Artbox - Bal Sahyog by Mark Doyle

ArtBox Project In partnership with Bal Sahyog, India 2014

ArtBox in partnership with Bal Sahyog Delhi, India 2014

ArtBox Project Artbox is an initiative created by tribe as in international creative engagement project. The purpose of ArtBox is to provide a cost effective way of engaging creatively with a wide range of beneficiaries from anywhere in the world. This publication documents the first ArtBox project, run in collaboration with the children of Bal Sahyog, in Delhi, India. We asked the children how they saw their futures, and asked them to imagine India in the year 2050. What were their hopes and dreams? What would their futures look like? The results speak for themselves. The children produced fantastic work, and I thank them, Bal Sahyog and Sarah Ahmad for making this project happen. Enjoy looking at the work.

Mark Doyle Founder, Tribe Media Arts May 2014

To support the work of Bal Sahyog contact: Ashok Kumar Executive Director Bal Sahyog Opp. L-‐Block Market Outer Circle Connaught Place New Delhi:-‐ 110001 www.balsahyog.org.in

Photography: Sarah Ahmad

We are happy to note here that Bal Sahyog joined hands with tribe for encouraging children at Bal Sahyog to express themselves through diﬀerent creative activities and also share it world wide through Artbox project duly supported by tribe. It will be helpful in ensuring one of the four major child rights i.e. Rights to participation and will be helpful in holistic development of our children.

Ashok Kumar Executive Director, Bal Sahyog

Sarah Ahmad is tribe’s correspondent in India. She co-‐ordinated the project with Bal Sahyog. ‘The ArtBox project by Tribe took place at Bal Sahyog, a Non Profit Organisation located in Connaught Circus, New Delhi, India on the 28th and 29th of April, 2014. Bal Sahyog was founded in 1954, by former Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, to look after the needs and safety of helpless, orphan, and neglected children. The ArtBox Project was welcomed with great enthusiasm from the staff at Bal Sahyog. Mr. Ashok Kumar, The Executive Director of Bal Sahyog, was continuously in touch with tribe, through the process of introducing the project, subsequent meetings and emails, to its implementation. On the day of the project a group of children supported by Bal Sahyog, who were interested in expressing themselves creatively were called upon to participate in this art based project. Two classrooms were assigned for this project, with one consisting children from class VIth to VIIIth and the other from IXth to Xth. The topics were eventually announced for the children to choose from and work on: ‘India in the future: year 2050’, ‘Indian comic book hero’, ‘My goals and dreams’. These topics were explained to the children; however the children got total freedom to express themselves through this creative exercise. ‘India in the future’ and ‘My Goals and dreams’ were the more popular topics, and the children exhibited their art and thoughts on white sheets of paper quite eloquently. Through this project the children answered many questions, of how they perceive their country in the year 2050, the various changes that would take place in terms of infrastructure and environment, jet like metro trains, flying cars, to illustrating another facet warning people of how environmental disintegration is taking place and what the world would look like in the year 2050. Some painted their stories, of where their present struggles could take them in the future, of where they would be and how would they be, of how everyone would have a home to go to and peaceful lives to live, while others painted their dreams and goals, of becoming a doctor, a computer engineer, a famous cricketer or a footballer, while a few painted their comic book heroes.

The children answered a significant question, of how they imagine or perceive their future and the future of the world they live in, and through all those topics only painted a world that could exist, people, places and spaces that could exist. They described a fantastical world, a fantastical character or a dream they yearn for. Through their art works they illustrated hope, triumph, agony, love and humour. The project was highly appreciated by the staff members and it drew a positive response from the children, they thoroughly enjoyed being a part this unique exhibit of creative engagement and thinking. The second day of the Project was a day of photography with the children, several pictures were taken in an around the Bal Sahyog campus, pictures of children studying in the classrooms, children engaged in extra-‐curricular activities, photos of the kitchen and dining hall during lunch hour, of the dormitory rooms and many other photographs of enthusiastic children heading to their classes. The ArtBox Project in New Delhi was a creative endeavour between two organisations to inculcate a sense of freedom in thought, to engage in a time completely dedicated to art and also inspire the children (that the NGO supports) to create pieces of thoughts and dreams into art works and memories that would live with them for a lifetime. Mr. Ashok Kumar’s (The Executive Director at Bal Sahyog) devotion and involvement in the Project saw its smooth implementation. Tribe would also like to thank Anu Rai (Counsellor at Bal Sahyog), Savita Jain (Assistant Teacher), Neena Shekhar (Assistant Teacher) and other staff at Bal Sahyog who lend a very helping hand during the ArtBox Project.’ sarah@tribemagazine.org

Ravi, Class X, TOPIC: Indian Comic Book Hero

Rahul, Class VIII, India in the future year 2050

Prabhat, Class VIII, India in the future year 2050

Deepak, Class VIII, India in the future year 2050

Sintu, Class VIII, India in the future year 2050

Arvind, Class VIII, India in the future year 2050

Manoj, Class X, India in the future year 2050

Rajat, Class IX, India in the future year 2050

Rahul, Class IX, India in the future year 2050

BudhRaj, Class VIII, India in the future year 2050

Mohd. Asif, Class IX, My Goals and Dreams

Aakash, Class IX, India in the future year 2050

Pawan, Class IX, India in the future year 2050

Rajesh, Class VIII, India in the future year 2050

Mohd. Nurul, Class X, India in the future year 2050

Rahul, Class IX, India in the future year 2050

Ashu, Class VIII, India in the future year 2050

Bharat, Class IX, India in the future year 2050

Vijay, Class XI, India in the future year 2050

Hritik, Class VII, My Goals and Dreams

Shravan, Class IX, My Goals and Dreams

Sonu, Class VII, India in the future year 2050

Mukesh, Class VI, India in the future year 2050

Chirag, Class VII, India in the future year 2050

Shiva, Class VI, India in the future year 2050

Asif, Class VII, India in the future year 2050

Sachin, Class VII, India in the future year 2050

Sonu, Class VII, My Goals and Dreams

Sonu, Class VII, India in the future year 2050

Dharmeder, Class VII, India in the future year 2050

Sahil, Class VII, India in the future year 2050

Shekhar, Class VII, India in the future year 2050

Akash, Class VII, India in the future year 2050

Prakash, Class VII, My Goals and Dreams

Ankit, Class VII, Indian comic book hero

Harish, Class VI, India in the future year 2050

Vishal, Class IX, India in the future year 2050

Sajan, Class VI, India in the future year 2050

Chhotu, Class VI, My Goals and Dreams

Shekhar K, Class VII, Indian Comic Book Hero

Ankit, Class VII, Indian comic book hero