William Chua and the heart of the matter

Dr. William Chua, cardiologist and electrophysiologist, mulls over the day the Lord designed the heart.

“I often wonder if He had a special place in the Garden of Eden where He thought about the intricate plan for the eventual heart of Adam, preparing a corner where He grew leaflets for man’s (heart) valves and plants for the inner linings. He must’ve done all this labor of Pure Love through many, many drawings.” 

The heart is what matters in the oeuvre of Chua, who is also a painter and a sculptor. In fact, his monumental sculpture titled “Puso” (black iron pipe in red urethane finish on black granite base) will be unveiled tomorrow, 6 p.m., in front of the Medical Arts Building, Philippine Heart Center, an event organized by The Crucible Gallery.

The doctor — one of the kindest beings you’d ever get to meet in the Filipino art scene — takes us on a tour of his house and studio, showing us sculptures inspired by escape beats, electrocardiography (ECG), and that four-chambered dynamo that powers our very being, throwing in phrases such as “sudden death rhythms” and “leaflets for the valves.”

“In everything there should be a balance between art and science,” he explains. “Even in medicine; in taking care of patients. Patients won’t get well kung puro science ka lang.”

The heart sculpture came about when Chua visited Sari Ortiga’s Red Barn in Laguna and saw National Artist Arturo Luz’s paperclip sculptures.

“I bought TV cables and had them bent at the Barn, so I came out with small versions and big versions of the heart sculpture. I showed it to the director of the Philippine Heart Center, Dr. Manuel Chua Chiaco Jr., asking him if he wants one outside the building — and he said why not.”

The director, who is an esteemed heart surgeon, was impressed by the artwork, saying how it effectively tells the “whole story of the circulation in and out of the heart.” 

“Did you know that the heart is a generator?” Chua asks. “A power source, if you will. Kaya tayo may heartbeat. It produces a lifetime supply of impulses. God made it so that once there’s trouble with your generator, may standby pacemaker. That’s amazing! I want to tell that story.”  

The doctor reveals that he’s a prostate cancer survivor. He relates, “Before I got sick, I was doing things I had to do, not the things I really wanted to do. Then I got stricken with cancer and had a massive surgery, muntik na akong mamatay. Even now I have to wear ‘appliances,’ bags and everything. I was so depressed during that time. Getting the opportunity to work at the Red Barn, to do sculptures — I was able to turn the corner. Now, I’m actually very thankful for that second chance. Even my family is very thankful for the Red Barn.”

As an artist, Dr. Chua has held exhibitions since 1996 using, fittingly enough, the heart as his major subject. He has mounted shows in the Philippines and in the US, particularly New York and Washington D.C. His paintings have been included in several art books. Heart: Sketches in Eden is a handsome notebook-style compilation of drawings and paintings by Dr. Chua.

“My works are not anatomically correct,” he humbly points out. But they’re artistically sound, we should say. “I want to represent in sculpture the wonderful phenomena that happens in the human heart — hindi basta-basta na lang nagkaroon ng puso. This is something that would convert even non-believers. Art is my way of glorifying God.”