Bongaigaon (CBCI News): A team of artists under the aegis of Art.i, concluded a weeklong art camp, March 10-16, titled ‘Art for Peace’ in the three districts of Bongaigaon, Kokrajhar and Chirang, in Lower Assam, which were affected by ethnic clashes recently.
Six artists from four states trained and worked with over 650 students in relief camps, schools and hostels spread across the three districts under the Bodo Territorial Council, in the diocese of Bongaogaon. The programme was supported by Caritas- India, the social wing of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI). Caritas has been actively involved in relief and peace efforts in the region. Fr. David Solomon, Director Bongaigaon Gana Seva Society, provided local logistical support for the program.
The program was conceived and planned by Fr. George Plathottam sdb, founder-president of art.i, an initiative of the CBCI Office for Social Communications. Art.i has conducted several workshops, exhibitions and training programmes across the country. Rev. Dr. Paul Kattukaran, Secretary of art.i, an artist himself, led the ‘Art for Peace’ camps and coordinated the event.
Inaugurating Art for Peace at Bongaigaon, March 11, Deputy Commissioner of Chirang District, Shri Puru Das Gupta IAS, called the initiative commendable. He said children are the future of society and any effort to educate and care for them is a most praiseworthy act. Bishop Thomas Pulloppillil of Bongaigaon thanked the organizers of the event and hoped it would help usher in peace and remove the wounds of hatred and pain from the minds of children. Fr. V. M. Thomas Vattathara sdb, Salesian Provincial of Guwahati, and National President of Catholic Religious of India (CRI), called the need to invest in the future of children. He hoped programs like Art for Peace, would help remove the scars of communal clashes and ethnic violence from children and help them to become good citizens and creative persons. Fr. George Plathottam outlining the objective of the program, said children have great unexplored talent and they are able to express themselves more powerfully in art than in words or letters. Art has tremendous healing power, and he hoped the small step by Art.i would contribute to build peace and reconciliation.
The art camps were preceded by a daylong workshop for the artists at Bosco Reach Out Guwahati. Fr George Palamattathil sdb, clinical psychologist and Director of Siloam, introduced the artists to the psychic states of traumatized children affected by gruesome violence. Fr. Plathottam gave the artists, all of who were visiting the region for the first time, an overview of the challenges and problems unique to the Northeast India.
The artists from their base camp at St. Peter’s Mission Centre at Koila Moila in Chirang District and Don Bosco School, Amguri, in Kokrajhar, District, visited several relief camps and schools to work with children. In all a total of 600 children of Bodo and Muslim communities participated in the program, which included individual paining works, classes, and public community works of art on school walls. The artists worked hand in hand with the children creating many attractive works of art at Koila Moila, Amguri and the camps of the riot affected districts of Assam.
The artists who participated in the Art for Peace as resource persons are Harshada Kerkar (Goa), Julius Rocha (Goa), Roy Thomas (Kerala), Muhamed K.K. (Gujarat), Fr. M.T. Cyril MCBS (Delhi), Fr Paul Kattukaran (Kerala), Shri Rintu Kargaria (Guwahati). The artists, who had volunteered to work with children at the invitation of Art.i, recalled the experience unique and memorable. The mothers of Bodo children and the parents of Bangladeshi Muslim children were unanimous in expressing their joy and gratefulness on seeing the artists helping their children to express themselves through colours and images.