Support for an Exhibition of Children Drawings
Project location: ITALY, Rome
Project start date: December 2010 -
Project end date: February 2011
Project number: 2010-66
Beneficiary: Associazione Cuore Onlus per l’Infanzia
The objective of this project is to realize an educational process, where is it possible to execute the main goals regardless of the location of the exposition.
In fact, a series of lighted totem poles were build to demonstrate the designs and the relative captions that were made by the children.
Those lighted totem poles gave the possibility of creating more themes.
The first theme was dedicated to the moment of birth, and the idea that the child is connected from the moment of the pregnancy in an indissoluble bond for the rest of his life; the exposition course is continued with pictures of maturation and development that are accompanied by the content and the communicative messages on the board with the children's designs.
The moment of birth, discovery of the world, the different aspects of sexuality - love and relations - awareness of one's self, are all themes that touch the subconscious of the visitor and that spurs questions on himself and other children.
This phase of the project was intended to arouse the visitor's curiosity. The visitor, after the exhibition, can understand the extraordinary communicative message that one can find under the drawings of children and the possibility to use that to point out or to anticipate discomfort situations.
The parameter that was used to evaluate the effective achievements of this objective consisted in the analysis of the following:
1. the press following the event
2. the number of visitors that makes direct questions to the responsible of the Masal Pas Bagdadi project.
3. public or private companies that will offer to host the exhibition.
Regarding the first point, the following newspapers wrote about the exhibition: the weekly "Venerdi di Repubblica" 25 November 2010, and daily newspaper "Il Messaggero" of 12 December 2010 .
Both publishers understood the need to visit the exhibition because of the possibility for adults to interpret the discomfort that may arise during children's growth during the different phases of their life.
Two television companies (Rai and La7 ) interviewed the project manager and several web sites posted a link with the details of the exposition and its educational values (Provincia di Roma web site).
Regarding the second point, namely interpretation and curiosity in adults for children's drawings as a childhood form of communication, numerous questions were asked by the visitors to the psychotherapist that was present in the exposition area.
In addition to visitors whose jobs are related to the world of children (teachers , psychologists and so on) , the exhibition was welcomed with great curiosity by parents who wanted to discover and elaborate about the drawings of their children. All of the visitors that address the therapist revealed that, often, the world of school , is unable to be aware of the discomfort and needs of the children .
Finally, the third parameter was accomplished by the high number of hospitality offers for the exhibition :
-the Foundation Triennale of Milan
-the Modern Art Gallery in Milan
-the International Center of Art and Culture in Palazzo Te Mantova.
- the Contemporary Art Museum Caste-Medievale dei Colonna di Genazzano in Rome.
-the International Theatre delle Marionette in Palermo
-Palazzo Reale in Genova
-Italian Culture Institute in Israel
-Italian Culture Institute in Vancouver
The third parameter that have been used to evaluate the success of the first phase of the project, established the launch of the second and last phase of the project that has been promoted by the Nando Peretti Foundation.
The last phase involves promoting the exhibition in other places in Italy or worldwide.
The objective is to allow the maximum exposure to the educational content of the therapist Masal .
In this phase, the therapist Masal will be available to work in the following areas:
- interaction between adults and children;
- close examination seminars for social workers;
- answer to any questions from school mangers on the exhibition.
In conclusion , the association can affirm that the goal of the first phase of the project has been achieved. It was demonstrated that the psychological health of children is as important as the physical health, and at the same time a psychological problem can cause a physical one.
Fortunately, children have a extraordinary skill to communicate their feelings, and even if they do not speak clearly or do not speak at all, they can communicate trough drawings.
Generally all adults, ,if guided properly, can discover this language and understand the incredible sensitivity that already in the early years of life characterizes the human being.
If adults do not pay attention, the high level of sensitivity of children can provoke traumas that would be difficult to get over.
Beside the drawings of children, the project shows part of Masal Pas Bagdadi's life that informed the visitors about the origin of the work with children and the study of the process of children's growth that is part of her life experience, as she was abandoned by her family in her youth to save her life.
This trauma and her life experience have a huge effect on visitors during the exhibition, and it is very important to explain to children the concepts that are very obvious to adults. Children view some concepts as injustices and behave in an opposite ways, far from their parents' and teachers' loving intentions.
