THE Great Wall of China as depicted on a lantern by Chan Lim.
EVEN the most talented of visual artists balk at trying their steady hand at Chinese painting—an art form that has been used to express man’s desires and realities for centuries.
For unlike painting with oil, for example, where an artist can cover up missteps with a fresh coat of paint, there is no room for mistakes in Chinese painting, where black ink is the primary medium. Just one wrong move and the artist will have to redo the entire piece.
Patience and precision are demanded of the artist, as he or she perfects the technique of producing the desired shade of black or colored ink on paper, fabric or porcelain using delicate brush strokes.
But as difficult as Chinese painting is, it is where Moneygram country manager Alex Chan Lim derives peace of mind and clarity of purpose.
Every week, Lim takes time out from his crammed schedule to either teach students the way of the art, or perfect his own craft, applying Chinese painting styles on different media, not just the traditional rice paper.
He cannot imagine doing anything else today. But that was not the case when he was 11 years old and enrolled in a six-week summer painting class together with his brother, Felix.
While their classmates were enjoying their summer vacation, he and his brother were bent on improving their brush strokes under the firm but encouraging hand of Chinese painting experts.
“At first, we did not take it seriously. We thought of it as just one of those activities we have to do during summer. We did not know then that we would get hooked on it,” Lim told the Inquirer in an interview. “Even in college, while completing our engineering course, we painted during our free time. On weekends, Felix and I could easily fill up the wall with our artworks.”
Their mentors were mainly artists from Taiwan and China. The brothers also brushed up on their knowledge of the art by getting hold of as many books as possible.
Lim also got a lot of inspiration from his father, who was more into western-style painting, using bright and attractive colors.
Through the years, he and other members of his family have been promoting the art by conducting workshops, exhibits, on-the-spot demonstrations and seminars.
They have also expanded their reach by applying Chinese painting strokes on other materials. Their art now adorns fans, lanterns, porcelain plates, teapots and cups.
The majority of the buyers, however, still prefer traditional paintings done on scrolls and canvas, although the plates have become big hits.
“These have indeed brought a lot of excitement toward Chinese painting,” according to Lim, who is getting ready with family members and students to mount exhibits to celebrate the Chinese new year, which will begin on Feb. 19.
More than 600 artworks will be put on display at SM Aura (starting Feb. 8), Mall of Asia (Feb. 15) and Mega Fashion Hall (Feb. 19). More than 40 artists composed of students and three generations of the Chan Lim family will be on hand at each venue.
“Each of the three exhibits we have for Chinese New Year will have a different concept. We prepare our artwork materials according to the profile of the mall goers. A lot of study has been put into it. As artists, we not only come up with new artworks, but we are always on the lookout for new ideas. We were, for example, the first to do work on fans, lanterns, plates and teapots. We are experimenting with a number of new things, and we will launch these very soon,” he said.
Lim’s chosen craft is quite demanding, and he hopes to devote more time to it. But he is as equally dedicated to his duties as country head of Moneygram, a money transfer company present in 200 countries that has made it its vision to service the remittance needs of Filipinos working abroad.
Thus, Lim splits his time as best he could to fulfill his two passions. Weekdays are for work, while weekends are for his art.
“But it can be quite challenging to balance these two since both can be quite demanding,” said Lim.
But as challenging as the work gets, Lim said he would always find time for his art. Not only is it his way to beat stress, but it is, more importantly, a way to bond with family members.
“Painting is an avenue for me to keep the family together, an opportunity for my dad up to his grandchildren to do things together as a family. Sharing this art and traveling to different places also give me a different kind of energy,” said Lim. He plans to put on display 20 of his most recent works during the Chinese New Year exhibits.
Lim needs all the energy he can muster to make good on his vision for his family’s art, as well as for Moneygram, on which an increasing number of overseas Filipino workers rely to get their hard-earned money to their loved ones.
Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of INQUIRER.net. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards.
To subscribe to the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper in the Philippines, call +63 2 896-6000 for Metro Manila and Metro Cebu or email your subscription request here.
Factual errors? Contact the Philippine Daily Inquirer's day desk. Believe this article violates journalistic ethics? Contact the Inquirer's Reader's Advocate. Or write The Readers' Advocate:
c/o Philippine Daily Inquirer Chino Roces Avenue corner Yague and Mascardo Streets, Makati City,Metro Manila, Philippines Or fax nos. +63 2 8974793 to 94
seo tools
No comments:
Post a Comment