The City of Cape Town’s Arts and Culture branch recently held an Arts Aweh! programme for children in ten different areas, providing creative learning experiences and an opportunity to participate in various art forms throughout the metropole.
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The programme started on 1 May and concluded at the end of June.
Arts Aweh! is a creative after-school programme for children, offering a range of activities including drawing, painting, photography, hip hop, dance, performance, poetry, clay and beading.
Children from Dunoon, Delft, Pella, Langa, Bridgetown, Silvertown, Heideveld, Bonteheuwel, Woodlands and Eastridge participated in the pilot project, with over 400 children attending the project each day and approximately 19 800 for the duration of the programme.
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They were shown the ropes by 40 multi-disciplinary creative coaches.
Apart from creating a supportive environment that fosters learning and growth and allows children to connect with their peers in a creative, fun and engaging way, Arts Aweh! also helped create safe spaces for children to work together and appreciate one another’s unique cultures and perspectives.
‘Arts is a wonderful medium to express, learn and communicate. It is wonderful to know that so many learners had the opportunity to participate in the arts programme in a safe space,’ said Mayco member for Community Services and Health Patricia Van der Ross.
‘Although this is the first year that the programme provided these opportunities we are hopeful that Arts Aweh! will be an annual highlight on the Arts and Culture calendar.’
The pilot project culminated in a series of exhibitions during June, showcasing the skills that the young participants had acquired.
‘Few things make me smile more than seeing art heal people,’ said mentor Zach Esau. ‘I have smiled so many times on this programme.’
Participant in the programme, 15-year-old Kaede-Jade Daniels, from Bonteheuwel, said that the arts make him express the feelings that are deep inside. ‘The art I create represents the way I feel. Creating art makes me feel better after….I love art.’
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Picture: Supplied / CoCT