Thelma Navarette-Clemente
Doctor of Medicine
Dr. Thelma Navarrete-Clemente: finding solace in art
By JACKY LYNNE A. OIGA
Inquirer
June 20, 2010, 1:54pm To some, the parallelism of medicine and the arts is a hazy vision that corresponds to a concomitant yet casually unconnected significance. Medicine, theoretically, is based on applied science, technology, and actual evidence while art spews from skewed creativity that is subjective and interpretational. And it is from these slight, if not superfluous gaps that medical practitioners dip their fingers in the aesthetic excesses of visual arts.
The seemingly deviating approach of the two studies has created an opulent blend that allows doctors to utilize both medical and art training to express their emotions while brusquely getting lost in the strokes and colors of art. As for Dr. Thelma Navarrete-Clemente, president and chief executive officer of Capitol Medical Center (CMC), her passion for the arts began way back in med school at the University of the Philippines College of Medicine, while she was deep in the throes of anatomy – the study of the structure of living things.
“You cannot finish medicine without immersing yourself into art,” Dr. Clemente said. “I developed an interest in drawing and painting when we studied anatomy. The painstaking drawing and coloring of veins, arteries, and skulls aren’t exactly the training you get for fine arts but it ignites the passion just the same.”
But this passion remained unperturbed as Dr. Clemente pursued a busy practice as an Obstetrician and Gynecologist – contributing to the growth of medical services in the country, as well as rendering service to the nation as a medical student and resident at the Philippine General Hospital during World War II.
Decades later, she worked on fulfilling her dream of battling insufficient health care by opening a modest three-bed lying-in clinic in Tondo. In 1966, Dr. Clemente and her businessman husband, Luis Clemente, bought a lot in Quezon City where the Capitol Medical Center now stands.
Since the beginning of the CMC’s operation, Dr. Celemente strived to accomplish and reach the institution’s corporate goals. Under her management, CMC has been recognized for the past 40 years for its high-quality service and standards in providing health care to the community.
Aside from being a lauded hospital administrator, Dr. Clemente rated three firsts in her career: the first woman doctor president of the Philippine Heart Association; the first woman director of the Development Bank of the Philippines, and the first woman president of the Asian Hospital Federation.
At 88 years old, one might think Dr. Clemente has accomplished all her dreams and aspirations. But she continues to surprise everyone with yet another endeavor she chose to devote her time to. In the summer of 2006, visual artist, Fernando Sena, conducted an art workshop at CMC. Dr. Clemente took this opportunity to rekindle her almost forgotten penchant for art and finally gave in to her artistic indulgence.
“I learned everything from scratch. We started from lines to squares and circles. The workshop wasn’t easy. I missed a lot of sessions because of my other appointments. But that didn’t stop me from trying,” she shares.
Taking inspiration from photos of scenic landscapes and flowers, Dr. Clemente uses her keen mind and wit, as well as her artistic ability to translate into canvas her fond memories and past experiences to fine strokes and lively colors, something that is truly an onerous feat for hobbyists’ her age.
“For me painting is a form or relaxation that keeps me attuned with my emotions. It’s almost too hard to stop especially when I find specks of time off from meetings and consultations,” Dr. Clemente admits. Adept at using acrylic on canvas, she does her paintings in her quaint director’s office in CMC.
“Time seems to melt away when I’m painting. I may not do it all at the same time but when I have the time for it, it usually takes me hours in front of the canvas. It’s been my favorite past time when I keep vigil for my husband who’s now confined in CMC,” she quips.
Most of her works resemble naïve art, a kind of art characterized by a candid simplicity in subject and technique. Dr. Clemente transforms poignant scenes in barrios, parks, and even her hometown Tondo, into charmingly awkward images through coarse colors and patterns.
“I look up to National Artists Ben Cabrera and Fernando Amorsolo but I’m nowhere near those artistic geniuses. It’s enough for me that some of my colleagues admire my work. Once in a while, the other doctors and I mount exhibits here in the hospital. Seeing my works up on the wall is an accomplishment we doctors don’t usually have. It’s very satisfying,” she says.
Although very different in many ways, art and medicine have found a balance for Dr. Clemente that is filled with beauty, humanity, and warmth, “People can’t deny my dexterity. I have delivered countless babies already but I can still hold a brush like the best of them. As long as God permits, I’ll continue painting, if only to leave a couple of canvases as my artistic legacy.”
Doctor of Medicine
Dr. Thelma Navarrete-Clemente: finding solace in art
By JACKY LYNNE A. OIGA
Inquirer
June 20, 2010, 1:54pm To some, the parallelism of medicine and the arts is a hazy vision that corresponds to a concomitant yet casually unconnected significance. Medicine, theoretically, is based on applied science, technology, and actual evidence while art spews from skewed creativity that is subjective and interpretational. And it is from these slight, if not superfluous gaps that medical practitioners dip their fingers in the aesthetic excesses of visual arts.
The seemingly deviating approach of the two studies has created an opulent blend that allows doctors to utilize both medical and art training to express their emotions while brusquely getting lost in the strokes and colors of art. As for Dr. Thelma Navarrete-Clemente, president and chief executive officer of Capitol Medical Center (CMC), her passion for the arts began way back in med school at the University of the Philippines College of Medicine, while she was deep in the throes of anatomy – the study of the structure of living things.
“You cannot finish medicine without immersing yourself into art,” Dr. Clemente said. “I developed an interest in drawing and painting when we studied anatomy. The painstaking drawing and coloring of veins, arteries, and skulls aren’t exactly the training you get for fine arts but it ignites the passion just the same.”
But this passion remained unperturbed as Dr. Clemente pursued a busy practice as an Obstetrician and Gynecologist – contributing to the growth of medical services in the country, as well as rendering service to the nation as a medical student and resident at the Philippine General Hospital during World War II.
Decades later, she worked on fulfilling her dream of battling insufficient health care by opening a modest three-bed lying-in clinic in Tondo. In 1966, Dr. Clemente and her businessman husband, Luis Clemente, bought a lot in Quezon City where the Capitol Medical Center now stands.
Since the beginning of the CMC’s operation, Dr. Celemente strived to accomplish and reach the institution’s corporate goals. Under her management, CMC has been recognized for the past 40 years for its high-quality service and standards in providing health care to the community.
Aside from being a lauded hospital administrator, Dr. Clemente rated three firsts in her career: the first woman doctor president of the Philippine Heart Association; the first woman director of the Development Bank of the Philippines, and the first woman president of the Asian Hospital Federation.
At 88 years old, one might think Dr. Clemente has accomplished all her dreams and aspirations. But she continues to surprise everyone with yet another endeavor she chose to devote her time to. In the summer of 2006, visual artist, Fernando Sena, conducted an art workshop at CMC. Dr. Clemente took this opportunity to rekindle her almost forgotten penchant for art and finally gave in to her artistic indulgence.
“I learned everything from scratch. We started from lines to squares and circles. The workshop wasn’t easy. I missed a lot of sessions because of my other appointments. But that didn’t stop me from trying,” she shares.
Taking inspiration from photos of scenic landscapes and flowers, Dr. Clemente uses her keen mind and wit, as well as her artistic ability to translate into canvas her fond memories and past experiences to fine strokes and lively colors, something that is truly an onerous feat for hobbyists’ her age.
“For me painting is a form or relaxation that keeps me attuned with my emotions. It’s almost too hard to stop especially when I find specks of time off from meetings and consultations,” Dr. Clemente admits. Adept at using acrylic on canvas, she does her paintings in her quaint director’s office in CMC.
“Time seems to melt away when I’m painting. I may not do it all at the same time but when I have the time for it, it usually takes me hours in front of the canvas. It’s been my favorite past time when I keep vigil for my husband who’s now confined in CMC,” she quips.
Most of her works resemble naïve art, a kind of art characterized by a candid simplicity in subject and technique. Dr. Clemente transforms poignant scenes in barrios, parks, and even her hometown Tondo, into charmingly awkward images through coarse colors and patterns.
“I look up to National Artists Ben Cabrera and Fernando Amorsolo but I’m nowhere near those artistic geniuses. It’s enough for me that some of my colleagues admire my work. Once in a while, the other doctors and I mount exhibits here in the hospital. Seeing my works up on the wall is an accomplishment we doctors don’t usually have. It’s very satisfying,” she says.
Although very different in many ways, art and medicine have found a balance for Dr. Clemente that is filled with beauty, humanity, and warmth, “People can’t deny my dexterity. I have delivered countless babies already but I can still hold a brush like the best of them. As long as God permits, I’ll continue painting, if only to leave a couple of canvases as my artistic legacy.”
