Lauded as a cultural icon in Singapore and the most expensive living artist in Southeast Asia, Tan Swie Hian’s artistic accomplishments are nothing short of Olympian — his oeuvre encompasses multiple mediums, genres, languages and subject matters. The celebrated multi-disciplinary artist has published 58 works of poetry, prose, stories, songs, criticism, translations and books on his art, held 23 solo shows worldwide, and won numerous accolades locally and internationally. It is not for nothing that Time magazine has proclaimed him as “Singapore’s Renaissance man”.

In collaboration with the artist, the National Library presents “Anatomy of a Free Mind: Tan Swie Hian’s Notebooks and Creations”, an exhibition that features over 100 works of his creations, including paintings, sculptures, calligraphy, seal carvings, photographs, lithographs, multimedia performances as well as his original writings. Accompanied by the artist’s personal notebooks, manuscripts and artefacts that will be displayed alongside the respective artworks, the exhibition will take visitors on a fascinating journey into the mindscape of a creative genius.