Kids learn how to draw, shape terracotta
Learning how to make terracotta pottery
is fun for this young participant
Jenevive Degabe, Lly Mar Gadian, Harold John Agustar and Jeffrey Pineda, former street children and now residing in the PLDT-SMART Amazing GK Village in Arevalo, Iloilo City share a similar interest in art.
They are among the 16 young residents who participated in the two-day Harnessing the Skills of Children Workshop held last May at the Western Visayas College of Science and Technology (WVCST) in La Paz, Iloilo City. They were chosen out of 48 kids who initially trained at Sooc under multi-awarded Ilonggo painter and sculptor PJ Zoluaga.
The workshop, Zoluaga said, consisted of two parts – basic drawing and terracotta pottery, "a feel of clay and sculpture." The kids molded basic objects, like mugs and figures of people. "Through their artworks and drawings, they were also able to tell something about themselves," he added.
Smart Public Affairs Group Head Ramon Isberto said that the Sooc children's art training project aims to contribute to the development and advancement of community art in the GK communities that the company has adopted.
PG Zoluaga
Jenevive, 10, says she is excited to show her newly-polished art skill to her teacher and classmates. Her interest was roused sometime last year, when their teacher taught them how to draw.
Now 11, Lly Mar says he wanted to be an artist since first grade. He enjoys drawing Dragon Ball television characters, and with the workshop, he feels he has taken the first step towards his dream.
"Art is not only for the rich. Less fortunate people can be equally creative, given the right opportunity," added Darwin F. Flores, Smart Community Partnerships senior manager.
Harold and Jeffrey, on the other hand, remember times when they were scolded for drawing before doing homework. Jeffrey says he will be able to use his new drawing skills in his dream career – engineering.
Zoluaga said the terracotta art training would even be useful in a livelihood in the future. Sooc clay, for instance, has potential for a pottery industry in the town. "The training exposed the children to a type of art that is productive, using environment-friendly materials," the artist said. "Molding clay is one type of art that is sustainable in Sooc and at the same time fun for the kids."
A 1998 Philip Morris Art Awardee who represented the Philippines in the ASEAN arts competition in Vietnam, Zoluaga has been active in visual arts practice and arts education for more than 15 years. He spends his free time on extension classes on arts and crafts at WVCST and with cause-oriented groups.
Maria Jane Paredes, Smart Public Affairs Visayas-Mindanao Manager, said the art training will not only hone the children's talents, but also inspire other communities to go into similar projects.
"Through their newly-acquired skills, we hope our children will have a better future," said Herminia Pineda in Ilonggo, a resident of the GK village and one of the mothers who helped conduct the training.
The terracotta art training is the second program of its kind supported by Smart. In 2005, Smart conducted a wood carving workshop for typhoon and flood victims of Barangay Banglos, General Nakar in Quezon Province. This paved the way for a new alternative source of livelihood for displaced farmers and fishermen, who are now known as the Banglos Sculptors.
Paredes also disclosed that GK Sooc will have its pre-school program this year, with PLDT and Smart employees in Iloilo conducting a school supplies and book donation drive. The donations will be distributed on June 22, to coincide with the turnover of additional 20 housing units in the PLDT-SMART Amazing GK Village in Sooc, she said.
As part of the livelihood assistance initiatives for the Sooc GK housing beneficiaries, the women of the village have also been tapped to supply 2,000 sets of school uniforms for scholars of the Extension Research and Development Assistance Foundation, Inc. in Panay. Smart provided GK Sooc with sewing machines so that the women need not go to WVCST, which was contracted by ERDA to produce the uniforms, Paredes said.
The PLDT-SMART Amazing GK Village in Sooc was opened in November last year initially with 16 families living in duplex units. Upon completion, the village will have 100 housing units.