A drawing class themed ‘Colour Dreams - Draw Hopes’ to raise funds for poor students studying at the Passerelles Numériques Viet Nam (PNV) NGO took place in Da Nang last weekend.

Young people excitedly participated in the ‘Colour Dreams - Draw Hopes’ drawing class . Photo: D.L

Co-organised by the PNV and the city-based Dreamy Painting Club, the event provided the opportunity for young participants to not only learn to draw with artists but give a helping hand to underprivileged students.

Mrs. Tran Thi Tuyet Ngan, an External Relations Officer at the Passerelles Numériques Viet Nam, informed that Passerelles numériques is a French NGO founded in 2005 and is operating in three Asian countries: Cambodia, the Philippines and Viet Nam.

“The organisation’s mission is to provide education, technical and professional training in the digital sector to young underprivileged people by leveraging their potential and willpower. It makes every effort to help the students develop their employability which will allow them and their families to escape poverty in a sustainable way, thereby contributing to the social and economic development of their countries” emphasised Mrs. Ngan.

The PNV has been operating in Da Nang for 12 years, and it has focused on supporting information technology training for local disadvantaged students aged from 18-23 years living in 7 provinces and cities in the Central Viet Nam and Central Highlands regions.

After graduating from senior high schools, students will continue receiving financial support for their further studying as per proposal made by the Study Promotion Associations and the boarding high schools for ethnic minorities in localities.

Since then, PNV has cooperated with the Da Nang Vocational College to train 390 students. In 2022, a total of 130 freshmen, sophomores and juniors are benefiting from the training programme.

The ‘Colour Dreams - Draw Hopes’ drawing class is PNV's biggest fundraising activity this year. The class is expected to be organised every 3 months.

On the weekends, instead of staying at home or hanging out with friends, many young people decided to join a drawing class to experience drawing lessons and make small contributions to those who less fortunate than themselves.

Tuong Anh, a student at the Viet Nam - UK Institute of Research and Executive Education - the University of Da Nang, said that this was the first time she had taken part in such drawing class.

She added the class gave her the opportunity to learn how to choose composition, mix colours and draw stars in pictures, as well as relax on the weekend with friends with the same hobby of drawing.

“I hope that such meaningful drawing class will be organised regularly in the time to come in order for her and other drawing lovers to gain more experience in drawing and contribute to the PNV’s ‘Gateway for Life’ fund” said Tuong Anh.

Meanwhile, Quynh Chau, a white-collar worker in Da Nang, said thanks to the dedicated guidance of the drawing teacher, she learned how to mix colours and draw basic layouts. She hoped that the class would attract more young people in the coming time.

Mrs. Van Vu, the founder of the city-based Dreamy Painting drawing class, said that the ‘Colour Dreams - Draw Hopes’ drawing class was due to take place last year but was called off because of the impact of COVID-19. People those who do not know anything about painting, can still draw a picture after joining this class thanks to the dedicated guidance of the teacher.

“At the class, you can be guided about how to mix colours and draw basic steps, and basic principles of learning drawing. Class features diverse topics about landscapes, people and life. Each class has about 40-50 people” added Mrs. Van Vu.

The Dreamy Painting classes have been opened at local cafés in 2015. This model helps young participants feel more relaxed and comfortable while listening to music and studying on the weekend.

“Because I work in the information technology industry, so I know about the PNV project and we connected together to carry out the meaningful activity to raise fund for PNV’s scholarship fund with the aim of helping more disadvantaged students in the future”, emphasised Ms. Van Vu.

Reporting by DOAN LUONG - Translating by M.DUNG