The Royal B.C. Museum is offering a digital field trip in May for Asian Heritage Month that highlights how art can provide a space to consider different cultures.
The field trip is called Art with Chrystal Phan and is an accompaniment to Vietnamese Canadian Experiences in B.C.
Vietnamese Canadian Experiences in B.C is a learning portal pathway the museum’s learning team developed with Chrystal Phan to help share the stories of over 60,000 refugees that found their way from Vietnam to Canada between 1979 and 1982. The pathway gives students the chance to put themselves in other people’s shoes.
“As the provincial museum, we need to be as accessible to British Columbians as possible,” said Liz Crocker, learning program developer with the museum. “Digital field trips are one way that we can do that. Digital programming will never replace actually being here in person. Our interactive, virtual, live programming can be an incredibly valuable experience.”
Phan is a first-generation Canadian artist born to Vietnamese refugee parents, and she has explored her family’s story through this new field trip.
“This has been a powerful experience for me, delving into the details of my family’s past in ways I never did before,” Phan said. “We didn’t grow up talking about this stuff, so to be able to explore my own story through creating content for these online learning programs has been very fulfilling.”
The field trip is an interactive learning experience designed for Grades 4 to 6 but can be adapted for different learning levels and can be experienced anywhere with internet access.
“Each migration story is different,” Phan said. “They can’t all be captured in textbooks. Sharing personal stories allows students to empathize, to see themselves and their own families, friends and neighbours in the experiences of others. This can only be a good thing for B.C. communities.”
Those interested in Art with Chrystal Phan can visit royalbcmuseum.bc.ca.
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