Tan Swie Hian is the top-grossing living artist in Southeast Asia. Since his first exhibition in 1973 in Singapore, he has been spectacularly prolific. His works have extended to multiple mediums, genres, languages and subject matter. The quadrilingual artist has published 58 works of poetry, prose, stories, songs, criticism, translations, and artworks. In his 2016 exhibition with the National Library Board, Singapore, the paradoxical and sometimes controversial artist offers a gift to his detractors and supporters alike - an insight into his mind. Tan's notebooks take center stage in the exhibition. The collection, never before seen by outsiders, illustrates his deliberations, quotes, discoveries, drawings, and sketches that preceded his artistic creations. The notebooks and creations unveil his openness and his way of accessing multiple realities.