From Corridor to Canvas:

Local Materials and Motifs in Singaporean Art

Step into a heritage shophouse and you’ll feel it - the soft click of Peranakan tiles underfoot, the warmth of tropical air tinged with frangipani, the steady lines of HDB blocks rising in geometric rhythm. The Singapore identity lives in surfaces, structures and symbols. Artists across the island have drawn from this richly textured environment, layering local materials and motifs into visual languages that speak directly to the soul of the city.

Here, we explore how three distinct yet interconnected elements - textiles, architecture and flora - have become powerful symbols in the visual vocabulary of Singaporean art. Whether stitched into canvas, abstracted into geometry or sprawling across wallpaper, these motifs do more than decorate. They preserve memories, reinterpret culture and quietly shape our collective sense of belonging.

Patterns as Cultural Code: Batik, Tiles & Porcelain

From batik textiles to Peranakan tiles and porcelain, patterned surfaces carry meaning, memory and cultural hybridity. These motifs, often vibrant, intricate and steeped in tradition form a kind of visual shorthand for identity, belief and belonging.

Combination of acrylic painting, silkscreen printing, fabric applique, beading & stitchwork on linen canvas forms this stunning piece by Deborah McKellar

At The Capitol Kempinski Hotel, Fiidaa Art curated a collection of porcelain vases and orbs as well as vibrant Peranakan sculptures that speaks to this layered heritage. Originally produced in China for Peranakan communities in the 19th century, these pieces are unmistakable in their bold palette: fuchsia pink, turquoise green, cobalt blue and canary yellow. They are not subtle, and they are not meant to be. These colours were declarations of prosperity, femininity and cultural pride.

Various abstract vases. orbs and bobbins at The Capitol Kempinski hotel

The motifs, too, carry deep significance. Auspicious symbols like the phoenix, lotus and peony frequently appear, echoing the matriarchal structure of Peranakan households. These patterns extended beyond porcelain into needlework and textiles, where high craftsmanship and complexity were prized. 

Batik, another traditional form of patterned textile, has long been associated with the wider Malay world, but in Singapore, it carries a special resonance as both wearable heritage and an artistic medium. Traditionally created through wax-resist dyeing, batik fabric has adorned everything from sarongs to table cloths, forming a backdrop to everyday life.

Handwoven Songket work, combining ancient techniques and modern aesthetics by Tanoti

Contemporary Singaporean artists are now taking batik beyond the wardrobe and into the gallery. At The Capitol Kempinski Hotel, Fiidaa Art collaborated with Tanoti, a collective of Sarawakian women artisans, to present a striking piece of 100% handwoven textile. Meticulously crafted using traditional techniques, the work preserved intricate heritage motifs while reinterpreting them as a refined, large-scale statement piece within a modern hospitality setting. While some contemporary artworks play with batik’s visual language - digitally distorting familiar florals and scrolls to reflect a shifting cultural landscape - Tanoti’s work is a reminder that innovation also lives in the hands that continue age-old techniques with extraordinary skill.

Patterns, in this context, become a form of visual memory. Each repetitive pattern is a quiet meditation, each colour a thread tying us back to the past.

The Geometry of Everyday Life: From High-Rises to Heritage

Architecture plays a significant role in the landscape and identity of Singapore. From the rhythmic grids of HDB blocks to the intricately ornamented facades of heritage shophouses and the gleaming silhouettes of the CBD skyline, the built environment reflects the city’s past, present and ambitions for the future.

For many local artists, architecture serves as both muse and metaphor. It becomes a way to document change, anchor memory and explore the evolving language of what “home” looks like.

Yeo Siak Goon’s 'Garden City of Glory' - a stunning W300 cm x H240 cm piece commissioned for DBS Private Bank lobby

Yeo Siak Goon and Deborah McKellar bring heritage motifs into contemporary interiors. Their mixed media works are layered with imagery of iconic buildings, Peranakan shophouses and traditional motifs. Using screen printing, stitching, acrylic paint and textiles, they give a physical form to nostalgia - turning architectural memory into something tactile and deeply personal. 

In contrast, Ernest Wu and Terence Tan capture the quiet dignity of HDB architecture with minimalist restraint. 

Ernest Wu’s black dot series - abstract interpretation of Singapore’s HDB blocks

Nowhere is Singapore’s unique visual identity more apparent than in the architecture of its public housing.

HDB blocks - ubiquitous, utilitarian and unexpectedly poetic - form the backdrop to millions of lives. Their corridors, stairwells, cement floors and breezeblock patterns are etched into the local collective consciousness.

In the hands of artists, these familiar structures become something else entirely. Using photography and digital layering, Tan transforms the facades of HDB void decks and corridor scenes into carefully constructed compositions, where light, shape and negative space guide the viewer’s eye. There is beauty in repetition, calm in concrete, order in chaos.

Terence Tan’s 'Balconies' - Giclee Print on 305 gsm fine art archival Paper, Lim Ed of 8

Both Wu and Tan’s minimalist approach reflects the geometry of Singapore’s built environment. But more than that, it captures something deeply emotional: the rhythm of everyday life.

Through their lens, the HDB becomes not just housing, but home.

Tropical Flora: Singapore in Full Bloom

Shih Yun’s silkscreen print on linen from her “Conversations with Trees’ series

Singapore is a garden city, but its greenery is no accident. It is planned, planted and gently curated - a deliberate contrast to the concrete it softens. Yet its lushness is no less inspiring for its order.

Orchids spill from balconies, heliconias wave in the breeze and bougainvillea trail across fences in effortless colour. In this series above, a poetic collaboration between artist Yeo Shih Yun and nature, ink-dipped brushes are tied to tree branches to capture the movement of wind, creating spontaneous marks. These gestures are then translated into silkscreen paintings that celebrate chance, rhythm and the quiet intelligence of the natural world. A celebration of Singapore’s identity as a “Garden City,” blending organic materials and processes with contemporary abstract art.

Vividly coloured scene of lush, overlapping Heliconias

Similarly, this oil painting by internationally renowned Sri Lankan artist Senaka Senanayake depicts heliconias and is a textural reminder of Singapore as a tropical island. This ornamental flower can be found throughout Singapore and particularly at the Heliconia Walk at Singapore Botanic Gardens. a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Whimsical wallpaper inspired by the lush tropical forests in Southeast Asia

Few capture this abundance of nature with as much whimsy and vibrancy as Arty Guava, whose lush wallpaper designs have adorned both homes and commercial spaces across the globe. Her work, often rendered in dreamy pastels or vibrant hues, features iconic Southeast Asian flora - inviting the audience to step inside and breathe. 

The Art of Belonging

These materials, be it tiles, fabric, concrete or even leaves may seem humble, even mundane but in the hands of Singapore’s artists, they become powerful vessels of culture. Each carries a particular weighted memory, telling different stories. 

As Singapore continues to evolve, expand and redefine herself, these artistic touchpoints remain grounding. They help us remember the details: the smell of frangipani in the rain, the coolness of mosaic floors underfoot, the warmth of batik against the skin, and they remind us that art, at its best, doesn’t just reflect life, it shapes the way we live it.