The Canopy Collection is about capturing the flow of nature in my handprinted linocut artworks, using sweeping curves, organic shapes, and abundant repetition of shapes. Here, the plant life creates a lush canopy, infusing the city with its own distinct texture and atmosphere.
What draws me to the plants and palms of Singapore are the geometric and symmetrical patterns they form—chevrons, zigzags, moiré effects, and sunburst motifs that radiate outwards. Through my linocut technique, I focus on these linear elements, using a blend of straight lines and curves to convey movement and dynamism. Stylized palm leaves, with their elongated and tapered forms, become decorative through the rhythm of repetition. My work embraces imperfections and the joy of wabi sabi. It celebrates texture, tactility, depth, and authenticity.
For the Canopy Collection I used the reduction technique. I carve and print the block for the first layer and then carve more areas from the same block to print the next layer. The result is a limited edition of prints, as the block is effectively destroyed by the end of the process. It takes many days to carve each layer and then there is no turning back due to its irreversible nature. It’s a leap of faith!
Raffles Arcade
In the ‘Raffles Arcade’ linoprints, the lush, sweeping palms form a facade as iconic as the Raffles Hotel itself. Their repeating and overlapping lines create a moiré effect which is one of my favourite things to capture. The leaves are a dynamic element, there’s a sense of natural order infused with chaos. In the composition I wanted to show the perspective of looking up from the road, so the viewer is immersed in the tangle of palms. The reduction technique that I use to handprint these pieces adds to this effect: a second layer, printed over the first, introduces slight misalignments that heighten the balance between control and unpredictability. It is imperfect just as you would find in nature. The grid of the building’s angles contrast with the organic curves of the palms, highlighting the harmony between the structured architecture and the flow of nature.
Botanic Walk
In my ‘Botanic Walk’ linoprint, I wanted to celebrate the distinctiveness of Singapore’s landscape. Coming from the UK these are not the shapes I would be surrounded by during a walk in nature. The oversized leaves fan out in sunray shapes, echoing motifs found in Art Deco design. The tall palms create a sense of scale, casting the plants as towering giants. I’m interested in the repeated patterns and how these organic structures form in mesmerizing, chaotic order.
Rain Tree
The Rain Trees of Singapore are iconic, their sprawling branches creating a canopy that defines the city’s unique texture and atmosphere. These trees are teeming with life, supporting a world of epiphytes—bird’s nest ferns and staghorn plants—that flourish within their branches. This wild abundance sits alongside the clean, straight lines of Singapore’s colonial black-and-white architecture, forming a striking contrast between natural chaos and architectural order.
In my linoprints, the hand burnishing brings a tactile, earthy quality to the pieces, echoing the textures of the natural world. And hidden within the leaves, a hornbill makes an appearance—inviting you to explore and spot details within the canopy’s layered intricacies.
Canopy Studies
Linoprinting, with its bold, precise lines, is my medium of choice. I think its a wonderful way to showcase the structure and repeated pattern within nature. Carving into the lino block is a meditative process that allows me to immerse deeply in the art. Ink is rolled across the linocut block and burnished by hand onto cotton paper, so each handprinted piece gains its own unique texture, character, and subtle imperfections, mirroring the irregular beauty found in nature.
