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“After school, I was accepted by Universiti Malaya into a Life Sciences course, and I opted to do Bio-Med, more specifically biomedical imaging and nuclear imaging,” he says, adding that 30 years ago there was a dearth of radiographers at the then University Hospital so he was directed into that vocation, one in which he has thrived over the years. Mohd Azlan graduated in Medical Imaging in 1996, majoring in interventional radiological and cardiac procedures.
His caricatures then revolved around people falling ill, patients attached to their drip stands or lying flat in an operation theatre and relatives grieving in mortuaries. “I was the youngest staff member there and I was put into a leadership position. That was tough. But again it shaped me into what I am today – a person with a strong vision. I didn’t have time to read, write, sketch or draw. I was working non-stop from 8am to midnight, every day. That didn’t stop me from gaining insight.”
It’s no wonder then that his stories are laced with medical issues – Covid-19, his colleagues at work and their challenges, family, death, disease. “If I soak 100 pieces of paper, each will have a unique, random pattern on it. I try to maintain the highest aesthetic value in my work and this starts from each piece of paper being different.”
An artwork from Mohd Azlan’s 'The Specimens: Ballads Of Local Magnitude' series, featuring the nation’s first Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj. Photo: Mohd Azlan Mam Mohd Latib“I cannot fool around with making pretty things. There’s a story to tell and it disheartens me when important historical documents are sometimes discarded, so I collect them and I feel the need to tell these stories. You might not see any beauty in my work. It is very rustic, very raw.