The legacy of late founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew (LKY) has often been the subject of much debate, especially since his death. This publication is an effort by art collector and self-taught artist Teng Jee Hum to capture the often contradictory, at times confounding, narrative surrounding the man and the political leader through rather abstract visual compositions. Beginning with his artist statement, Teng explains why he chose the mesh of words ‘Godsmacked’ and ‘Gobsmacked’ and its relationship with being Singaporean. The artist is open about his growing-up fascination with superheroes from comic books and even the personal influence of his own father’s passing in describing how these works came to be. Following the artist statement are a series of essays meant to illuminate the reader on the context of these works. The first essay titled “There will be another LKY: Disarticulating Hegemony” is written by Seng Yu Jin, senior curator at The National Gallery, Singapore. It examines the notion of legacy in relation to LKY and the diverse approaches and intentions of remembering, reflecting and rethinking what he means to us. The second essay titled “The Animal” by artist and writer Jason Wee examines the symbolism of animals in Teng’s [...]
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