Hands On Art Workshops - Kakuma and Kalobeyei
Group Portrait 2024
Written and edited by Margaret Wilbanks Plemenos and Lisa Milroy of Hands On
On September 21st I was thrilled to attend the opening of ‘Group Portrait 2024’ at the m2 gallery in Peckham, London. The artwork in the exhibit was produced by refugee students of Hands On Art Workshops, a UK-based art educational initiative founded by artist and art educator Lisa Milroy and her fellow Co-director Stephanie Nebbia. Operating in Kakuma Refugee Camp and Kalobeyei Settlement in Kenya with support from UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, Hands On collaborates with artists to create art-based programmes that provide learners the opportunity to explore and develop their creative skills.
m2 gallery in London exhibiting Group Portrait 2024
“Group Portrait 2024” was the inaugural exhibition that launched The Hands On m2 Gallery in Kakuma in 2024, produced by Hands On to showcase the brilliant artwork created by learners in the programme in Kakuma and Kalobeyei, and advocate the importance of art education. The Hands On m2 Gallery is based on the m2 gallery in south London, conceived & designed by the late British architect Ken Taylor and artist Julia Manheim, Director. Windle International Kenya oversaw the construction process of the Hands On m2 Gallery in Kakuma. The “Group Portrait 2024” exhibition restaged in London offers the UK audience a chance to enjoy the wonderful talent and creativity of learners in Kakuma and Kalobeyei.
Windle International Kenya is a key implementing parter of Hands On Art Workshops, in conjunction with the UNHCR, Colart, Finn Church Aid, Book Aid International, Vodafone Foundation and the Slade School of Fine Art, University College London. Lisa and Stephanie travel to Kakuma and Kalobeyei on mission visits regularly with support from UNHCR and WIK and deliver in-person workshops to learners, as well as mentor and coach young artists in their role as Hands On Coach to do the same. The Hands On Art Workshops Manual featuring a wide range of workshops devised by artists and significant donations of art materials from Colart help facilitate delivery of the programme in a community learning centre and 11 school art clubs throughout the academic year.
Group Portrait 2024
The aim of Hands On Art Workshops is to support and encourage creative and imaginative thinking, engagement and exchange between artists and students around the globe Through Hands On, students can develop their creative skills through drawing, painting, performance, photography, video, object-making and creative writing, and aspects of functional design. Alongside the workshops, Hands On offers a scholarship that covers secondary school tuition in support of education for girls as well as bursaries that offer opportunities for the Hands On Coaches to further develop their talent, skills and knowledge, including a Cultural Research Trip to Nairobi to visit museums and connect with local artists.
Windle International looks forward to continued collaboration with Hands On Art Workshops and further opportunities to provide refugee students with time and space for artistic exploration. For further information about this project, please click here.
The m2 gallery space in Kakuma, Kenya. Photo courtesy of UCL and Hands On Art Workshops.