In Pictures: Meet the 70-year-old lorry driver who is also a 'kite doctor'
Rolling up to Marina Barrage with a trolley bag full of handmade kites and repair tools, Mr Tan Poh Wah had one clear mission for the day: To share his love of kite-flying with others.
Known informally as the “kite doctor” among the regular visitors there, the 70-year-old spends most Sundays repairing kites or offering his handmade ones – mostly for free – to people at the open-air space that is the venue of Singapore's largest reservoir.
“Watching people fly my kites makes me really happy,” Mr Tan said.
This weekend, In Pictures speaks to four enthusiasts to find out what excites them about kite-flying.
A FAMILIAR FIGURE
Shortly after Mr Tan turned up at Marina Barrage in the Marina Bay area, a handful of people who wanted their kites repaired immediately made a beeline towards him.
They offered him drinks and snacks to thank him for his service.
When he was done with the repairs, Mr Tan pulled a kite from his bag and launched it to the sky.
He flew it with ease, strolling around the field, eager to find someone who will take the kite as a gift.
His masterpieces are made mostly from recycled materials including plastic bags, discarded blinds, banners and umbrellas.
Mr Tan is part of a group known as Singapore Original Kites, an informal gathering of adults in their 60s and 70s who share the same interest in making and flying kites.
A semi-retired Chinese physician Ong Cheng Her, 75, is the founder of the group.
He said that the only prerequisite to join the group is one’s ability to make a kite from scratch.
He proudly showed CNA TODAY one of his creations, a red and white "umbrella kite".
“Umbrellas are used for shade and rain protection, so why hasn’t anyone flown an umbrella kite? I decided to take on the challenge,” Mr Ong added.
HIS WORKSPACE AT HOME
As for Mr Tan, he is not retired, so flying and making kites is what he does only on Sundays.
He works six days a week as a lorry driver.
“I work to live, to fill my stomach so I can make kites.”
Stepping into his flat, Mr Tan led us to his "studio", which is a room filled with a bountiful supply of kites and raw materials.
He described his workspace as a “chaotic but organised mess”.
“My wife sometimes asks why I collect so many umbrellas, but she doesn’t interfere much because she knows I enjoy making these things.”
Mr Tan has loved kite flying since he was a child, but it was not until he was in his 30s that he took to making kites himself.
A self-taught craftsman, he said that he learnt how to make kites by observing other kite-makers whenever an opportunity comes along.
Recently, Mr Tan finished repairing a 70m-long "dragon kite" that he first constructed in 2000. It broke at a kite festival in Taiwan in 2019 and required extensive repairs.
After CNA TODAY approached him for an interview, Mr Tan said that he found new inspiration to repair the kite, which took him four Sundays to complete.
It was obvious that he is most proud of this kite among the many in his collection.
“Anyone who hasn't made a dragon or a phoenix kite isn't truly considered a kite maker,” he said, adding that these long kites are made up of many different sections and each needed to be crafted with great precision before they are finally stitched together.
"GIANTS" IN THE SKY
Over at East Coast Park, another group of kite enthusiasts have gathered and their presence could be spotted from afar.
The kites they have taken out, called "inflatable show kites", are gigantic balloon-like kites that are typically several metres in length when inflated.
Traditional kites rely on rigid frames for support, but inflatable show kites have no hard structures. They inflate as they catch on the wind and have to be anchored to the ground.
Project coordinator Johnny Yap and his wife Maggie Mok, a homemaker, both 51, are the founders of Show Kites Singapore, a group of people who are into these inflatable show kites.
The duo's interest in this started nearly 20 years ago when they took their children kite-flying.
In the end, it was the couple themselves who got hooked on the activity.
“We started flying bigger and bigger kites and before long, we realised that stick kites have a limit,” Mr Yap said.
This led them to explore inflatable ones in 2009 and they came across these kites online before buying their first. The sky is the limit when it comes to the sizes of such kites.
As their interests grew, Mr Yap and Ms Mok started travelling overseas to take part in international kite festivals.
In September, they were at the International Kite Festival in Melaka, Malaysia, where they flew an inflatable show kite in the form of Singapore's tourism icon, the Merlion.
In watching the kite-flyers, CNA TODAY observed that the age-old method of rolling out and pulling the kite lines or strings is still used for flying simple traditional kites regardless of their sizes.
For long, intricate traditional kites such as Mr Tan's dragon kite, as well as the inflatable show kites, they are anchored to the ground and usually fly without much supervision. They also tend to have a "pilot" kite attached to the main kite to provide a lift for the initial flight.
Some kites need very little wind, whereas others may need strong wind conditions.
Most of the kites owned by Mr Yap and Ms Mok are designed by them.
The bespoke kites can cost between a few hundred and a few thousand dollars and they are manufactured in China.
“We know how to make the kite, but we just don't have time. It takes many, many hours of sewing,” Mr Yap explained.
“We stick to the principle that we must design our own kites.”
Through the years, the couple have met people from all walks of life who have taken an interest in this activity.
“We have doctors, taxi drivers, hawkers (in Show Kites Singapore). It’s the kites that bring us together,” Mr Yap said.
“There’s no application form (to join the group), so long as you are passionate, come join me every Sunday."
