An Expedition into the Heart of Art

By Trevor Nichols

On September 8, the world changed forever. For the first time in Dalat history, some art students finally got to go on an interstate trip - an event marking the beginning of a rise to compete with the all-revered Bangkok trip of the Music department. 

As the long awaited school bell rang at 3:10, the art students scattered across the school - seemingly controlled by a hive mind - began to assemble. As the students gathered at the upper field gate, the fizz of excitement in the air could easily compete with the hot Malaysian sun. As we piled into the bus, Julien Goh (12), an honorary art student, holds up a trash bag to me. 

Goh stated, “I believe that Mrs. Nichols did me a disservice by not letting me go on the art trip. Even so, I feel as if I was an integral part of the art trip as I contributed profusely by giving Trevor Nichols (12) a trash bag before he left. By bringing the trash bag, the otherwise boring art trip turned out a success. You are welcome, Mrs. Nichols.”

The seemingly unstoppable force of excitement of the students has apparently met an immovable object: the seniors’ singing chanting of Christmas music. It was, however, replenished the morning after as we went on our first expedition.

Memebank, the name of the first place we visited, was inspired by the unfairness of government regulated money, criticizing the oddly convenient printing of money by comparing it with the “printing” of meme currencies. Red Hong Yi, a famous Malaysian artist and founder of the Memebank, led our very first workshop, talking of her methods, art pieces, and life story, as well as about the importance of meaning, teamwork, and technique in art. After the talk, she led a quick group project on expressing emotions and feelings through art.

Next was UrMu, a five-story more modern art private gallery. In the words of Lei Tee (12) “URMU offered a lot of food for thought, and I was a hungry mind. I consumed a lot, and my mind became... satiated.” UrMu offered a wide variety of art, ranging from political satire, influential people, to places. As Tee carefully stated, it offered much food for thought, which the crowd of students much appreciated.

The last modern gallery we visited was the Ilham Tower. It contained some of the most modern art we viewed as a group on this trip. In my personal opinion, it sheds the most light on what art means in an age where technical skill can easily be mimicked by digital devices. We dove into the deeper meaning behind these art pieces, not only in technique, but motives as well. Steven Shen (12) said, “I think it’s intriguing to see art presented in a non-traditional manner, it really opened my eyes to what art is and the importance of presentation.”

The very last gallery we visited was the National Art Gallery. This gallery displays a variety of pieces, sorted into categories, each serving a purpose in describing Malaysian Culture or History. Shen (12) claimed, “I think most of the exhibits are created by Malaysian artists and it provided me with a better insight into how people from different cultural backgrounds view subjects differently.”

Overall, each gallery offered a vastly different experience for the art students, forever changing their lives and their view on art. In the words of Tee (12), “Each gallery had its own style and emphasis, but I enjoyed visiting all of them."