Paper short abstract:

Malaysian artist Mohammad Din Mohammad embarked upon a hunt for the mysterious dragon's egg. Here we trace the artist's 'dragon journey': a lifetime quest to articulate knowledge and skills honed in Malay martial arts, Sufi lore, and indigenous healing through fine art, jewelry, and sculpture.

Paper long abstract:

During fieldwork in Malaysia and Singapore the artist Mohammad Din Mohammad recounted to me his quest in search of the mysterious dragon's egg. This narrative provides an ethnographic and symbolic gateway into his life and artworld, which is suffused with orang asli and Malay plant and animal spirits, demons, and ghosts. The artist combined his knowledge (ilmu) of Malay martial arts, Sufi lore, and indigenous medicine to articulate a shadow ontology encapsulated in fine art, jewelry, and sculpture. Beyond 'agency' in artwork, I wish to regard Mohammad Din's oeuvre from a theoretical ground of 'immanence', and 'potentia', to raise questions pertaining to representation, materiality, and the State in Southeast Asia. My 'paper' combines text, still photography, recorded depth-interviews, and film to present the artist's miraculous fine art and dreamlike dialogue in search of the dragon's egg.