oh Chin Kiat is with the School’s Administrations team and handles projects requiring print work, photography and video editing. He is also the creative hand behind the paintings that are on display at the Dean’s Office on Level 11 of the NUHS Tower Block. The unassuming 52-year old, who has been with the School since 1997 when Prof Tan Chorh Chuan was the Dean, offered to share his paintings during a team discussion that sought to enliven the School’s working spaces with a collection of artwork from staff.

Motivated by the desire to not only portray his reflections but evoke thought and conversations through art, Chin Kiat first took serious interest in painting in his young adult years when he enrolled in a creative arts programme at his church. More recently, in 2019, he attended an eight-month class that was taught by a professional artist. Under the tutelage of his instructors, he acquired the techniques of painting that guided his steps in blending, creating texture and finding the right strokes with his paintbrush.

Some of Chin Kiat’s paintings are on display at the lounge area in the Dean’s Office, Level 11, NUHS Tower Block.

Through the pursuit of his longstanding passion, Chin Kiat has accumulated over a hundred paintings, all carefully stored in a nook of his kitchen. These paintings range from the ‘impressionistic’ style that captures the broad essence, the ‘realistic’ style that highlights specific details, to the ‘abstract’ style which takes an independent composition departing from reality. “I like experimenting with the different styles, as mixing them allows me a greater degree of freedom to express my work. I often paint what comes to mind, and it can be something that is inspired by what I see or read.”

Reflecting on his observations of society’s male-centricity and seeming adherence to conformity, he produced a work that depicted male passengers sharing almost the same appearance and choice of outfit while each goes about his way. The background shows a blend of old and new architecture, representing the pace of change in the times we live in, where society often pursues progress while holding on to traditions.

Often guided by his faith, Chin Kiat also believes in divine provision. Inspired by a sleeping cat he noticed one day, he created a painting of the slumbering feline on paper plane—representing how he can always find rest and direction in the wings of God.

Reflections on society.

Catnap.

He also painted a dream he had—of a boy flying a kite in a colourful setting—which taught him about not holding on too tightly to the concerns of life. “The image was etched very strongly in my mind, it was as if God was sending me a message to learn to let go—like how one would release a kite’s string while flying it.”

Dreams take flight.

Musing over a beautiful holiday he had in Langkawi a few years ago, Chin Kiat shares that his favourite painting took inspiration from a photograph he captured of his two sons playing by the beach. “The orange of the sunset was so rich it stayed in my mind—it almost felt like a moment of heaven before my eyes. And I knew I had to capture it in painting too.”

Apart from Langkawi, there were also many scenes that Chin Kiat has observed while he was travelling overseas, and which inspired him to paint. “I am glad to have captured the sights and sounds from many of my previous trips. These paintings help remind me of the good memories, as all of us long to travel again someday,” he added.

New Zealand jetty.

Langkawi holiday.