Lighthouse Capital Project News - April 2016

CAPITAL PROJECT NEWS APR 16

DRAWING INSPIRATION: RED CROSS REFUGEES AT LIGHTHOUSE

www.lighthousepoole.co.uk

Drawing inspiration I love Lighthouse. I love what happens here, I love the things I see here and I love what can be achieved here. It is a place of possibilities, a proving ground for ideas, somewhere that amazing things can – and frequently do – happen.

But what I love most is that, even with all that incredible stuff going on, I’m still surprised by Lighthouse and every so often I’ll see something that stops me in my tracks and makes me take stock of what we’re doing here.

The art project ran in partnership with British Red Cross and artist Peter Sheridan is one such example. It is remarkable how something as simple as drawing, making lines on a page, can have the most profound effect on a person’s life. In this issue we have been fortunate enough to share the first-hand account of one Iraqi woman who came to this country as a refugee several years ago and, with no hope of doing so, was able to re-connect with her ability to draw.

Over the course of three workshops at Lighthouse and with the help of Peter and the British Red Cross refugee services in Dorset she found the calm and confidence to pick up a pencil again and make a difference to her world – an act of optimism when it had been in short supply.

Behind the headlines and often hidden by statistics are the stories of the people that find themselves in a strange country thousands of miles from home looking to strangers for assistance as they rebuild and start again. If Lighthouse can part to play in that process then we must do so because Lighthouse is a safe place where people can re-engage with creativity and perhaps generate some distance between themselves and the rest of their lives.

There is much to be excited about in the changes that are happening around us, but perhaps the most thrilling thing of all is that with these improvements Lighthouse will be more able than ever to continue making a positive difference to the wider community, wherever it comes from.

Elspeth McBain, Chief Executive, Lighthouse

Show of strength Nobody who saw the exhibition of artwork made by refugees at Lighthouse could fail to have been moved, humbled and even inspired by the results.

In partnership with British Red Cross and Lighthouse, artist Peter Sheridan hosted three workshops for 14 budding artists most of whom were refugees and their work was displayed in the Mezzanine Gallery.

The art project was set up to help the refugees improve their drawing skills and develop relationships in the local art community, but also to act as a coping mechanism to provide an outlet in which to express some of their stories.

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron visited the group and spent time talking to a number of participants including a couple from the Darfur region of Sudan who are doctors but with their five children had fled the fighting in their homeland. They’re now working to improve their English and pass the General Medical Council exams so they can practice and help people in the UK. “We’re hard workers and we’ve spent a lot of time studying.

We don’t want to waste all that. We want to do something positive and not just receive benefits. We want to improve our life, gain more experience and help our children achieve their dreams,” they said.

“Nobody’s going to risk their life without a jolly good reason – and they did not take these dangerous, death-defying journeys to sit and scrounge benefits,” said Mr Farron during his visit.

Just as every refugee has their own story to tell, so their participation in the art project affected them in different ways. Some undoubtedly found it a confidence-boosting, cathartic experience and a chance for their voice to be heard, but for others it had far more prosaic benefits, representing the start of a new hobby for instance.

Now I want to draw again The first drawing I ever did was when I was 10 years old; I drew a portrait of my father from his ID card. It was so good that my family asked me to do it again because they couldn’t believe I had done it. I drew it again on the same paper. I kept this drawing because it was precious to me and I never stopped drawing. I decorated my bedroom walls with drawings; it was amazing. I kept all my drawings and magazines until I was 18 years old.

In my first year of university, some gunmen broke into our home looking for my father and brother. Only my mother and sister were there. The gunmen wouldn’t leave until my father and brother returned to our home. They planned to kill them. I went to my grandparents house where my father was hiding. I wanted to go home to see my mother and sister and get my drawings, all the drawings I had done since that first portrait of my father. I begged my father to let me go, reasoning that the gunmen never hurt women, only men. He reluctantly agreed.

The next day we started packing all our valuables to make an escape – our clothes, passports, money and all of my drawings. Early that morning we packed the car with everything we could and slowly made our escape. Suddenly four cars full of armed men surrounded us. We locked the doors. ‘We will drag you out of there!’ they shouted. All my life was in the car. I hid my mobile phone, held my drawing in my arms and got out of the car. They pulled the drawings from my hand and threw them back into the car. ‘Don’t take anything with you!’ they shouted. ‘You are not getting the car back until your father and brother come here’.

We returned home and every 30 minutes the men returned.

They took money and handbags with all of our personal belongings in them. We argued with them to let us leave, they wanted to take the house keys to lock us in but my mother rushed us all in and locked us inside the house. We were stuck in the house for three days, we couldn’t go out and we didn’t know what to do.

On the third day we planned another escape. We took food and started running for the taxi. We were so scared. We didn’t

know if the taxi driver was with the gunmen or not. We took the taxi to another area and then changed taxi in case they were following us. We asked the second taxi to drop us in a different area and from there we ran to my grandmother’s house. When we arrived, we were exhausted.

We had to live separately to stay safe. I went back to my studying at the university. I had to borrow clothes from my aunt and my grandmother’s neighbours. It seems silly but I didn’t have simple things like a hair clip and a comb.

I was supposed to be a fashion designer. I didn’t talk to anyone because I was so embarrassed and besides, I couldn’t trust anyone.

One day my father went to our home to bolt up the door with concrete. Later, we received a call to say that he had been kidnapped. He was held captive for 30 days. I went to my grandfather’s house with my mother where my father had been staying. They called us and tortured my father so we could hear on the phone. They’d call at 3am, drunk, and demand we that we buy them phone credit. I bought a whole batch of phone cards to prepare. Once when they called, my mother passed out she was so upset. I had to finish the phone call instead of her.

During those 30 days my mother was pushing me to carry on my final exams. I was like a ghost when I used to go to university. I was exhausted from all the horrors we were facing. The kidnappers called and demanded a ransom that my mother had to deliver in person. I wanted to go with her but they asked her to go by herself. She was told to put the money in a rubbish bin. ‘I need to see him,’ my mother cried

down the phone. ‘We can kill you and take the money,’ they replied. All of this was out of my control. At that point I felt that both my parents were gone.

After many hours of waiting, my father returned. I saw him at the doorstep and I couldn’t recognise him. He couldn’t stand. They had been torturing him. I was crying.

I couldn’t hug him because his whole body was in agony from torture. ‘I can’t sleep, I can’t stand, I can’t sit,’ he said. After many hours, my mother returned and we were finally back together. From that period onwards, I stopped drawing.

Several years later in England I have nightmares. I always see the gunmen breaking our door. I see myself running.

I went to a psychiatrist that wanted me to talk about my problems. After a while, I could feel the difference talking made. I have no imagination or passion for drawing anymore. I need to look at a picture to draw now. It’s not that I forgot how to draw but now I feel boundaries.

Every time I started a new drawing I kept thinking about my lost drawings. I feel like I am starting from zero.

When Mark from British Red Cross told me about the drawing workshops I wasn’t excited. Mark helped me a lot; he provided encouragement and followed up on me.

I really needed it. He was more of a friend more than someone only doing his job. Then I went there and met Peter the artist and started to improve my skills. Now I want to draw again. I want to give myself a chance to draw again.

Peter is not just an artist, he teaches me. It’s really helpful to learn new techniques. I can see my improvement. I feel like I can do more. Peter’s advice and tips may seem small to him but it made a big difference. I never had the chance to get this advice before. Maybe I will go back to drawing on the walls again! I have more confidence in my drawings now. I used to ask what people thought about the drawing at every step but now I wait until the whole drawing is finished before I show it to everybody.

Why We Love Lighthouse QUOTES FROM PARTICIPANTS IN RED CROSS PROJECT

“This gallery exposes the local community to these artists, their ideas and their work. It allows them to have their thoughts seen and voices heard, starting a conversation that might not otherwise have happened.”

Mark Forsyth, British Red Cross refugee support services coordinator for Dorset

“I felt so happy to see my simple drawings presented at a gallery. I felt that I was able to restore a part of my soul. I feel blessed that I had the chance to be surrounded by people who encouraged me and to have gone to the workshop which massively helped me break the barriers and boundaries that I had in my mind.”

“This project made me feel really confident and it was very challenging for me.”

“I was very happy to see myself there, first time to see my work on the wall with my name especially in the UK, like a dream.”

“My plan in the future is to keep drawing and painting and I wish to send my message through the drawing with the hope that it will make any change.” * To respect the privacy of the refugees their contributions to this newsletter remain anonymous

Cultural glue All the refugees that took part in the Red Cross art project said they were happier, had made new friends and were inspired by their experience of coming to Lighthouse to continue making art. They all said they would return to Lighthouse and recommend it to friends.

The project encapsulates the role of Lighthouse as the region’s leading cultural hub as it brought together people from all over the Middle East who are settling in the local area and was led by Glasgow-born artist Peter Sheridan, who grew up in Manchester and is now based in Dorchester – just one example of Lighthouse providing the common ground that unites all manner of people for all manner of reasons.

Whilst Lighthouse generates some income through ticket sales and our entertainment facilities, this income is not enough to sustain our current offer or to launch our exciting plans. As such, we need your support to ensure that we can continue to provide access to brilliant, world class cultural experiences and facilities for Poole, Dorset and the South West.

Within the next few weeks, work will begin on the final phase of the upgrade that will see Lighthouse made fit for the 21st century so that it can continue to welcome and inspire people that may not otherwise meet. The building was founded on the principle of inclusivity – to be of value and purpose to the whole community not just an elite few – and these changes will enable that vision to be more fully realised than ever before.

Visit www.lovelighthouse.co.uk to find out how you can help.

£400k appeal target

Please get involved By making a donation you can play an important part in ensuring Lighthouse remains a world class venue right here in Poole.

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