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canvas print on Operation Void Deck
Impressive blog. Thanks for writing
Conrad McKee on Wishing all our friends a Blessed Christmas!
Same to you
waiting room furniture on Operation Void Deck
Thanks for sharing this Joshua, good job.
Volunteering with CAI in Beijing
nk on Sun, April 26, 2009
The mission of CAI (CAI or “才“ means talent in mandarin) is to transform and empower underprivileged youth in China by instilling in them the Four C’s - confidence, courage, commitment and care. Through its values activities and arts and sports programs, CAI works with teachers and students in under-served communities to promote mental, emotional, and physical health.
About a year ago, Louisa and I learned about this organization from a magazine while dining in a restaurant. Their mission caught our eyes, and we decided to join them in their cause, by volunteering to be art teachers in Yimin School.
The make up of students in Yimin School are mainly children of migrant workers in Beijing. Because they do not belong to Beijing, they can only enrol in schools such as Yimin School, very frequently on the outskirts of the city, and generally in a much less desirable condition, compared to the schools in the city. (in China, due to their extensive population, the citizens are given accounts, or 户口， based on the city they were born in, or based on their parents’ accounts. Only in some exceptional cases can they transfer their accounts from one city to the other) In general, these students are considered the under-privileged, compared to their city counterparts. But we digress.
Volunteering to teach art to this group of children has enriched me in ways more than one. For one, it is a privilege itself, to be empowering others. Looking back, I can see a change in these students compared to when we first came in contact with them. They are now more confident, and more cheerful. In essence, this program is rather similar to what we have been doing in YUP and DMP, except the context is different. What we are trying to do here is also empowering youths, giving them opportunities and helping them develop their interest, to open more doors to them for the future. “Just because you teach them art?” you say. Well, its a long shot, but its a start.
19 May 2008, 1428 hrs
nk on Mon, May 19, 2008
At 1428 hrs today, 19 May 2008, the whole of China got engulfed by the sound of sirens. Everyone stopped what they were doing and stood up, lowering their heads. Cars stopped by the roads, sounding their horns. Colour webpages became black and white. The entire Tiananmen Square was flooded by well-wishers, shouting “Sichuan Jia You!”
China was grieving in memory of the lost lives in the recent Sichuan quake seven days ago on 12 May 2008. Three minutes of silence (amidst the sound of sirens) was observed. May those who passed on rest in peace.
Pecha Kucha Beijing, 18 May 2008
nk on Sun, May 18, 2008
It is barely an hour after the event when I decided to blog about it here, before I forget what this largely unmemorable series of lectures was about.
Pecha Kucha, as the name suggests (you can find the background of how this name came about on the web, I’m pretty sure, as it has been widely publicised..) is chit-chat in japanese. The lectures i just sat through (figure of speech, really, since I was standing the whole time due to the lack of seats *poor planning!*) was simply it - random chit chat. Nothing rigourous. Not even remotely. Not most of it anyway. Most of the speakers (except, maybe Neville Mars and Gregor Hoheisel from Graft) could hardly get past advertising their wares. There was even a Chinese Architectural Magazine Editor who presented “How to become a Famous Architect” during the lecture as one of the guest speakers. You may say, “Hey, I’ve heard something similar circulating on the web!”. Guess what, you probably have! It was something lifted wholly off the net, added to it some low resolution images (probably downloaded randomly from the internet too).. Speaks volumes about the quality of Chinese Architectural Magazines or media.
The Pecha Kucha concept is to allow each speaker 20 seconds for 20 slides. This works out to about 6 minutes and 40 seconds for each speaker. As I mentioned earlier, most speakers could hardly get into their work in depth.. Some speakers had to resort to presenting something totally irrelevant to what they do. For example, a fashion designer started talking about how happy and free spirited Swing (the dance) has made her, and how she would like to bring that to Beijing. Totally free-spirited, I would say, but it wasn’t really why I was there at Pecha Kucha for in the first place.
Some suggestions for the organisers: While we could probably talk to the presenters in greater depth after the lectures, it would be a good idea to manage the lectures in such a way where some depth is explored during each of the 6 minute 40 seconds. In this way, all those who came for the event could bring something memorable away from the event even when they don’t manage to catch the speaker after the lecture. Perhaps the choice of topics could be more specific, and included in the event listing, so that visitors like us can know beforehand what to expect. I really don’t appreciate standing for more than two hours only to listen to a pirate display her loot as the last speaker.
Next Pecha Kucha in Beijing will take place sometime before the Olympics. Let’s hope it gets better!
Some interesting links:
http://www.dynamiccity.org/
http://www.makeitrightnola.org/
www.movingcities.org/
http://www.ordos100.com/
Pecha Kucha Beijing 2008
nk on Mon, April 28, 2008
Thanks Jan for the cover! Pecha Kucha Beijing will be held on May 18, 2008 for those who are interested.
see you
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