It’s been a year of remarkable achievement for Year 12 Glen Waverley student Rohan. His long-term, passionate involvement in the scouting movement has been recognised by Scouts Australia, who this year awarded the keen Venturer the prestigious King’s Scout Award - the highest honour a Venturer Scout can achieve, requiring extraordinary dedication, resilience and leadership. From adventurous journeys and outdoor skills to personal development and community service, the award recognises excellence across every dimension of scouting.
These experiences as a scout - and as a Wesley student, having progressed all the way along the Outdoor Ed pathway from Chum Creek to Lochend camp, Clunes, Camp Mallana and then Yiramalay - have instilled in him a deep love for the natural world. It’s an affinity that found expression in his stunning art installation My Journey, which featured at this year’s Visual Arts Graduate Exhibition at Glen Waverley in September.
My Journey was a personal reflection on identity, memory and connection to nature through the lens of Rohan’s outdoor experiences. ‘Using multiple media including photography, lino prints, painting and mixed-media sculpture, I explored the idea of physical and psychological journeys, drawing inspiration from artists such as Andy Goldsworthy, Tony Albert, Max Dupain and Caspar David Friedrich,’ says Rohan. ‘These works were not created in isolation but developed in response to real moments in my life, shaped by hiking, camping and personal milestones in scouting.’
Perhaps the most visually affecting element in the installation was his stunning landscape photograph The Sublime, taken during a trek in New Zealand’s Southern Alps. Powerfully atmospheric, the piece is a nod to the sublime romanticism of Caspar David Friedrich’s 1818 romantic masterpiece Wanderer above the Sea of Fog.
‘I purposefully took this photograph at the summit called Harris Saddle as I looked out over the sea of fog.
Like in the painting, I stood in awe at the great vastness of the natural world in all its beauty in front of me,’ he says. ‘The viewer becomes the wanderer, gazing across terrain that is beautiful but also overwhelming.’
The piece was subsequently entered in the Melbourne Royal Art Competition and Exhibition in the Spotlight Maker’s Pavilion at this year’s Melbourne Royal Show. Excitingly, it was awarded First Prize.
Rohan’s immersive exhibition was a fitting testament to the adventurous journeys he’s taken in exploring both the great outdoors and his own sense of self. ‘Through integrating personal experience, historical influence and environmental awareness, I hoped the viewer left with a sense of where I have been and where I might go next,’ says Rohan.
Wherever that is, we can be sure it will involve the natural world. ‘Spending time in beautiful landscapes, in quiet and serene environments, provides me with the opportunity to reflect,’ he says, and a broad smile lights his face: ‘It’s also a good time to have fun with my friends and enjoy what a beautiful world we live in.’
