On the 21st of January, Grade 9 students were visited by artist Danny Raven Tan, a Singaporean artist, in UWCSEA East to tell his story. One of his quotes is that “We are all created to create something,” – throughout the pain, he has gone through he has remained positive. Along with his art, he is also his mother’s caretaker, who suffers from dementia. Before finding his way in the art world he was in building estate management, saying that he hated his job and the only enjoyment he had was decorating the show flat, this is where he saw the change in his mindset and decided to pursue his dreams. He applied later to be a manager at Versace and shortly after his interview. He was still waiting on the decision, Gianni Versace was shot outside his Miami home, just like that, Danny Tan’s dreams of working for a fashion company died along with Versace himself, and he had to move onto another passion.
Even after all of that, he persevered with admired determination then Danny opened the Tiffin Gallery in 2015 after quitting his job at Lasalle School of The Arts, his home art gallery located in Ang Mo Kio. Then he unveiled his art to the public in 2016. But back in 2010 everything changed, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, of which the 5-year survival rate is 7% according to the American Cancer Society (Prognosis). Incredibly, it has been 8 years. Once he was told the news he did quite the opposite of what most people would do – he didn’t tell his family. Braving the pain, he told his parents he was going on a business trip and walked away without them knowing what was going on. When the students asked him “What were your parent’s reactions after you told them?”, he told us that he didn’t tell them. “What are they going to do, other than worrying. There’s no point.” was his comment that resonated with me and put everything into perspective and shocked the room. As young people in school when we have a problem we are used to going to someone instead of dealing with them head-on. Taking all of us by surprise, including the teachers, this made me realise that you are the only one that can deal with your problems because you and only you can help yourself.
His previous points really got me thinking how we respond to daily occurrences in today’s society. Things that don’t really make a difference are met with “Oh my god, I’m literally dying.” or “This literally couldn’t have been any worse.” However, it’s not complaining that defines us, it’s the motives behind the complaining and how you push through you will be remembered for. Through Danny’s life, he has persevered and is now accomplishing what he wants to, even if it isn’t supported by society. If he didn’t have his own struggles he is also his mother’s registered caretaker, who suffers from dementia. The fact that he doesn’t have a traditional job means he can look out for her while also providing for her. In his home gallery, he turns his struggles into art, often painting about things that happen or he sees happen to him. One example of this is with his ‘No.5’ line, telling us that his girlfriend was putting on perfume, he asked if it was expensive and she
I think nowadays some of us lack the determination and perseverance that Danny Tan shows. Thanks to the various advances in technology I believe many people have gone soft, especially the younger generations, which leads me to ask “could technology be changing human nature?” It is a rare trait in today’s society but after meeting Danny Raven I am re-evaluating what I think and what I do. The idea that he decided to go into the art world even though the odds were very slim is something to admire and something I can translate into my own life and keep going as he has been through a lot more than I ever could. That afternoon I went into the conference room not expecting anything but a presentation and leaving with my mindset changed because now I know Danny Tan is hard as nails and someone to look up to.
On the 21st of January, Grade 9 students were visited by artist Danny Raven Tan, a Singaporean artist, in UWCSEA East to tell his story. One of his quotes is that “We are all created to create something,” – throughout the pain, he has gone through he has remained positive. Along with his art, he is also his mother’s caretaker, who suffers from dementia. Before finding his way in the art world he was in building estate management, saying that he hated his job and the only enjoyment he had was decorating the show flat, this is where he saw the change in his mindset and decided to pursue his dreams. He applied later to be a manager at Versace and shortly after his interview. He was still waiting on the decision, Gianni Versace was shot outside his Miami home, just like that, Danny Tan’s dreams of working for a fashion company died along with Versace himself, and he had to move onto another passion.
Even after all of that, he persevered with admired determination then Danny opened the Tiffin Gallery in 2015 after quitting his job at Lasalle School of The Arts, his home art gallery located in Ang Mo Kio. Then he unveiled his art to the public in 2016. But back in 2010 everything changed, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, of which the 5-year survival rate is 7% according to the American Cancer Society (Prognosis). Incredibly, it has been 8 years. Once he was told the news he did quite the opposite of what most people would do – he didn’t tell his family. Braving the pain, he told his parents he was going on a business trip and walked away without them knowing what was going on. When the students asked him “What were your parent’s reactions after you told them?”, he told us that he didn’t tell them. “What are they going to do, other than worrying. There’s no point.” was his comment that resonated with me and put everything into perspective and shocked the room. As young people in school when we have a problem we are used to going to someone instead of dealing with them head-on. Taking all of us by surprise, including the teachers, this made me realise that you are the only one that can deal with your problems because you and only you can help yourself.
His previous points really got me thinking how we respond to daily occurrences in today’s society. Things that don’t really make a difference are met with “Oh my god, I’m literally dying.” or “This literally couldn’t have been any worse.” However, it’s not complaining that defines us, it’s the motives behind the complaining and how you push through you will be remembered for. Through Danny’s life, he has persevered and is now accomplishing what he wants to, even if it isn’t supported by society. If he didn’t have his own struggles he is also his mother’s registered caretaker, who suffers from dementia. The fact that he doesn’t have a traditional job means he can look out for her while also providing for her. In his home gallery, he turns his struggles into art, often painting about things that happen or he sees happen to him. One example of this is with his ‘No.5’ line, telling us that his girlfriend was putting on perfume, he asked if it was expensive and she
I think nowadays some of us lack the determination and perseverance that Danny Tan shows. Thanks to the various advances in technology I believe many people have gone soft, especially the younger generations, which leads me to ask “could technology be changing human nature?” It is a rare trait in today’s society but after meeting Danny Raven I am re-evaluating what I think and what I do. The idea that he decided to go into the art world even though the odds were very slim is something to admire and something I can translate into my own life and keep going as he has been through a lot more than I ever could. That afternoon I went into the conference room not expecting anything but a presentation and leaving with my mindset changed because now I know Danny Tan is hard as nails and someone to look up to.
