No38-Kyoto-Japan




			Workshop in Kyoto, Japan 1 August - 2 August 1996 SCHOOL FOR THE MENTALLY RETARDED ATTACHED TO KYOTO UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION ART JAPAN

		On August 1st and 2nd, the 2nd mural drawing in Japan - the first one was already finished in Tokushima - was done at School for the Mentally Retarded attached to Kyoto University of Education. The school is surrounded by greenery on a hillside in the south-east of Kyoto. Nearly 30 pupils joined the workshop although they were already in the summer vacation. A canvas was placed on the school yard so that they could enjoy the painting to the full in the sun. Generally categorized as mentally disturbed, we see the pupils are all surprisingly cheerful and bright. They just communicate in a little different ways than counterparts in other schools. We know that they are each of unique personality, and we know their presentation contains a human warmth and fascination that adults lamentably tend to be lacking in at the present days. With this understanding, we have planned to have them play on the canvas with brushes and colors as much as they liked. Kids' expressions as we see them beam full of 'peace,' so to speak. The idea that each pupil, including the handicapped, should participate in a project like this, the idea of thus ensuring freedom and fairness to every pupil should be the basics of peace. HAYASHI Sadamu, principal of Kyoto Interactive School of Art supervised the workshop. Besides an artist Mr. HAYASHI has been running the painting class for kids for years. His belief is that kids can create wonderful pictures when they are free to move and use their bodies. Mr. HAYASHI and the teachers had preparatory meetings several times for the workshop and seriously discussed these items: how they keep pupils interested in the work to the last, what elementary school can do and what middle high school pupils are to be assigned to do, how they relate the workshop with the curriculum, what else they are to be prepared other than brushes to paint. Fourteen teachers cooperated in the workshop, each assisting two pupils, thus expecting their pupils express themselves enough. On the first day all the pupils with T shirts and swimming pants challenged to paint with their own bodies on the canvas spread out on the lawn. Beside the canvas was set a mini-swimming pool in which they could wash themselves off paints during the process. On the second day pupils painted numbers of primary-colored pictures on the canvas they coated themselves the previous day. Mother's face, friend's smile, big animals and fishes were among them. After a short while the plain canvas was changed into a wonderful mural. A mid-summer sunshine was beating on it. The mural of pupils' own drawing apparently represents the joyful, lively and peaceful 'earth'. We can say this mural is the earth we are seeking for.
		ORGANISER OF WORKSHOP Sadamu Hayashi(principal of Kyoto Interactive School of Art) SUPPORTED BY SCHOOL FOR THE MENTALLY RETARDED ATTACHED TO KYOTO UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION PANASONIC Children: SUGIMOTO Sosuke, 7 ANDO Hinata, 8 AKAHORI Ryuichi, 8 IKEMOTO Yusuke, 8 TSUKIMOTO Koji, 9 HIRANO , 9 IWAYAMA Ryo, 10 OKUBO Tomotaka, 10 SUZUKI Kazumitsu, 10 SOMEDA Hiroshi, 12 DOI Jyunpei, 12 UEDA Takashi, 13 HAYASHIDA Ryuta, 13 HIROTA Yuichi, 13 MIYASHITA Akihisa, 13 IWAKI Shoko, 13 SHIOKAI Asatomo, 13 TANAKA Haruka, 13 FUJIWARA Naoko, 13 OSAWA Tkashi, 14 NAKAMURA Yukihiro, 14 MATSUMOTO Kenji, 14 MIYAMOTO Yojiro, 14 SHIBA Akiko, 14 SHIMIZU Minako, 14 YAMAMOTO Miho, 14 AOKI Yasuhiro, 15 OKAMURA Tsubasa, 15 SAWADA Makiko, 15