Mohammad Din Mohammad: The Mistaken Ancestor

Welcome to Mohammad Din Mohammad: The Mistaken Ancestor. My name is Teo Hui Min and alongside Shabbir Hussain Mustafa, am the co-curator of this segment of the exhibition. Mhd Din was a polymath, known for his powerful and expressive art, as well as for his skill as a traditional healer and silat master, writer and collector of Southeast Asian objects. All these different aspects of his practice were interrelated and bound by a worldview that was heavily influenced by Sufism, the ascetic and mystical form of Islam. Mhd Din was born in Malacca in 1955, and moved to Singapore with his family when he was two. He graduated from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts in 1976, and began his life as an artist working as a street painter in old Bugis Street. In 1983, a motorcycle accident nearly led to the amputation of his foot, but Mhd Din recovered fully under the care of his Sufi master, who was also a traditional healer. This lifechanging event reinforced the importance of traditional healing in his life and art, which in turn deepened his interest in Southeast Asian Islamic objects and artefacts. This exhibition brings together objects from Mhd Din’s vast and impressive collection, as well as his artworks that drew from and were informed by them. We invite you to also take a closer look at the installation Pyramid of Soul: Celebrating Alif in the middle of this gallery, which reflects the culmination of his worldview. It is constructed from a sketch and in close collaboration with his wife and fellow artist, Hamidah Jamil. As you explore the display spanning various objects, artefacts and music, we hope you come to a deeper understanding of Mhd Din’s artistic practice and life, as well as his enduring quest for spiritual enlightenment.