Inspirational Figures: Filling that Creativity Void

Confession: Dad has always been the artist behind my art in school

Yeap – that’s right! Art was never my forte – although, I must admit that it is probably more ‘fear’ than lack of creativity. I’ve always, always loved and appreciated works of art, particularly those using traditional media and craft. Above it all, having both dad and my younger sister being so creatively inclined made me adore this form of dexterity even more.

To say that I cannot draw or paint – well, now that would be me being dishonest with myself. For the record, I definitely did well in anatomy classes. Drawing cross sections of the heart or brain anatomy did not faze me. But just imagining building a ‘creative’ picture out of thin air – with no form of reference…now that, scares me.

“Compulsory art lessons in school and the exams?? – those were dreaded nightmares!”

So, you may be curious about how I managed to pull off art exams in school then! Well, you see…a day before the exam, dad and I will go through the list of art themes that the school would’ve provided. This is so we could prepare our art materials and have some practice before the exam (thank heavens for that!). I would pick a theme and then dad would draw and paint out the picture. Thanks to my eidetic memory, I was able to take a mental snapshot of whatever he painted, and recreate it in the exam hall with eerie accuracy! Yeap… I was basically a human photocopy machine.

Through the years, incidentally, I came to realise that I have surrounded myself with close friends who are very creative and have mastered some form of artistic talent, possibly as an unconscious response to my own lack of artistic talent.

All of these individuals have inspired me to be better as a person, a professional, a sister, a friend and a lover. I’ve witnessed determination in pursuing one’s dreams – knowing that the ‘artist’s life’ is not an easy one. Through their art, to each their own, the curator speaks to you; the viewer, in their own words. And personally, I feel that art is like a conversation. How we perceive that conversation, can be very different from how another listener perceives it. So having grown up surrounded by these amazing, talented individuals puts me in awe; and I am so humbled to have known them.

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This page is definitely dedicated to all these amazing individuals, whom I both love and admire. Thank you for sharing a ‘piece of your creative mind’ with the world and for adding more colours to the spectrum.

“Art is science made clear.”

— Jean Cocteau

And this is about as close as I can get to having my own art gallery. Some of my ‘creative works’ which I have collected over the years. Happy viewing!