The Mistaken Ancestor provides a critical introduction to the life of Mohammad Din Mohammad. An artist, traditional healer, Malay martial arts master, writer, and collector of Southeast Asian objects, Mohammad Din was a Sufi mystic guided by the view that all things in the universe are interrelated. He drew on this sensibility in developing his art, which he intended to operate as vehicles for navigating the social and economic pressures of modern life. Featuring writings, artworks, and photographs, this exhibition catalogue offers insights into Mohammad Din's life-long commitment to harnessing different facets of Sufi mysticism for the rejuvenation of the human body and spirit. Mohammad Din Mohammad: The Mistaken Ancestor is part of the Something New Must Turn Up series which offers a comparative perspective of how artistic forerunners in post-independence Singapore critically engaged with the conditions of multiculturalism, developmentalism and modernisation through ground-breaking explorations of media. Something New Must Turn Up is a series of six catalogues comparing the practices of artistic forerunners in post-independence Singapore. Through their groundbreaking explorations of media, ranging from collage and printmaking to installation and digital art, these six artists actively expanded the boundaries of art. Each standalone catalogue traces the individual journeys that these artists undertook as they strove to be continuously "new." By bringing together essays, interviews, full-coloured plates and archival material, the series offers a comparative perspective of how artists critically engaged with the conditions of multiculturalism, developmentalism and modernisation in post-independence Singapore. This series accompanies an exhibition at the National Gallery Singapore.
