This article was first published by CNA Lifestyle on 23 Jun 2022.
If you’ve needed a new EZ-Link card for a while, now just might be a good time to get one – or if you’re adding more to your collection, that’s cool too.
In a press statement on Thursday (Jun 23), contactless payment company EZ-Link announced a collaboration with local artists Kelly Ser and Lee Kow Fong (also known as Ah Guo), to mark Singapore’s 57th National Day.
With this year’s National Day theme “Stronger together, Majulah!” in mind, EZ-Link tapped on the artists, whose works highlight historical and cultural elements from Singapore.
Ser’s pieces from her Not Just A Little Red Dot series will feature on one set of the cards, including representations of historically significant neighbourhoods like Chinatown and Joo Chiat, as well as the iconic Merlion.
She said: “I believe that art is something that everyone should be able to enjoy. It has been a pleasure collaborating with EZ-Link for this year’s National Day cards, and I hope that they will ignite the senses of Singaporeans across accessible touchpoints of daily life.
“I hope that these cards can brighten up their everyday moments and serve as vibrant reminders of Singapore’s rich history and culture, especially as these landmarks are often mainstays in the backdrop of commuters’ everyday journeys.”
The cards with Lee’s artworks, on the other hand, will feature pieces from his Hawker series, which depict a child going to different hawker stalls to buy dishes from various cultures, including popiah, roti prata and nasi lemak.
This is Lee’s third collaboration with EZ-Link. He previously worked with them for last year’s National Day and Chinese New Year this year.
He said: “I have always enjoyed using daily life as an inspiration for my art, whether it’s from the little moments or scenes of everyday life that Singaporeans can easily relate to. This series presents our local hawker culture through a child’s perspective, to invoke the nostalgia associated with the hawker centres that many of us have frequented since young.
“I’m glad to work with EZ-Link once again this year to share my illustrations with Singaporeans across all walks of life, and I hope that these depictions of our hawker culture will allow commuters to take a short trip down memory lane.”
The limited edition cards will be exclusively available at S$10 each without load value on EZ-Link's Shopee store. Cards with Ser’s art will be available from Jun 25, while those with Ah Guo's works go up on sale from Jul 4.