Voices from South Africa

Below are some of the responses from the South African and Greek students, illustrating the positive impact of their encounter through Zoom:

‘Although 2020 is a year that has brought along very unexpected and tragic events affecting all over the world, we as art students did not allow ourselves to stop doing what we thoroughly enjoy. A wonderful opportunity was given to us by Dr Steyn, our visual art lecturer, to participate in a project with students from Greece. We were to make a stencil using whatever we came across at home, owing to the COVID-19 lockdown. We chose an animal as a hero to stand up against any destructive socio-political issue in the world. With this in mind, we had to create a design and create a stencil. My involvement with this project made me aware of many issues, beyond the present pandemic, that were brought to my attention by just doing a little bit of research on this project as well as by observing my fellow classmates working on their task.’ ‘Collaborating with the students in Greece was such a great experience! For me personally, in preparing to teach English and Art, I have often wondered what careers I could encourage my future learners to pursue with a passion for these two subjects. Seeing the Greek students doing costume design within the dramatic arts field opened a new door of an exciting opportunity that I am growing so fond of. Being able to meet new people doing different things under what I thought was a small umbrella of art is so exciting! We really underestimate what art can mean for a child and how far they can go in life if they are passionate about it. After having seen and learnt so much from the Greek students, my outlook towards teaching my subject of Art has changed dramatically from sketching on a piece of paper to designing costumes that a learner could one day see on a Broadway stage. There is so much potential and possibility that my eyes have been opened to, and so much growth and expression a child can experience through art!’ ‘In a time where the whole world transitioned into isolation, it has never been truer that humanity is not standing alone and we can reach out to each other over continents, not only through a common language, but by connecting through art as a universal means of communication and a ‘language’ that speaks far deeper thoughts and feelings than words can sometimes express. In our life journey, approaching people from different countries through social media is something common. Yet, we were connected not only by the screens we talked through, but also by our love for art and the passion we have for creating art. Being able to work together with the Greek students on their project and witness the wonderful talent of each one of them, it has been a great privilege and source of inspiration.’