FloodART

FLOODart WORKSHOPS

Through Schools for River, in 2018 we coordinated some art workshops among the flood affected children from upstream to downstream of Chalakudy river, with the help of Artists For Kerala (AFK). AFK evolved as a response to this situation as a collective of artists of different disciplines from across India as well as social workers volunteering to engage, particularly with children and youth in various flood affected areas of Kerala.

The workshops were named FLOODart workshops. When we approached the flood affected schools with the idea of such workshops some teachers responded very positively; they felt that children were in trauma, and were not able to focus in their studies due to the stress after the disaster; they had also seen their parents in stress to rebuild their homes and lives.

Thus with the help of eight artists we organised 20 workshops in September and October in soil art, installations from nature, drawing, clay pottery, natural colour making and drawing, sessions on dance movement therapy and theatre workshops. Nideesh and Shibli (School of Drama, Thrissur), Krishnendu (Trivandrum) and Nayana (Kannur) – Dance Movement Therapy, Shubham Srivastav (New Delhi) and Damini Sahay (Mumbai) – Co-founders of MoveVent Project: Dance Movement Therapy, Ashita Mall (New Delhi) -pottery artist and Blaise Joseph (artist and coordinator AFK) were the artists who facilitated these workshops in collaboration with SFR.