ONGOING PROJECT IN ANDHRA PRADESH INVOLVING THE CURATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF CREATIVE LABORATORIES FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE AT THE DADDY’S HOME ORPHANAGE IN THE RURAL VILLAGE OF BUDDAVARAM, ANDHRA PRADESH, INDIA. INITIATED IN OCT/NOV 2009.
Nov/Dec 2011
My classes have run for 3 years now and this consolidation of knowledge has been extremely satisfying for me as a teacher and I believe very useful for the students who have retained and built on the techniques they have learned in these art labs. Art is vital for the children’s greater education; it is a subject where they are encouraged and even compelled to think for themselves. I am very careful never to have them copy what I do, instead I demonstrate and teach techniques and then they have to elaborate and build upon this using their own imaginations. I believe strongly in challenging the children, I expect a lot from them and they always supersede what they original perceive to be their own capabilities. Classes are kept deliberately small, 10 – 12 students per class to allow time for a one to one teaching ratio that I believe really benefits the students.
Some projects we developed this year:
cick on the thumbnails
Nov/Dec 2010
For my blog entries from this time period click HERE AND HERE. For more on the specific classes click on the images below:
self portraits
patterns/crafts
Oct/Nov 2009
For my blog entries from this time period click here and here. For more on the classes i taught and the material produced by the students from last year, click on the images below:
photography classes
the alphabet project
crafts
drawing
computer class
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HAVE DECIDED TO LEAVE THE “DIARY” ENTRIES BELOW AS THEY SHOW HOW THE PROJECT DEVELOPED ORGANICALLY ADAPTING TO THE SITUATIONS I FOUND MYSELF IN…
Written on the 9th Nov 2009, mid project
Below was written before i actually got to Daddy’s Home, the orphanage run by Care and Share in Andhra Pradesh near the city of Vijayawada. The first thing i learned was that you have to be very flexible working here. So i have adapted my ideas and am fitting in as much as i can within the time frame i have been given. I am NOT teaching 400 children (!!!!) and it seemed pointless to teach kids who were not already keen (the school already teaches art in its syllabus). So i teach 4 different classes and they have lessons every day. Two groups of older kids (13-17 years) and two groups of younger ones (8-12 years). Am giving lessons to the older ones in photography, adobe photoshop and illustrator, while with the younger ones we are drawing and making Christmas decorations. Am also teaching some adults video editing, and fitting anything else i can in between. Am also photographing EVERYTHING.
Initial proposal written on during the summer of 2009, pre project…
I was asked to go to Vijayawada, in the state of Andhra Pradesh (the rice bowl of India) southern India to organise and develop creative laboratories for children. The workshops will take place between 25 Oct – 25 -Nov 2009. There will be 400 children in all!!!
This will be my first time in India and i expect to hit the ground running…i will be working along with Care and Share with children aged 8 – 15. I will post more when i get there (24 October!!) Initially i am there for 1 month, i hope during this time to set in motion some artistic processes and practices that can be sustained by the children long after i am gone, although obviously i hope to return. More info and pictures to follow next week. Below are some of the ideas i proposed for workshops but am completely flexible and fully expect things to change when i get there, this will be an evolving process…
Some initial ideas for the workshops:
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