Researching the image of Singapore with the drawing technique

Abstract

The need to embrace unstructured approaches to explore holistically the way in which people conceive places has been underscored by many researchers. Yet, few attempts have drawn from an arts-based method such as the drawing technique. This paper, therefore, presents the way drawings were used to explore Austrian past visitors’ and non-visitors' images of Singapore. Content analysis of rich and idiosyncratic drawings revealed clear images differences between past visitors and non-visitors. Past visitors could better identify and represent features of Singapore’s tangible and intangible heritage than non-visitors. Overall, Singapore is conceived as a modern, urbanized and disciplined destination that primarily offers conspicuous consumptive experiences. The value of the drawing technique to identify a destination’s attributes and to bring out participants' subjectivities is highlighted.