Down to a fine art

HOW many of us have pursued a field only to do something completely different later? Dr Caryn Koh has always had an interest in art and has always wanted to get closer to it, however she pursued medicine and only rediscovered her love and passion for art later.
“At the one-year mark of my housemanship in UK, I felt I was pulling myself very thin and felt that I couldn’t do it anymore. My then boyfriend now husband really encouraged me at that time. He advised me to finish the second year and then really think if this is the choice I want to make.
“I already had all the consequences in my mind, but medicine wasn’t something I had passion in although many things could go well for me. I would have a perfect life, but I just couldn’t see a future in it,” she said.
Koh has always been actively pursuing art since she was a kid from going to art classes to painting murals in primary and secondary school as well as joining creative activities such as cheerleading and choreographing dance in university.
When she returned to Malaysia, she thought things through, talked to people and went around looking at the art scene. But a part of her felt guilty that maybe she should be safe that she tried to apply for a job in the pharmaceutical industry and even considered doing housemanship here.
“At that time I didn’t know what decision I should make. I felt I couldn’t go through medicine completely, but the other part is uncertain. Everything about art excites me so I did different projects and work to try to understand myself. I was starting over and am still starting over,” she said.
“Being a self-taught artist, I wanted to understand more about arts so I enrolled in a fine arts course at Dasein Academy of Art which I will be completing in a few months. It was my way of recognising and understanding what I need to bridge the gap. There are many ways of art making and I want to explore, and I felt the course was benefi\cial for me.
“Art is not just paintings and drawings, but also print making and sculpting; how to critically think of your subject and how you want to represent it. My art is still evolving and I am still discovering certain artworks and aspects of myself that wasn’t there before,” she added.
Koh draws her inspiration from the people around her. She often observes her surroundings and is always analysing people – their mould, the make up of their body and their psychological aspect. She likes to delve into the theme of life and death as well as social issues and her stand on it.
“In a way, I want to fuse what I learned from my medical days to my artwork. I feel I can offer a different perspective of that. When I draw I get to deliver a message that is deeper than myself, even for the audience themselves. My work can sometimes be quite grim, but I always put in other elements to represent what I want to say,” she said.
When experiencing an artist’s block, Koh tries to overcome it by continuously working, and taking the time to read and seeing art shows to relax her mind again. She said the main thing is to not be too frustrated. When you sit down again, your artwork may become different and you can get to where you want to go.
“Be fearless,” advised Koh to those who want to pursue art. “Practise it freely and don’t let anything hold you back on what you want to express. Make it your ambition, understand the necessary steps to make it happen and pursue it. You may not discover it right away, but art is always a self discovery.”
Koh said she will stick to art and is focusing on her growth. Having self published two books, she plans to publish an illustrative book to tell the story of each artwork. She is also doing illustrations for Buku Fixi’s latest book which will be launched in April, and some of her artworks will be displayed at an upcoming exhibition in March which will be held at Hin Bus Depot, Penang.