The Young Artist Award program has empowered two young Malaysian go-getters to take their creativity to the next level. This program gave them the confidence to unleash their art potential and educated them on the importance of environmental sustainability.
Inspired by his mother’s drawing, Aqil Izz Rizqi (9 years old) has developed a keen interest in arts. Through the Young Artist Award program organized by Faber-Castell, he participated in mini masterclasses, which exposed him to various painting mediums.
“I was excited to learn the watercolor technique through this program. Since then, I have been applying this painting technique in my drawing.”
“The final round was the most challenging part because we used various mediums such as liquid paints or poster colors. Liquid paints are my weakness, but I challenged myself to go with it.”
“My artwork revolved around ‘Let’s Look at The Life Underwater’. I wanted to remind people that it’s important to take care of our environment.”
Speaking to Aqil’s mother, Puan Siti Nor Hijah, she said, “It is important to cultivate creativity from a young age. I always encourage my children to participate in various activities and give them the space to be creative in their artwork.”
Recently, Aqil has collaborated with 21 doodle artists in Malaysia to publish Jom Ceret – a doodle collection book. “The program has built my son’s confidence, and he even used the cash prize he won as the capital to publish Jom Ceret,” said the mother.
Wan Nur Syaza Deana (10 years old), a prefect at school, is also active in running and arts.
“I am very interested in arts, especially drawing and coloring marine life， so I regularly participate in drawing and coloring contests. I am also interested in animation.”
When asked about her artwork inspiration, she said, “The inspiration behind my artwork came from the awareness to care for our environment after attending the Young Artist Award workshop. Ocean life especially is endangered, so the young generations like me need to work together to protect the environment.”
“I will continue to create art pieces focusing on the environment and wish to have an art exhibition centering on wildlife protection with my friends during Arts Day at school.”
Speaking to her mother, Puan Salwanie mentioned that Syaza is now more active in joining recycling programs and uses less plastic.
“As a parent who enjoys art, I encourage my children to participate in various art activities and competitions. I support them with coloring books and drawing kits. Besides sharing the painting techniques from YouTube, I also take my children to art museums.”
“As the Malay saying goes, ‘melentur buluh biarlah dari rebungnya’, it’s important to nurture their creativity from a young age to be equipped with various skills for the future.”
Mr. Andrew Woon, Managing Director of Faber-Castell Malaysia said, “The future is in the hands and voices of our children. We will continue to play our role and give these young Malaysians the space to showcase their creativity and become changemakers. We need to bring sustainability into our children’s lives and support their creative interests in the process – with a dream that they will grow happily, live sustainably, and that some of them will become future stewards of sustainability.”