Cambodia
is rebuilding its educational institutions following years of civil
war and unrest. The skill levels and research experience of graduates
from Universities in Cambodia is still low. In addition, graduates
find few opportunities to use the knowledge and skills which they
have managed to learn, and even fewer possibilities to continue
their studies, thus expanding their capabilities as scholars and
researchers.
Within
this climate, Reyum is committed to offering research opportunities
and ongoing training to recent University graduates. As each research
project moves from an initial period of fieldwork and investigation
towards its final public presentation in the form of an exhibition
and a publication, our researchers learn a wide variety of practical
and intellectual skills. In addition to gaining much needed experience
in field and archival research, they learn to process the information
which they have gathered into coherent and accessible texts which
serve as the base for our books and exhibitions. The acquisition
of practical skills such as interviewing, information organization,
computer use, and publication and exhibition design, is complimented
by a broader intellectual training in which researchers increase
their capacities to think creatively.
Ongoing
research projects at Reyum consider topics such as:
1- |
Traditional tools and the changes which
modernization brings to
habits and ways of using things.
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2- |
Kbach, the unique ornamental language used in many forms of visual
arts in Cambodia.
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3- |
Traditional painting and the representational canon
through which characters and stories are presented.
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4- |
Local histories, individual recollections and the
relation of such informal memories to official
histories. |
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