Leon Lim
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Leon Lim (born in Kedah, Malaysia) is an artist, designer and photographer who was schooled in Kedah and Penang and lives in New York City. He has been profoundly deaf since birth and his deafness developed his strong sense of seeing. His independence began at the age of 14 when he started to live alone in Penang.[1] He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Rochester Institute of Technology, New York. He competed in the second season of the Bravo television network's reality television series Work of Art: The Next Great Artist.[2]
Early life
In 1992, Lim moved to Penang, Malaysia for high school, Federation School for the Deaf (later known as SMK Pendidikan Khas Persekutuan). Lim graduated from his high school in 1997 took a De Montfort University of United Kingdom program at the Equator Academy of Art in Penang. After more than two years, Lim received a full five-year scholarship to attend Rochester Institute of Technology. While studying at RIT, Lim discovered his passion for design, photography, film and architecture. After his graduation from RIT, Lim settled in New York City.
Early work
In 1998, Lim created his first sculptural installation, The Recycled Head Anatomy with old objects such as bulbs, broken glasses, steel cans, toys, and electronic and plastic media found around the streets of George Town. That sculpture allowed Lim understand about the possibility of transformation and how one cultural object or gesture may turn into another.
In 1999, Lim reached out to various organizations and newspapers for a grant to do his first art project, “What is in the Deaf’s Mind?” with the help of his former teacher, Vicky Teoh. Teoh had spoken to several representatives of the companies by phone for Lim. He received three sponsors, including 500 cans of acrylic colors from the Hai Kuang Sdn. Bhd, a manufacturer of Pelaka paints; old newspapers and grants from the two local newspapers, The Star (Malaysia) and The Sun (Malaysia). Lim directed 80 deaf students of ages 8–16 to make a big canvas by using old newspapers and to paint their faces and bodies to express their own worlds onto canvas.
Recent work
Lim has been creating works ranging from paintings and sculptures to interior/architectural models and graphic design to multimedia and art installations and photographs. The solo voyager, who has traveled to more than 33 countries worldwide, often explores themes of heritage preservation, social segregation, mortality, interactive communication, and the politics of identity and culture. His voyages inspired his work which is an investigation of the diversity of human expression, built environment, sociological experience, and cross-cultural experience.
byRIT.png)
byRIT-1.png)
In addition to his artistic pursuits, Lim has participated in heritage-conservation research and gave a lecture of "George Town Contemporary" at Penang Heritage Centre, George Town, Penang (Pusat Warisan Pulau Pinang) with the help of Khoo Salma. Also, Lim served as an Art Director and Set Designer in US-based film production for short movies.