Feb 2006, Prestige
Dr Michael Lim Chun Leng
Walking into his clinic is like walking into an art gallery. Framed watercolour and oil paintings of animals, buildings and nature neatly line the walls of the Singpaor Heart, Stroke and Cancer Centre Private Limited. Upon enquiry, it is revealed that a number of them are the artistic creations of Dr Michael Lim Chun Leng, one of the clinic's medical directors who is also a member of parliament for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC.
I've always been interested in art," reveals Dr Lim. "I remember when I was in primary school, I joined an art class. Quite often a lot of the things I completed for art society projects never came back to me. The school kept taking them. For many years I did not know where they went until I met the husband of my ex-art teacher who told me that many of my project works were actually sent for competition," he continues, smiling.
In an attempt to develop his talent further, Dr Lim took up basic and advanced courses in watercolour painting at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, under the guidance of renowned Singapore artist Ong Kim Seng. "He started off being detail oriented, but subsequently his paintings are now more 'loose'. That's probably how I approach painting - by being technical and then slowly becoming more loose and expressive," Dr Lim says, adding that he is a "stickler for details" and that he is "systematic in doing things".
To test his ability further, Dr Lim sent his paintings for accreditation to the Singapore Watercolour Society and was received as a member soon after. Recently, he has been asked by the society to be their adviser. Besides watercolour painting, he is also pursuing his interests in oil painting and pottery making.
Art actually complements his scientific training, says Dr Lim, who is also the president of the Asia-Pacific Society of Cardiology. "Many times science teaches you to think in a systematic way, but sometimes when you want to make things happen, then you've got to think about of the box and that's where you need the creative part of you. By being creative it really helps you to see things that many people are not able to see, primarily because you can visualise from various angles," observers the doctor who made news when he performed the first carotid artery surgery. He was made the President of the Asia Pacific Society of Cardiology this year.
"Also, art is an outlet for you to let out your creative juices and it also helps you to relax. It takes you away form the real world where you're able to express what you want." |
