WHEN GILLMAN BARRACKS reopened recently, gallerists had quite a bit cleaning to do. There were cobwebs, lizard droppings and ant infestations. There were strange eggs and scratch marks on low-lying objects. Fortunately the artworks were largely left alone - as if the natural inhabitants of the forest located next to the barracks had also developed a respect for contemporary art.

The news of galleries being allowed to reopen on June 19 lifted the spirits of every art lover. Last weekend saw more visitors than usual, as many came to placate their pent-up desires to look at art. At NTU Centre For Contemporary Art, for instance, there were over a dozen visitors in various rooms at one point, sitting one meter apart from each other, patiently absorbing lengthy video works. At other galleries, visitors were gazing at paintings and installations more intently than they usually do.

Some of the galleries were still closed because they were busy installing new works, after their schedules were pushed back by more than 10 weeks. But the galleries that were open continued to showcase strong and exciting work.