament which is shed for many".
This marks the Institution of the Last Supper. This image evokes 'an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace'.

(5) St. Luke in Prison : "Only Luke is with me".
This fifth and last mural panel was completed in May 1943. Only the upper part of this artwork remains, as the Japanese had turned the chapel into a store and knocked a hole through the walls to make a doorway, destroying part of the mural. The image was left unrestored as the artist had lost the original drawings and only managed to acquire sketches of the original later. These allowed Warren to do a painting of the mural, which is currently placed below the destroyed mural.

The murals were forgotten after the war and rediscovered only in 1958 during colonial rule in Singapore. It lapsed from memory and was rediscovered again when the site was taken over by the Singapore Armed Forces. A successful search to track down the artist, Stanley Warren, saw him returning to Singapore to work on the restoration of the murals in 1963, 1968, 1982 and 1988.

Block 151 still stands off Cranwell Road in Changi today, and is now part of the Ministry of Defence's (Mindef) Changi Military Camp. Permission to view the paintings in this restricted area can be arranged with the Public Affairs Department of Mindef.

Discovery of St. Luke's Chapel and the Images
After the war, the murals lay forgotten under eight coats of distemper. There are two versions of how these now called "Changi Murals" were rediscovered.

The first and possibly more reliable version is that in 1958, an unnamed Royal Air Force Serviceman was told to clean up the room which had served as the POWs' chapel. Fortunately, on discovering that some paintings lay under the distemper of the wall, reported his finding to an officer who, on examining the paintings, realised the importance of the discovery. Then, a curiosity column in the Tale-Spin (Magazine) in 1958 printed pictures of two of the murals, stating that they dated back to the Japanese occupation of Singapore, but that their origin and the name of the artist was not known. Great interest was aroused by this article, and that began the search for the artist and/or the origins of these paintings. A young lady from Singapore made a valuable contribution to the hunt when she wrote to the Daily Mirror in London, and asked them to assist. The Daily Mirror reproduced a picture of one of the images which stirred national interest in England. The Mirror received and published many letters, giving various accounts of the murals in or near Changi. Singapore's Sunday Times joined in the search and made contact with a number of ex-POWs who had been interned in Changi during the war. Again, various inconclusive accounts were received. Popular suggestion was that these images were the work of famous artist and cartoonist, Ronald Searle. When contacted he said that he had done paintings in Changi Jail itself, but these were twelve feet high, whereas those in Block 151 were not nearly so large. Despite all efforts by outside sources, the identity of the artist was finally discovered, by a curious twist, at Changi itself. A book discovered in the Far East Air Force Educational Library entitled "The Churches of Captivity in Malaya" mentioned the Chapel of Saint Luke, and briefly described the Chapel and the mural paintings by Bdr. Stanley Warren. It also featured a black and white illustration of the chapel itself, by the same artist. In February 1959 Stanley Warren was found living in London with his wife and son, and teaching art at the Sir William Collins Secondary School. He returned to Singapore to work on the restoration of these murals in 1963, 1968, 1982 and 1988.

The second version has it that these paintings were again forgotten with the British military pull-out of Singapore. All colonial military installations were handed over to the Government of Independant Singapore. The second version is that they were discovered by three members of the Singapore Armed Forces. The whitewash was carefully removed and four complete murals and the top quarter of a fifth were revealed. An all out search for the artist was instigated and put into operation.



Author
Vernon Cornelius & Phyllis Wee



References
Edwards, N., & Keys, P. (Eds.). (1988). Singapore: A guide to buildings, streets, places (p. 73). Singapore: Times Books International.
(Call no.: RSING 915.957 EDW)

Probert, H. A. (1970). History of Changi (pp. 41-43). Singapore: Prison Industries.
(Call no.: RCLOS 959.51 PRO)

Samuel, D. S. (1991). Singapore's heritage: Through places of historical interest (pp. 296-297). Singapore: Elixir Consultancy Service.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 SAM)

Changi Murals now open to tourists. (1984, October 9). The Straits Times.

Painting of St Luke Mural to grace prison chapel. (1988, May 31). The Straits Times. 

Stubbs, P. W. (2000). The Changi Murals. Retrieved November 2, 2002, from www.petrowilliamus.co.uk/murals/murals.htm

The information in this article is valid as at 2002 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.

Subject
Arts>>Visual Arts>>Painting
Singapore--History--Japanese occupation, 1942-1945
Mural painting and decoration--Singapore
Arts>>Painting>>Religious art

Librarian Recommendations
>> Stanley Warren
>> Changi Murals Chapel


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