I am Daniel, and I’m a Dutch artist based in Malaysia, creating unique hand-made, hand-pulled prints inspired by traditional architecture.

My work grew from a simple question: what makes a place feel like home? For me? Difficult question. It used to be at my parents, the place I could be having my feet on the coffee table zoning out without having to worry about a thing. That place is long gone, but the memory isn’t.

I want to create art as a place where we can connect with home. It is meant to go back to after a day in our hectic so-called modern life in which stress, traffic, and the urge to perform dominate. Art gives me a place to slow down and wander away to worlds I want to be. I also used to be trapped in such a life as a school Principal here in Malaysia, while I also am a father of two boys. I lost the connection with my children as I was occupied with other people’s kids. I learned to value what I think is important and show that through my art. I am interested in exploring houses people built to live in—shaped by generations of local knowledge, craftsmanship and an understanding of their environment. Nowadays traditions and what people value change. Consequently, houses many generations called home disappear. In a world where people moved on traditional houses fade but in my work they stay.

What also stays through my work is a sense of belonging, connection to place, craftsmanship, community and the feeling of being rooted somewhere. My work is an attempt to slow down and reflect on what we choose to leave behind or preserve.

I appreciate the craftsmanship in printmaking. Doing it manually gives pleasure as each time I pull the paper off the plate, the impression is unique and can’t be replicated. The process is substantial: I begin by researching and digitally rebuilding each structure by hand using real-world references. Once the model lives digitally, it becomes the starting point for a physical process, where I create the print. I transfer the image from a simple sheet of office paper to the plate and layer it with acrylic paint. From each house, the structure remains the same, but its atmosphere changes each time, much like memory itself.

My current body of work begins with the Rumah Kutai of Perak, Malaysia, though the questions behind the work reach far beyond a single country or culture. Wherever people have built homes that grew from their landscape and community, I see stories worth preserving and values worth reflecting upon.

Through my work, I invite viewers to pause, reflect and ask themselves what makes a place feel like home, and what is worth carrying with us into the future.

Every digital model is built by hand. Every print is pulled by hand. Generative AI plays no role in the creation of my work.