Concordia senior Hyo Lynn personally organized a student art exhibition at Concordia which showcased student artworks from five schools around Hanoi - HIS, RGS, UNIS, SPASH and Concordia. 

The Bolt spoke with her about her inspirations and aspirations for organizing this show. 

What inspired you to organize this exhibition?

While discussing my summer show with a Concordia alum, I learned that a decade ago, UNIS, HIS, and Concordia had joint exhibits. This reminded me of the Hanoi Activities Conference (HAC) but for arts instead of sports. Now, with more international schools in Hanoi, I proposed to Mr. Green to “restart” this event, which he gladly accepted! In fact, we planned the show to coincide with the HAC Basketball tournament on the campus to increase visibility.

What challenges did you face?

Displaying the works. While aligning them at eye level in a straight line seemed monotonous, we lacked enough pieces for a salon-style arrangement. So my fellow student San (Concordia G 11) created organic layouts that both utilized space and instilled a touch of creativity. Overall, I could only see this exhibit happening with the help of people at Concordia - be it Mr. Green and Ms. Martha’s guidance, Ms. Wendy’s transportation management, or the technicians’ help with installation.

Were there any pieces in particular that stood out?

Many, many artworks surpassed the high school level both technically and conceptually. Although I remember Gomyeongjin’s (Concordia G11)  drawing piece got the most feedback from visitors, including a working artist. It certainly has strong visuals, intuitive concepts, and emotional resonance.

What are your plans for expanding this type of exhibition?

I hope this becomes an annual event hosted by Concordia (or other international schools) rather than a one-time occurrence. Just imagining the possibilities of styles and themes for the exhibition gets me excited. I know a few juniors who were interested in and helped me with this project, and I trust they will start it again next year.

Is this related to your future career?  What did you learn from the experience?

While I plan to work as a curator, collecting and installing artwork is something I consider more like my hobby than as a profession. That said, this experience helped me enhance my communication skills, which are among the most practical qualities of a curator. Making proposals, requesting artwork details, informing about logistics, and answering questions from different schools were more complex and, at the same time, more enjoyable than I expected. It was gratifying to hear from another teacher that she did not realize I was a student until she saw me on the opening day, for how “professional” I was.

More importantly, I am so grateful to the students, teachers, and visitors for their attention to this show. The community-enriching impact of art felt more palpable than ever to me.

Learn more about Concordia’s high school program.

#Concordia #ConcordiaInternationalSchoolHanoi #UNIS #HIS #RGS #SPASH