Small Eyes Big Picture
Exhibition and Talks
20 May - 13 June 2005
The exhibition’s moniker is a reflection on traveling- Although one’s own “smallness” is aggrandized while traveling as one is being swamped in a myriad of different cultures, people, places and experiences, traveling inevitably enlarges the traveller’s perspective on life. Showcasing Asian countries ranging from Japan, China, Cambodia, Thailand, India and Pakistan via maps, photos, videos, sketches and mementos, each traveler’s journey was exhibited in a personal way, moving beyond objective documentation to subjective interpretation. Two talks were held in the course of the exhibition in a bid to inspire other young people to have a bigger picture of life as well.
The exhibition was featured in TODAY and “Morning Singapore” on Channel 8. This event was sponsored by Lee Foundation, National Youth Foundation, ASEANia; and was strongly supported by National Library Board, National University of Singapore, and Singapore International Foundation.
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The bigger picture
Student backpackers — returned and enlightened — hold travel photo exhibit
TODAY 28 May 2005
Jeanine Tan
THE unidentified body lay on the railway tracks, dismembered from its head by a passing train. The other passengers did not seem to care, for to them such ghastly deaths were a common occurrence — the unfortunate result of one man trying desperately to cling onto an overcrowded train.
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This shocking sight in the north Indian city of Amritsar rammed home the point about cultural differences for student backpacker Yu Sern Hong.
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Yu, 26, and five of his schoolmates from the National University of Singapore’s Architecture faculty have set up the Small Eyes Big Picture photo travelogue exhibition at . The exhibition documents their travels to places such as Tibet, Cambodia, Vietnam, India, China and Japan — with help from the National Library Board, the National Youth Council and the Lee Foundation.
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These are no ordinary student backpackers, the kind that take their maiden trip abroad as a rite of passage before they enter the working world proper. For these students, who come across as unusually mature and thoughtful, it is almost a lifestyle, one fuelled by their architectural training to understand people and spaces. And, along the way, they also become acquainted with different cultures and learn to look beyond the cushy lifestyle of the average Singaporean.
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For example, Ong Yeun, 26, found his encounter with Cambodian tuk-tuk drivers enlightening. Beyond being impressed by the fact that most of them speak at least three languages, their inopportune situation only served to remind him how fortunate he was as a Singaporean. “Some of them are very qualified people who studied in universities, but they can’t do more because of the conditions,” he said.
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The one lesson that many of them brought back with them — and would have repercussions for Singapore society if they become architects in the future — is an alternative view to conservation and urbanisation. “Is destruction the only way to urbanise?” asked Sy, in response to Singapore’s fondness for reconstruction.
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The 24-year-old spent a year in China travelling and serving out her internship at an architecture firm there. A casual chat with a taxi driver in Chengdu, who pointed out that with China’s long history, what is less than 500 years old must be sacrificed in order for progress to happen, convinced her otherwise.
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“For me, that mentality has always been wrong until what the taxi driver in Chengdu told me. But while it may make sense in the context of China, it’s not quite so for Singapore, which is without a long history,” she said.
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what: Small Eyes, Big Picture
where: library@orchard
when: Until June 5, with an interactive talk session this Saturday at 2pm.
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comments
sy on 25 Apr ’08
The beginning....
sernhong on 07 Jul ’08
Such nostalgic times! look forward to another travelogue exhibition!