Lim Yew Kuan was born in Xiamen in 1928. He was a distinguished alumnus, artist and educator who dedicated more than three decades to nurturing and transforming the arts in Singapore. He served as NAFA’s second principal from 1963 to 1979, succeeding his father, Lim Hak Tai. Lim trained at NAFA and graduated in Western Art in 1950. From 1958 to 1962, Lim went to the Chelsea School of Art, London, to study design and printmaking. For his talent and artistic achievements, he was awarded the Cultural Medallion, Singapore’s highest accolade for artistic excellence and contribution to the visual arts. The artist passed away in May 2021.
After he retired, Lim continued to be inspired by his surroundings and the activities within the communities locally and overseas. In the work Precipitation, Lim captured Singapore’s equatorial atmosphere as rain falls on a sunny day. In this depiction of an everyday scene, Lim demonstrated his attention to his surroundings, visually capturing a moment of serenity at a fleeting point in time.
