I want a better world. A world worthy of our dreams.
Theme of the month: Human Rights
Focus of the week: Introduction to Human Rights, focusing on what they mean for the girls, what their experience of human rights are in day-to-day life in Medina and what they understand by equality.
So my first week of facilitating art activities at Meninadança's Pink House has happened to coincide with a shift in time-table organisation from one-theme-per-week to now one theme that develops over the course of a month to give the girls more time to explore the focus issues in depth. This month's theme is Human Rights, and this first week led up to a presentation in the square on Saturday 18th May, a national day in Brazil protesting against sexual abuse and exploitation of children and adolescents.
Project Proposal: Create journals with personalised covers expressing the girls' initial thoughts and feelings about Human Rights. Choose phrases expressed on the covers and develop them into animated clips by creating stop-motion puppets and props. Edit the clips into one animated film, with the girls' voices as the soundtrack, to be shown in the square on 18th May.
Aim of the Journal: To use the process of designing the journal covers as a way for the girls to express personal opinion about Human Rights, and to create for themselves in its blank pages a personal space to record thoughts and feelings over the weeks as we discuss the focus themes. The only stipulation was for each girl to include at least one sunflower seed in her design and as she 'planted' it on the cover to think of a personal wish for her own future that was private if she wanted it to be.
Aim of the Animation: To give voice and visibility to the girls' ideas and feelings about Human Rights. By taking them through the process of developing phrases from their journal covers into an animation to be shown in the public space of the town square, showing them that their opinions have value and that they deserve to be seen and heard.
PROCESS:
Words that we worked with this week: Respect, God, Equality, Justice, Love, Peace, Unity, Freedom, Rights
1. Discussion. Talking about what Human Rights are. What does Brazilian law say that children and adolescent rights are. How do the girls feel that they experience human rights on a day-to-day level, what do they think is lacking and what do they want to see from the future. In daily conversation circles called 'rodas de conversas' the girls are invited to share thoughts and feelings about these areas. Now, at this developmental stage of the Pink House, the team are trying out different group sizes and activities in the circles in to try and stimulate in depth conversation.
(Left) Love, God, Peace
(Right) "The world wants Jesus, freedom, equality, salvation, justice, hope, evolution"
2. Journal Covers. Using discarded cardboard boxes I prepared 50 flat journal covers in preparation for the start of activities on Monday. The girls used paint and collage to decorate the covers, choosing pictures and words from old magazines to create imagery and phrases to express their thoughts and feelings about human rights. They each included their name and at least one sunflower seed, 'planted' to represent a personal wish for her future. Once the covers were ready we sewed blank pages into the middle and photographed each one.
Cardboard journals: A private, personalised space for the girls to voice their thoughts and feelings about our themes, with a seed 'planted' on the cover representing a personal hope. By using recycled materials the girls are being invited to look at the materials surrounds them from a different perspective. Inspired massively by Alejandro's collective in Argentina the Eloisa Cartoneras and Gonzalo's collective in Uruguay La Propria Cartonera.
3. Puppet and prop preparation: The girls divided into groups and choose phrases from their journal covers to develop into animated scenes. They cut out the letters needed to spell out their phrases, and made cut-out puppets and background props from cardboard, paint, material scraps and wool.
Some of the recurring symbols that the girls used throughout the animation process were suns, crosses, hands, trees, homes, clouds and of course girls!
(Left) "A better world"
4. Staff introduction to the software: First up to try out the set up were the educators Kristina, Aline and Maria when I showed them the basics of the Dragon-frame software. Amazingly even our fantastic director Rita managed to fit a go into her hectic busy schedule!
For the sunny afternoon sessions our lovely Rachel became a vital piece of our animation 'equipment' in holding up cardboard to block the bright sun as it moved across the board. Rachel also took a turn at animating alongside the girls, so keep an eye out when you watch the film and if you spot birds flapping discreetly through some of the scenes you'll be seeing her handiwork.
5. Stop-motion animation: Interacting with their props and phrases by drawing with using chalk on a chalkboard background, the girls worked individually or in groups to create stop motion animations of their puppets speaking their chosen phrases for them.
(Left) We want to be loved / (right) I want to be loved.
Many of the phrases the girls chose were profound and I was moved by their readiness to express themselves. This project happened to come after a very tough weekend for our girls. Tragically the older brother of one of the older Pink House girls was shot in the town's central square around midnight of Saturday 11th. As well as the family's sorrow the murder triggered a week of violence between the rival favelas here in Medina, causing great pain and anxiety amongst the extended community. Our girls were hugely affected and we saw many screams about the lack of justice and peace coming out through their work.
It was very sad to see the girls distress and hear their comments about the hopelessness about the violence in Medina. But at the same time it was good to be able to provide them with a space to express their negative feelings at this particular time, and encouraging to see them processing some of their emotion by making use of their puppets to voice their opinions. It was also touching to see the messages of love and hope emerging alongside the hurt, and to observe Rita's soothing and supportive way of being with the girls, keeping the house as calm as possible.
Peace is dead / Justice forgotten
What we want is a better world... where we can live without the pain of an unjust death!!! Justice. Peace. Is the future going to continue like this?
We want justice.
And if the touch of your hands could transform the future
Children are life and security for Brazil.
Pink House Family. We want to be loved
6. Evaluation comic strips: Inviting the girls to reflect on what they have learned and enjoyed or not about the week's work and theme.
7. Recording voice track. The girls spoke their phrases into a voice recorder and I used this and a fragment of the Rodrigo and Gabriela track Diablo Rojo [Red Devil] to create a soundtrack for their film in time for....
8. The Animation's first screening in Medina's town square on Saturday 18th May, Brazil's National Day against Child Exploitation and Sexual Abuse. This was also my first chance to see the girls performing their dance and theatre in public, a hugely moving experience.
[thank you to the brilliant Rachel Alvarez for permission to use these two photos :-) ]
What a week... a very tough one for the girls and a lot of difficult emotions in the Pink House, but all through it what amazing strength and hope and love these girls have. It genuinely is a privilege to be here working alongside them, and learning from them how to better tailor workshop ideas to fit their specific context and needs.
9. The animation online:
"My favourite word from this week is love LOVE"
Obrigada a todas as meninas da Casa Rosa por uma primeira semana de colaboração fantástico.
O meu coração esta com vocês e as suas famílias no esse tempo difícil.
Com amor, paz e abraços.
:-)
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