Being able to draw before learning how to write foretold what she was born for.
For celebrated and renowned missionary visual artist Kristine Lim, “Art is a God-given skill to relay and do something beyond what the artist wants to convey and where the message goes past all known words and lexis.”
She passionately explored her chosen path which has always been her calling. As a multi-disciplinary artist, her areas of interest are painting, drawing, graphic design, film and digital art and photography.
Over the years, she has come to understand what visual art means to her: “There is no right or wrong interpretation. Every exposition counts, significantly, if it positively impacts and transforms the viewer’s life and disposition.”
Lim, a visual communication cum laude graduate from the University of the Philippines Diliman consistently represent God and the Philippines by bringing Filipino Christian artists for exhibits and mission works wherever she goes.
“My accomplishments are not just for me, but for my fellow Christians and Filipinos as well,” Lim said in an interview with DAILY TRIBUNE. A missionary since high school and an art teacher to orphans and marginalized sectors of the community, Lim founded and spearheaded the Artist on a Mission Program & Center to uphold and sustain the culture and heritage of the indigenous people and different tribes.
After being on hiatus for years, she marked her official return to the art scene with a successful solo art exhibit dubbed “Almost There.”
Her works have also been appreciated in different government agencies and offices. Her large-scale pieces are permanently part of the lobby of the Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Public Works and Highways and officially part of the National Archives of the Philippines and the Presidential Museum and Library.
At Malacañan, Lim’s first official turnover of artworks was attended by Senator Bong Go and President Rodrigo Duterte where she had a rare opportunity to pray over the government officials.
A wife to Jasper and a mother to Justine, John (+) and Judah, Lim is an active and dedicated Philippine Navy Ambassador who focuses on naval diplomacy through arts and culture and other civil-military operations-related efforts. “An artist is not just someone who creates art. A true artist is someone who can create meaningful pieces that impact and change lives because it is not self-serving. It is purposeful,” she said.
Canvas and color
Lim created two collections for her latest exhibition, “Bridging Horizons: Naval Cultural Exchange through Arts.”
Her passion and dedication resonate through the Amak Art and Perla de Oriente. The collection was and will be gifted to the officers in command, dignitaries and wives from different nations and participating countries during the 17th ASEAN Navy Chiefs Meeting 2023.
Instead of using canvas, she painted on Amak, a material from tree bark. Created by indigenous people and different tribes, the processed materials are used to cover parts of the body.
The Perla De Oriente carries Lim’s signature style. She focuses mainly on the colors of the Philippine Navy which she incorporates with the national symbols such as the anahaw, sampaguita, the Philippine eagle, mango leaf and milkfish, among others. The series predominantly presented and rendered in shades of blue depicts tranquility, strength and unity.
Lim believes these God-given tools and gifts have so much potential. “This series is just another beginning. I continue to explore and push forward with a belief that this initial effort of awareness will lead more people to move together for God and for his indigenous people in his archipelago,” Lim said.