In the Lotus Blu bindery, the creative process begins long before my hands touch the bookbinding materials.
Each book is inspired by my dual heritage, traditional arts, my love of vintage textiles, block printing, travels, and nostalgic family stories. Just like the books I make, I also have a winding journey that has brought me to a deeply intentional and sustainable way of working.
I travelled a lot throughout South Asian in the early 90’s as part of my job sourcing handloom, naturally-dyed fabrics, silver findings for designing handmade jewellery, and hemp paper products for a handicraft company. It was during that enriching period of my life that I learnt to make my own photo albums and journals by deconstructing and reassembling old books.
Eventually friends and family commissioned me to create books for their own special stories, and Lotus Blu Book Art was born.
‘‘I came to learn that creativity has the power to lift us out of the darkest times when I had an interview with my mortality.’’
Although I have been making books since the early 90’s, it wasn’t until 2017 that I turned to my art during the 2 years I received cancer treatment as a way to distract me from negative thoughts. Focusing on my art was a life-giving practice that gave me a better prognosis than the Doctors did. It was during this phase of my life that I began to truly focus on honing my skills as a book artist.
I believe if we can muster the energy to create (and find beauty) in bleak situations, it can shift our mindset and heal us from within. Nowadays, I savour the slow process of bookbinding, creating journals for soulful writers and artist and passing on what I have learnt about this beautiful craft to those that want to learn the art of bookbinding.
If I’m not binding books, reading them or painting, you’ll find me taking long walks in nature with my dog, indulging in photography, making short family films, delighting in obscure cinema, music and vintage finds.