Kuala Lumpur Culture & Arts Walking Tour

Head to the Kuala Lumpur City Gallery to learn about the history of Kuala Lumpur. Its "Memories of Kuala Lumpur" section tells the story of the city through photos and prints.

It is located in Dataran Merdeka (Merdeka Square) where other historical sites within walking distance include the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, St Mary's Cathedral and Royal Selangor Club.

The Kuala Lumpur City Gallery building was built in 1899 during the British Colonial administration as a printing office to house large printing press machines. The exterior façade was designed based on neo-Renaissance principles, with exposed bricks, plastered columns, and large semi-circular windows decorated with keystones; while the interior had a structural support system of cast iron columns and trusses. In the late 1970s, the building was converted to the Metropolitan Postal Security Office and later into the Kuala Lumpur Memorial Library, the first public library in Kuala Lumpur. The library acted as a research centre for anything related to Kuala Lumpur - its history, administration and development. There are also exhibitions on objects and artifacts connected to the heritage of the city.

The Kuala Lumpur City Gallery is currently managed by ARCH which promotes collectibles and gifts made of wood veneer. Its range of made-in-Malaysia products captures the uniqueness of some of the world's greatest landmarks in photo frames, magnets, bookmarks, notebooks and miniature models.

There are four exhibition galleries in this museum - Pohon Budi Gallery, Pelangi Gallery, Teluk Berantai Gallery and Ratna Sari Gallery.

The Pohon Budi Gallery showcases the origins of textiles from pre-historic times and its growth through trade, including textiles such as the songket, pua kumbu, telepuk, tekatan and keringkam.

The Pelangi Gallery exhibits the different types of batiks, textile collections of the Chinese community, and those of the Baba and Nyonya, which are rich with their use of silk and gold threads and beading, as well as the fine and varied motifs of ethnic Sarawakian and Sabahan textile collections.

The Teluk Berantai Gallery exhibits the richness, finesse and beauty of the Malay heritage collections such as tekatan, kelingkan, kain tenun and various other costumes.

The Ratna Sari Gallery exhibits jewelry items and personal adornments of the various ethnic groups in Malaysia made of gold, silver, copper, beads and plants, which are designed to be worn on the various parts of the body.

Central Market is a hub for Malaysian art and handicraft. The myriad of local artifacts available here includes batik and songket products, antiques, woven goods made from materials found in local forests, handiworks made by the orang asli (indgenous people) and even portrait paintings.

Central Market boasts of 650 square metres of zoned shopping areas, kiosks and stalls. The zoned areas are divided into sections that reflect the diversity of Malaysia - Lorong Melayu (Malay Lane), Lorong Cina (Chinese Lane) and Lorong India (Indian Lane). There are also other zones like Lorong Kelapa selling Malay snacks and Malacca Jonker Street which is modelled after the one in Malacca.

If you get hungry, there is a food court on the mezzanine floor and other eateries serving Malaysian food, of course.

There is some activity every day of the week including cultural dancers from Mondays to Thursdays, and a martial arts performance on Sundays.

Central Market was built in 1888 and used to be an open wet market (fresh food market). Later when the market started expanding, a permanent structure was built to house all vendors. Towards the late 1970s, the Malaysian Heritage Society preserved Central Market under its heritage programme with funding from the Federal Government. Central Market's long history is intricately connected to the old and new generations of Kuala Lumpur. It is a testament that old buildings could be preserved and transformed to make them relevant with present times.

The Islamic Arts Museum is located on Jalan Lembah Perdana and houses 12 permanent galleries and two temporary galleries. Its permanent galleries cover almost every aspect of Islam such as Quran & manuscript, architecture, jewellery, textiles, metalworks and ceramic. The influence of Islamic art in China and India also have galleries of their own.

The exhibition space of the Islamic Arts Museum differs from most museums as the galleries are housed in a vast open area. This permits uninterrupted movement from one exhibition space to the next, inspiring a sense of continuity embodied in the Islamic spirit.

The National Museum of Malaysia was opened in 1963 and provides an overview of Malaysia's rich historical and cultural heritage.

Displays and exhibits in the museum focus on local history, culture and traditions, arts and crafts, economic activities, local flora and fauna, weapons and currency.

The museum houses various galleries, each with its own theme. The ground floor showcases the geographic and natural history of the Malay peninsula starting with the Stone Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age, Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms to Muslim sultanate of Malacca. The second floor is dedicated to the country's colonial history leading all the way to Independence.

Other galleries include the National Sports Gallery and the Natural History Gallery.