The comforting aroma of cinnamon candles welcomes you into Upadrastha House, opposite the Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue at Kala Ghoda. There are images of flowers, animals and butterflies all around. The Spring Summer Showcase, organised by the Deonar-based Gateway School of Mumbai which serves children with a wide range of learning difficulties, is being hosted here.
Everything on sale — canvases, sculptures, and products inspired by these artworks such as bags, cushion covers, diaries, candles, kurtas, skirts, benches — is the creative labour of students between the ages of 6 and 17, in collaboration with professional artists and designers who conducted workshops at the school.
Indira Bodani, the director of the show, says, "Art is an amazing aid for these children. It helps them be in touch with their bodies, and regulate themselves. Some kids do not like the texture of paint. We do not force them. We slowly integrate them."
It is essential for the school to adopt this approach because the students have varying needs. Some struggle with sensory disorders, others with dyslexia. The school also caters to the needs of children with autism, Down Syndrome, and Asperger's Syndrome. Bodani and her family, which runs the Keshavlal V Bodani Education Foundation, set up this school after they discovered that her son Yuvraaj was struggling with language disorders and sensory motor disorders. He is now 17 years old.
Siamack Zahedi, Head of the school, who is currently pursuing a doctorate in Leadership in Education from Johns Hopkins University, USA, says, "The art show is a reflection of what the children have done all round the year. It is an opportunity for the wider community to come in, and learn that these children create art that is worth admiring. This makes the children feel validated as people who are unique, special and amazing. They do not need pity, only encouragement."
Rupa Srinivasan, whose 11-year-old son Aneitej is enrolled at the school, says, "My son has problems with sitting and focusing. But because of the way the school runs its art programme, Aneitej says he wants to be an artist. Even when he is at home, and he wants to relax, he picks up his crayons and paints, and begins to create."
Neha Bhat, Visual Arts Therapist at the school, who has a master’s in Interdisciplinary Art from the University of Michigan, says, "For me, the process that led to this show is more important than the final product. At every point, it was important to prioritise that the kids were connected to what they were making, and that they found the creative process empowering."
The process of putting together this art show gave the students an opportunity to work closely with artists and designers like Krsna Mehta, Vijay Kadam, Vidita Singh, Michelle Poonawalla, Ajay De, Ramesh Gojrala, Shirali Tyabji, Laila Motwane, Tania Deol, Seema Khan, and others. Mehta, a long-term collaborator with the school, says, "The school does a great job of working with the students. Where I come in is to add little whimsical elements to their work to make it more interesting and appealing to people who come to the show looking for a product to buy."
Indira Bodani belongs to an elite family, and her circle of friends includes the rich and influential. However, the idea of this show was to make sure that the children's artworks were being picked up not because the people who bought them had some extra cash to spare or wanted to support their friend. The school's team of experts felt that it was important to have art that people would actually put up in their homes, and products that people would actually use.
The Gateway School art exhibition closes at 5 pm on Friday.
