Stimulus/Rationale:
Creative activities and artistic work in general are known to be effective methods of psychological relief and emotional stabilisation. They can also be powerful tools to bring together residents from different origins and backgrounds. The city of Lutsk teamed up with local NGO "Imago" to design and implement a series of animation workshops targeting youth.
Process:
Workshops were designed and delivered to explain children to what animation was, how to create their own short cartoons and animate characters, how to deal with anxiety, tension and stress through animation and various exercises.
Under the mentorship and facilitation of Imago, participants created their own imaginary intercultural characters by sculpting them out of clay; they further learned to bring them to life through their own animated videos, through which they could express their thoughts, opinions, emotions, desires and dreams.
Dozens of children from different cities of Ukraine, such as Kiev, Kharkiv, Sumy, Irpin, Zaporizhzhia, participated in the workshops, developing their imagination, working on mutual understanding and developing their psychological stability and emotional intelligence skills.
Impact:
The workshops helped reduce stress and anxiety, release destructive emotions, and achieve psychological balance among children and minors. An increased interest of the youth in art was also observed. The "Animation as a method of art therapy" initiative was implemented with the methodological and financial support of the national coordinator of the Ukrainian network of ICC cities, Dr. Kseniya Rubicondo, and the Intercultural City of Stavanger, Norway.
Key reference documents:
For more information, see: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1135192580424829
