Photos Sharing of NEC Art and Design Educational Trip to Beijing

Art & Design Educational Trip to Beijing

From 1st to 8th March 2010, 28 students from Art & Design Department, 1 student from Media Studies Department accompanied by 5 staffs from Art & Design Department have embarked on ‘Art & Culture Learning – A Journey to China’. After a year planning, numerous fund raising activit...ies, contribution from participants and donations from generous individuals and companies, including the Art & Design Department, International Relations Office & Students Affairs of New Era College, they managed to gather enough fund for the short educational tour.

The activities in Beijing including visiting the Academy of Art & Design of Tsinghua University, Beijing National Art Gallery, 798 Art District, Summer Palace, Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, Temple of Heaven, The Great Wall of China, National Stadium Bird’s Nest and National Aquatic Center The Water Cube.

The combination of ‘Old and New’ Beijing was an eye-opener, startling to some and surprising to the rest of us. Visits to Tsinghua University and 798 Art District has been a wonderful experience because the participants learnt about the development of Art & Design in China and hopefully it will inspires them in their future undertakings.

The participants also managed to plan their own unguided tours around Beijing during their free hours and they travelled with complete confidence. It was a good opportunity for them to learn to be independent in new surroundings and facing challenging situation with courage and determination. A cold weather (4 to -6 degrees Celsius) made life miserable to some and brings happiness to the rest of us. The unexpected friendly guest (snow) was definitely a bonus and had given the participants the most unforgettable memory to bring home. Although the snow almost made us miss our flight back to Malaysia, the fast thinking and act of responsibility shown from the marketing team of Beijing Far East International Youth Hostel enable us to catch the flight on time. The additional unlisted itinerary was to ride the speed train to Tianjin and hence, opened up our eyes on the development and advancement of the public transportation in China today. The 120km journey from Beijing to Tianjin was cut short from the original 2 – 3 hours to 30 minutes.

The trip is meant to give the participants a chance to exchange experiences and views of art. It is a matter of fact a priceless opportunity which gives a newfound appreciation and leaves a profound impression throughout their life, especially in the world of Art and Design.

Special thanks to Siow Yin Yoong, Head of Art & Design Department and colleagues who supported us to the very end, and those who helped me untiringly namely Loo Chee Yee, Wong Poh Leong, Yeoh Yin Yin, Tan Lih Chyin, Ooi Ci Ling and Ambrose Poh. And last but not least, thanks to all especially the participants who helped in materializing the Beijing Trip and thus, made it a successful one.

Next trip? Tungguuuuu...... ;D

Raha Jaafar

Lecturer in-charge

Art & Design Department

New Era College