Retrenched twice, he became a nude model. Nearly 30 years later, he has no regrets
Think Singapore is just a nation of people working typical corporate jobs? Introducing Stomp’s new original series, Don’t Try This At Work, where we spotlight individuals with risky, exciting, unconventional and even downright terrifying jobs.
From cleaning up after death to handling bees by hand, the series offers a behind-the-scenes look at occupations most people would never dare to try — and the people who do them every single day.
The buzzer sounds, and in one swift motion, he drops the towel and strikes a pose.
For the next three hours, Lim Kim Hian, a 63-year-old veteran life model, remains completely still as four art students capture him on paper.
When Stomp sat in on a session at the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) in Punggol, Lim exuded a quiet confidence as he shifted between a series of poses — some physically taxing — holding each one for three to five minutes.
Nearly three decades in the industry have shaped him into someone who is bold, confident and proud in his own skin.
But behind that confidence lies a career marked by immense vulnerability, stigma and one deeply traumatic experience.
‘It was like I lost my pride just for money’
Lim told Stomp he never intended to become a life model.
After being retrenched twice, in 1998 and 1999, from his job as a paintbox designer at a production company that made films and corporate videos, he found himself in search of work.
It was his then-girlfriend who chanced upon an article in the newspaper featuring a teacher who posed as a life model for artists.
The article included the contact numbers for the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) and Laselle College of the Arts, prompting Lim to reach out.
“Why not?” he thought, assuming the job simply involved posing and perhaps, at most, going topless.
Having won the Senior Manhunt Singapore pageant in 1999 and done commercial modelling for a few months, he figured he already had some relevant experience.
His first session, however, came as a shock when he was told by a teacher to strip naked.
“He pointed to my underwear and told me to take it off too. That was my lifeline,” Lim recalled with a sheepish laugh, adding that he did not even go topless at home.
With his eyes squeezed shut, teeth clenched and heart pounding, he reluctantly removed his underwear.
Instinctively, he tried to cover himself, but before he knew it, the teacher adjusted his posture — pulling back his shoulders, angling his body and positioning one leg forward.
“I was so humiliated. It was like I lost everything — my pride — just for money,” he said.
Despite the ordeal, requests for his services soon began pouring in. Before long, he was booked for five to six sessions a week.
Though reluctant to continue, Lim felt he had little choice. At 36 and freshly retrenched, he desperately needed the income.
Over the next few years, he worked full-time as a life model, determined to save enough money to further his studies. At his peak, he earned between $5,000 and $6,000 a month.
Having only an O-Level qualification at the time, Lim eventually moved to Perth, Australia, in 2003, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in hospitality and resort management.
Even while studying there, he continued life modelling.
After returning to Singapore in 2007, he took up a full-time role as a training officer at The Soup Spoon. But by mid-2010, growing demand for his services prompted him to leave the job and return to life modelling.
He was molested on the job
While everything eventually worked out, the journey was far from easy.
Lim recalled an incident in 2002 when he said he was molested by an art teacher during a life drawing session.
According to Lim, a student had difficulty sketching part of his thigh because his genitals were blocking the view. Without asking for permission, the teacher approached him and lifted his genitals aside.
“I was so shocked,” he said, recalling that both he and the student gasped.
He alleged that the teacher appeared unfazed and replied: “Why? I’m a guy, you’re a guy. I cannot do that?”
Lim also claimed that the teacher made him continue posing in a kneeling position for the next hour, which he described as painful.
He never reported the incident. “Who will believe me? A man got molested at work?”
The experience left him withdrawn, he said, and he refused to work with that particular art institution again.
The incident also changed how he approached future sessions.
Since then, Lim has established clear boundaries for life drawing sessions. Anyone in the studio must first seek his permission before approaching or touching him.
If a pose needs adjusting for artistic purposes, he should be the one making the adjustment himself.
People think nude modelling is a ‘dirty’ job
The stigma surrounding life modelling proved just as difficult.
Lim recalled an encounter with a group of women who questioned why he had chosen such a profession.
According to him, they described the job as “dirty” and told him he should find a “proper” job, saying that even sweeping floors was better than being a life model.
“I had tears in my eyes,” he said, adding that he already felt so “naked and vulnerable” before being met with remarks like those.
He added that many people do not view life modelling as a legitimate profession, with some believing it is work only criminals would do.
Even Lim’s mother remains unaware that he works as a life model. His late father believed he only did commercial modelling.
Outside the arts community, he rarely tells people what he does for a living, fearing they may not understand the profession.
Despite it all, Lim said he remained committed, striving to stay mentally strong and deliver what he calls “quality work”.
Although there were many occasions when he cried in silence and contemplated giving up, the steady demand for his services reassured him that he was doing something right.
Beating the stereotypes
At the height of his career, Lim typically had at least four sessions a week, with his busiest periods bringing seven to 12 sessions. These days, he has scaled back to around two sessions a week.
Even at 63, he remains fit and active. He goes to the gym four times a week, and also swims and practises yoga regularly.
Outside of life modelling, he has been conducting a church choir for more than 20 years and has spent the past six years as a principal stakeholder in a bespoke curtains and blinds business.
“I’m like a household name in this industry as I’ve been here for decades,” Lim chuckled, adding that he is proud to call himself a life model.
Although the early years were difficult, he has no regrets about persevering and feels “blessed and honoured” to have been able to help generations of artists and students develop their craft.
“I respected the industry and the industry, in return, respected me,” he said. “That’s how I survived all those years.”
Asked whether he plans to retire, Lim answered without hesitation: “No, I don’t plan on stopping.”
He believes beauty does not fade with age. Older people, he said, possess their own unique beauty — in their skin, posture, facial features and the aura they carry.
“So, as long as they want me, I’ll still be here,” he said with a smile.
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