A Forest Comes into Being: In Dialogue with Han Sai Por and Kwok Kian Chow 21.05.2022

Han Sai Por (1943, born and based in Singapore) creates works that explore the delicate relationship between humankind, nature and the urban environment since the 1970s. Considered one of Singapore’s leading modern sculptors, the artist has developed a distinct visual language that is full of organic vitality. Her abstract forms beckon viewers to connect with the primordial, subliminal forces of nature in a constantly evolving cityscape.

Han is best known for her stone sculptures of natural motifs—particularly from tropical rainforests—that are characterised by fluid lines and continuous surfaces. From monumental monoliths to smaller-scale works, she painstakingly crafts each form by hand, holding an immense regard for the elemental quality of her material—a reverence stemming from a childhood spent in tropical nature. Since the 2010s, she has expanded her visual vocabulary to encompass a more unbridled expression of the forest, such as in Black Forest (2016).

Han received her art education at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Art, Singapore (1975–77) and the East Ham College of Art & Technology, London (1980), and obtained her BFA from Wolverhampton College of Art in 1983 and BA in Landscape Architecture from Lincoln University, Christchurch in 2008. Her work is held in major collections including the National Museum of China, Beijing; National Gallery Singapore, Singapore; and Singapore Art Museum, Singapore. For her contributions to the local art scene, Han was conferred the prestigious Cultural Medallion for Visual Arts in 1995.

Notable exhibitions include The Black Forest (2014), Jendela Visual Arts Space, Singapore; Pulp Friction (2001), Singapore Art Museum, Singapore; IMPRINTS on Singapore Art (1998), Singapore Art Museum, Singapore; and Four Dimensions (1993), National Museum of Singapore, Singapore. The artist has also participated in major international festivals including An Atlas of Mirrors (2016), 5th Singapore Biennale; XI Triennale (2005), 11th India Triennial, New Delhi; 4th Høljer International Sculpture Symposium (1996), Vejle; and Yashiro International Sculpture Symposium (1993).

Han has had three residencies at the STPI Workshop in 2013, 2022 and 2024; culminating in the exhibitions Moving Forest (2014), The Forest and Its Soul (2022) and Material Moves: Revisiting Print and Paper through Han Sai Por, Goh Beng Kwan, Ong Kim Seng and Chua Ek Kay (2025).