HAMIDA KHATRI
creative therapy platform
Amader Pathshala, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Many thanks to Abdul Hassan Rubel, Executive Director and Principal, Amader Pathshala, Dhaka, Bangladesh, in giving me the space and time to work with the children of the school. Lastly, a big thank you to Ms. Jarin Shetu for assisting me throughout the workshop.
Amader Pathshala is an educational platform catering to the needs of underprivileged children from Mirpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh. I was invited by Redwan Bashar and Tofazzal Hossen (friends of Amader Pathshala) to conduct an art therapy session with the children from 5-18 years of age.
For more information about the school, please follow the link:
http://amaderpathshala.blogspot.com
Amader Pathshala
The focus of the workshop was ‘Happiness’ – something that the children had witnessed in their lives or would foresee for themselves. There were three groups of students from Grade 4-8 who were simultaneously been given the task to draw what they considered ‘happy’ in their lives. The session lasted for about 2 hours.
Some warm-up exercises were initially directed to bring focus to the group and provide them a common ground in generating one’s awareness and capacity to appreciate rhythm and movement. It was to create a grounding space for them to get in touch with their artistic abilities.
Many of the students produced incredible drawings showing their homes, gardens, friends, and people most important to them. Children of such age are filled with pure innocence. I find rural societies to have more expressivity than urban population. Honesty gained from their drawings made me enter their soulful territories and perceive their sheer identities.
I am truly blessed to have been conducting such workshops in different places as it brings me closer to humanity, nature, God, and makes me foresee a quiet peaceful place.