Blog from Abroad: Denise Kaw from Hong Kong
Denise Kaw is a third-year BA/MT student in the Curry School of Education’s five-year program where she is studying to earn a bachelors degree in studio art and a masters in special education. This semester she is studying abroad at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She is the first student to participate in the University of Virginia’s new studio art exchange program with CUKH. Click here, here and here for her previous posts.
Jan. 24, 2009: I can’t believe that I’m on holiday again! We just started school and now it’s Lunar New Year! Oh, I’m not complaining, but just amazed at how fast this month as been going! I’m leaving on Sunday morning, in about 12 hours, to Kunming, where I will meet my brother and my parents for the holiday. I will be traveling for seven days and return to CUHK on the 31st.
My painting classes have been great so far. I’ve attached a few photos from class. On Mondays I have Xieyi from 12:30 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. Yes, It’s almost four hours long; it’s insane. I’ve never had a class that long. Xieyi is taught in Cantonese by Professor Tong. Usually we start the class off with each student handing in their homework to the professor. He then goes over what are the strengths and what needs improvements. Then he teaches a couple new techniques then we have free time to practice. Then again he lectures for a little bit, then we get the rest of class to practice. In Xieyi we do more landscapes. Right now we’re working trees — how to paint leaves, trees, texture, and roots.
Gongbi has a pretty similar structure as well. Gongbi is on Wednesdays from 2:30 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. taught in Mandarin by Professor Zhou. However we work more on figures, drawing people and monsters.
How do I understand the teachers even if I don’t speak any Cantonese or Mandarin? The teachers have assigned a student to translate what the professor is saying and the professors do speak English, so when I turn in my homework they both speak to me in English.
Unlike the painting classes that I’ve taken in U.Va., the teachers teach us by showing us works of master artists and we are asked to copy the painting. It’s like the teacher giving us any of Monet’s paintings and asking us to copy it. They believe that by copying the masters, you can learn the techniques. Once you’ve mastered the techniques you can start to do you own work. It’s an interesting concept because I’m so used to working from still life or coming up with my own compositions and ideas.
I’m off to bed, got an early start tomorrow; wouldn’t want to sleep through my flight.
HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR~!!
(The first couple photos are from Xieyi and the last couple from Gonbi)
Here are some photos:
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Omar Bohsali | January 28, 2009 @ 10:33 am
sounds awesome! enjoy the vacation.