I am a globe-trotting artist, born in Indonesia, based in Singapore.

I celebrate the art of travel sketching by observing nature, urban landscapes especially. Plein air sketching is integral to my process because different spaces have unique vitalities like a beating heart. My art involves an ongoing process of traveling, subject to constant changes such as mood, climates, time zones, and temperature fluctuations, not quite a reportage but more a live journaling presented in unexpected and liberating new ways.

I’ve been teaching in LaSalle Singapore since 2010. Read what my students have to say about their transformative experiences here. Tooting my own horn for a moment, I also have been featured in the Straits Times, Business Times, and my artworks collected quietly worldwide.

I founded Olij Studio in 2006. A “studio” defines not just a place for an artist to work but a mindset where play, exploration and constant experimentation and growth happens. This means the studio comes with me wherever I travel to.

Olij Studio is build on the mission to improve creative lives which is a fundamental element in all human beings. When I use my creative observation, I develop a deeper connection with the complex nature of my self and the collective humanity. In Olij Studio, I travel & make art that practices creativity from the perspective of a growth mindset, and I use self-reflection as the tools.

When I am not teaching, I am traveling, making art for exhibitions, commissions and gallery shows. And that body of work is currently available to see here.

My hobbies are all part of my artists work, from fashion, kayaking, tennis, dancing, poetry, cooking and forest bathing. My Instagram stories is where you can follow these extramural activities.

Caught sketching people in the Ramadan bazaar, happening all this month around Arab street, Aliwal and Buzzorah street. It was busy, bustling and rattling after none for the past 3 years! #ramadanmubarak #ramadanbazaarsingapore #singaporescenes #sgig
Hock Lee Fishball noodle at Albert Centre. A very long queue from 8.30am and by the time I started painting, they’ve sold out and turned their lights off. 😂that’s 10.30am done for the day! Painted focusing on light and shadow. #sketchboo
All we have is the present. We are together temporarily in this life, and then we go and move and change countries.It is so nice to reset our memories with @ayaschool and to hear jazz played like this is like a refueling of the soul! See you again so
Floral studies are such a rejuvenating exercise, a great reminder to slow down, to take my time. And the result is beautiful! Don’t you agree? Some of these are work done in Watercolour canvas. #floralwatercolor #floralpainting #abstractfloral
First impression of Georgetown is that it’s super charming. I am already planning to return! I’m glad to meet @davidstloh and @the_nereids and got to sketch in the morning and afternoon light. Somehow the light feels different to Singapor
Double page spread in the morning. Just getting on with it before breakfast. The streets was still quiet. The Kuan Yin Temple is barely open. Sketch done in 1 hour 20 minutes. #georgetownpenang #watercoloursketch #pleinairpainting #sketchingonlocatio
Tan Jetty, around 4.30 pm beautiful skies and breezy. What’s not to like. The only thing is, I’m paranoid that my art supply will fall through the cracks of the walkway and float away into the ocean. Using only a pencil, some old waterbru
Day 3 in Georgetown, Penang. Painting on loose A3 paper seems to be more and more what I want to do and not in a sketchbook. 🥵good but bulkier. Ah well. This is using left hand sketching and my muse colour : Carbazole Violet for most of the darks,
Day 1 in Georgetown, Penang. It’s very hot and humid. Feeling my way around the old charming streets. Amazing how much is still here preserved in its old-ness. First sketch of the day ended up being tourists having an argument :) trying out @ho
Sketching at the @boutiquefairssg opening night proof to be challenging, but that is part of the fun. My observation skill is pretty good but moving people is so hard. So I started to sketch what’s not moving first and ‘frankenpeople&rsqu
The Sakura has bloomed all over the Flower Dome. This is just a few weeks worth before the season changes. They blasted the cool air more and covered the dome a bit to reduce sun exposure. Using my schmincke drawing gum is the best way to preserve th
Thank you for letting me draw your apartment while we chat @mysquiggles and for allowing the universe to melt and become a swirl of colours where your tv would have been. #watercoloursketch #interiorsinwatercolours #yourhomeinwatercolour #etchrsketch
Sketching in @chineseculturalstore was incredibly. Mr Eng is such a a natural story teller. His ancestors came to Singapore in the turn of the century and his grandads first job was a debt collector, then they became merchants of Chinese goods, mostl
Sketches done at @hortpark as a volunteer for @botanicalart_singapore sketching session group leader. First time doing it, and I had a good time. Looking forward to more. These sketches are pencil sketches, I use Mayte Blackwing and an 8B pencil and
Sketching people at the @boutiquefairssg in the F1 pit building last night was interesting and tough! Way too distracting to do that many moving people, so when these ladies stopped by, I asked them to pose for 2-3 minutes and I got to work. Really s